#1 Party Tip

Hey party people!
Sorry I’m a day off schedule. I threw a baby shower at our house this past Saturday (I’ll share all the pictures this week) then flew down to Florida to spend Easter with some of Mike’s family and we just got back in town last night. It has been jam-packed and I thought I’d get it all done but it didn’t end up happening. Ever have moments like that?
On Mondays, I have been doing something I call party ponders. These are questions that relate to party planning. So far, I’ve talked about invitations, how much food to prepare, and a party budget printable. Today, I’m going to share the absolute #1 party planning tip!
This tip is the mother of all party tips. The A-list of the bunch. This tip gets more props than Taylor Swift’s Grammy award case. I’d give it a rose (ala Bachelor) and a mirror-ball trophy (Dancing with the Stars) AND a Clive Davis recording deal (American Idol). Intrigued yet?

 
This may sound really simple but it’s true.
This was born from a conversation I had with my friend Taylor last week, as well as a conversation with Debbie, who I met at the baby shower.
Taylor is a dear friend of mine who I truly learn so much from. We were talking about parties and all the work that goes into them and we realized that we can all create parties for people in our life, at all times. You may feel like your gift isn’t crafting a bazillion tissue paper pom poms to transform your living room for your child’s birthday party or baking an intricate battlestar galactica cake. It’s okay! You don’t have to be a pinterest perfectionist to plan an amazing party.

Debbie, who I met at the baby shower this past weekend, was telling me about what she called a pathetic birthday party she threw for her daughter. The party included a dollar tree birthday banner and some store-bought cake…but her daughter had the time of her life! Why? Because she was spending it with her friends and her family & she felt loved & special.
All this may seem contradictory when I show you these elaborate parties or projects that may take you an hour or two. The thing is, these things are secondary. The projects and delicious food and favors are wonderful and fun. But the foundation to every party, whether it’s a wedding, a birthday party, a housewarming party, a bar mitzvah, a shower or a holidiay party is PEOPLE.

A party is the catalyst to celebrating the people in our lives. It’s an event that allows conversation to be started, new friends to meet, networks to be created, and people to feel honored. Which means that YOU can be a party planner! Do you have to be a Martha Stewart prodigy? No. Do you have to bake like someone from Cupcake Wars? No. Do you have to have the party budget of Tori Spelling? No. All you need is a love for people.
A party is something that can be started anywhere and at any time. What to connect with ladies in your neighborhood? Create a walking party every Wednesday. Know someone that’s a foster child? Or someone that doesn’t have a huge family support? Invite them to dinner once a month.
If your Pinterest project fails, your cake tastes like goop, and your decorations end up looking like a kindergarten project; your party is success if people walk away feeling special and loved.
Just remember this next time you’re planning a party. You can still make it look “wow” but if things go wrong, remember the #1 tip to making it a successful party.
On that note, Party On!

p.s. This is YOUR official invite to the party… on the PartiesforPennies facebook page!  Click here.
p.s. I’ve got a fun & easy party project for you tomorrow & on Friday I’ll show you all the pictures from the watercolor baby shower I threw last Saturday.