How to Arrange an Event This Holiday Season

It’s the holiday season again! For many, a holiday means time with family and friends, great food, and music. Home parties are still relevant and widely practiced even by younger generations. According to Lending Tree, 30% of Americans plan on hosting a party with costs going up to $981 per party. /p>

One of the best ways to enjoy the joys of the holiday season is by hosting an event. If you have never had to arrange an event, you may feel a bit unprepared. Even if you regularly host events in your home or office, you may need to sharpen your hosting skills to ensure you arrange for a successful event.

In this article, we will guide you on how to arrange an event. You will learn common mistakes to avoid and ensure you don’t spread yourself too thin. With these tips, you can have a memorable event for your guests and you as well.

How to Arrange an Event: 13 Tips

If you have hosted a party during the holiday season, you might have realized that early planning helps alleviate some of the stress. For some people, event planning is as natural as breathing. For others, some guidance helps them arrange successful events. Here are 13 tips on how to arrange an event.

1. Send Invites Early

You will likely invite your family and friends to your holiday party. It may be tempting to wait until the last week to send invitations. But your friends and family also have other potential parties to attend. Inviting them earlier is better so they can plan themselves and mark their calendars.

If you are short on time, you can use instant methods of communication. For example, you can use digital invitation services rather than sending mail through the post office. If you regularly see your friends and family, deliver the invitation in person. Sending invites early convinces your guests you want to have them at your party.

2. Settle on a Theme

One of the joys of hosting your event is the choice of a theme. Whether it’s Halloween, Thanksgiving, or Christmas, you can choose a specific theme that fits your interests. However, the multiple choices available can make it challenging to settle.

When you settle on a theme, you can send invitations and plan for decorations and costumes. A theme will give cohesion in every aspect of your event. That doesn’t mean everything will or should match, but a theme gives you direction on arranging your event. You can choose a theme by color or fruit, such as pumpkin.

3. Buy Some Food Dishes

Holidays are a great time to upscale that recipe you’ve been perfecting. You also get to show off your awesome dinner set. Yet cooking for many guests can leave you too thin in the kitchen. You might spend the whole event tired and out of it because of cooking too many meals.

You can check if local restaurants have a specific dish you fancy. You might be surprised they have a well-prepared option that can upscale if your guest number increases. Check a local Chinese restaurant for oriental dishes that your guests might love. Outsourcing can make it less strenuous to arrange an event.

4. Check the Supplies You Already Have

You can arrange an event without stretching your finances too thin but using supplies you already have. If you host regularly, you might have leftover supplies such as decorations and costumes. You could use your current dinnerware instead of buying an extra set. Use a checklist to ensure you don’t buy something you already have. You can use your homegrown spices instead of buying them if you have a home garden.

Look around your house for gift presents you have received in the past. Can you find something useful for your event? Can you make invitation cards using card materials you already have? It could be fun to design your cards creatively.

5. Have a Budget

One Lending Tree survey showed that 55% of millennials planned on taking debt to host a holiday party. But you do not have to go into debt to host a party. A budget can help you arrange an event within your limits. Even if finances are in plenty during the holiday season, it’s responsible for keeping track of your expenses and knowing where each penny is going. That way, it won’t surprise you when you get expenses to report.

Further, if you plan on having a sizable budget, it will satisfy you to see exquisite features such as superb decoration at your event. Include everything from food, deco, invitations, and service providers. Start preparing early so you can adjust to upscale or downscale.

6. Have Some Entertainment

You want guests to relax and have a memorable time. Don’t forget the music, advises Rafanelli on Oprah. Music can set the tone for your celebration. You can choose songs that match your theme. For example, choose music that helps you reminisce if you want a nostalgic party.

Have a plan for music entertainment. A good way would be to hire a local DJ. They can produce professionally mixed music. You can ask for suggestions on holiday-themed songs. Alternatively, you could write a list of songs you want to play, then ask the local DJ to find and play them. Preparing helps you not think about what to play next.

7. Overestimate Food

When it comes to food, more is better. You don’t want plenty of food remaining or going to waste. On the flip side, it would be hectic for you if food and drinks ran out before your event. If you have leftover food, you can pack it for guests. But if you have less food, you will start running around, trying to order food.

Alternatively, you can donate to a local shelter. Budget with a higher turnout as well. Ask guests to confirm their availability so you can plan early. If you are cooking from a recipe, have a conversion factor ready, so you can easily scale up if you have a larger turnout than expected.

8. Prepare Your House For Guests

Having guests will stretch your home, especially if you rarely have guests. Now would be a good time to do minor makeovers. Ensure your heating and cooling are working at optimum levels, so guests are comfortable. You might also have to do some rearrangements to make navigation easier. For example, have a center table for serving food instead of serving from the kitchen.

If you want to arrange an event in your backyard, prepare it for hosting guests. Ensure the landscape is inviting and safe, trees are maintained, and the pool is cleaned. You don’t want your guests hopping around uncomfortably. You could also have luxury portable restrooms to avoid crowding in the house.

9. Plan for Décor

Your décor will be a talking point during your event. So plan strategically. You could start by ensuring your walls are well-painted. You can call a painting service if you notice paint chirping or to give your home a new color altogether. Re-painting is a worthy investment since you will enjoy a painted wall long after the party.

When it comes to decorations, go with your theme. You can have your family help you create some inspiring pieces to put up on your wall. For example, you can do a Christmas tree during the Christmas holiday. You can engage an art consulting firm if you want something more edgy and elaborate.

10. Plan for Emergencies

Nobody wants emergencies at their party unless it’s a special delivery by Santa. Yet, accidents and emergencies can crop up. Holidays are particularly vulnerable to fires. According to the National Fire Protection Association, fire departments responded to 160 home fires started by decorations between 2015 and 2019. Further, candle fires increase by 11% during Christmas.

So you need to be extra careful during the holidays. Install fire alarm systems to detect and respond to fires immediately. Leave doors and windows wide open to allow fresh air and the diffuse likelihood of a fire. Have emergency doors open and a fire extinguisher ready. Also, ensure you observe kitchen safety protocols to prevent food poisoning.

11. Organize Your Gift and Card List

Holidays are a superb time to appreciate the people you love by gifting them. Since you want to arrange an event that’s hard to forget, you might want to make a card list. It will help you remember everyone you intend to gift this year. Write their name and three prospective gifts. For example, you can have Annie, ‘Black Adams ticket, laptop bag, or plaque awards.

You can now pick one of the options and write the final gift. You can also have a list of Christmas cards. Who are you planning to send a card to? A card and gift list will also help you budget and order cards and gifts early enough.

12. Plan for Waste

Everyone enjoys the fantastic music, the ambient lighting, delicious food, and awesome conversations right until clean up. You can arrange an event of the lifetime and then sulk when you realize the amount of waste you must collect. You can make everything easy by planning for waste. You can place small trash cans around the house where guests frequent.

A good option would be dumpster rental. That way, you will have a centralized place to direct your waste. You can plan to separate the waste to make it easy to recycle. You can also reduce waste by not using single-use utensils. You can place reusable water mugs in the dispenser instead of bottled water.

13. Ask for Help

Life is much sweeter when we do things together. It might be easier to arrange an event when you have help. You can engage your family in decorations or outsource baking to your friend. You also choose to have friends bring a potluck.

You don’t have to be overwhelmed by arranging an event. If anyone offers to help, don’t turn them down. It’s not a bother for someone to help you. It means they value your companionship enough to want to help. Things might not be as perfect as you want them, but it’s the moments that matter.

5 Mistakes to Avoid When Arranging an Event in Holiday Season

You now know how to arrange an event this holiday season. Here are five mistakes you should avoid to ensure your event is successful.

Planning too Late: You can arrange an event even if you are a novice. However, if you start too late, it won’t matter that you are an expert. Unexpected scenarios come up, and thus planning too late can be costly.

Doing Everything Alone: If you can arrange an event alone, things may turn as you envisioned. But you are likely to get overwhelmed. So, it’s best to engage others, including service providers and vendors.

Forgetting About the Guests: It’s easy to get caught up in planning the event that you forget it’s about the guests. Enjoy their presence. Sometimes things don’t go as planned. Let them slide. Focus on the guests without forgetting the planning.

You can arrange an event this holiday season without stretching too wide or hassling too much. If you have never arranged an event, you can avoid costly mistakes such as not having a plan or sending invites too late. You can have a successful and memorable event by engaging friends and family in preparing the event.

We have given you the guide to arranging an event this season. All you need is to apply it. With the 13 tips, you can plan a memorable holiday party early. Best of luck, and enjoy your holidays!