Shhh... What your party guests don't know won't necessarily hurt them. So, here are 3 things your party guests don't have to know that are basically in a party maven's DNA to want to tell them about, but don't do it. Don't bother. Not until, it's much later - or maybe "after the fact" (if then), as they say.
The bottom line: keeping certain things hidden can make for a some of the best parties and best party surprises.
When you're a true party maven to-the-max, more than anything, you love to host a great party. So, you know that baring all of your party "trade secrets" will leave nothing to the imagination. And you know that it will destroy the mystery of how you seem to be able to get everything done on time and in perfect order, while juggling a career, a household, and possibly a husband and children.
Telling your party secrets can overshadow your party - sharing details that your party guests don't really need to know. Stay off your favorite social media sites (Facebook, Google+, and Twitter, especially) so that you're not tempted to talk too much, giving away the mystery and your special elements of surprise.
When a party guest thinks they know what you've got planned for the evening, the party can become kind of stale. The upside is, when your guests sense that you've got a night planned of wonderful surprises, they're anxious to attend your party.
The secret weapon is: intrigue. It's paramount, to host a good party.
Secret #1
How You Come Up With Such Creative Ideas
Glassware shot taken with the new Samsung Galaxy S4
When you're out with friends... or when you're out alone and happen to see something that gives you a great idea, document it by shooting plenty of pictures (use your camera in your cellphone, it's often the easiest) when you find something awe-inspiring that you could incorporate into a future party.When you're sometimes out and about, not thinking about having a party; that's when you'll see the most interesting things, that can lead to an interesting idea to use at your next party.
This is where having a means to capture something with a camera that sounds complicated, but is actually pretty easy to make - that's on a restaurant dinner menu or in an artistic store window, can help you come up with and recreate a unique or unusual party ideas that you may have never thought of.
Secret #2
How You Handle (Some of) Your Coolest Plans When You're Busy
Hire a professional chef
Some of your coolest plans are about having great "party swagger"; good looking, cool-as-hell party ideas.These are ideas and concepts that make everyone you've invited promptly RSVP and anxiously want to attend.
Here's an example of what I mean: you're truly an awesome phenomenal cook. You've blown away people who have attended your parties in the past - serving scrumptiously delicious meals. The thing is, you're working right up to practically the last minute that you'd need to get everything expertly done, which means that it will be next to impossible and extremely difficult for you to make it home in time to get everything cooked, set up beautifully (the way you like things to always be), and done properly.
You never want your guests to think of your parties, especially your food, as "normal". They do normal all the time, at their own homes. This is where you really stand out and shine, and you're not willing to give that up. But you know that people have increasingly become desensitized to what was once been deemed as "amazing", so it's important to you to keep everyone raving about how well you do things.
When it comes to good food at the last minute, you have two choices: order mouth-watering take out from a place guaranteed to never miss and always is a hit or hire a chef from one of your favorite restaurants. The latter is my favorite choice.
You want your guests on the edge of their seats, wondering what's next. You want them to feel a tinge of what Seth Godin calls "FOMO", the fear of missing out. It's when you knew that some cool person was at some party, that you've also been invited to, that you could have attended, but didn't.
Whatever you end up doing, make sure it's elegant, delicious, and classy.
Secret #3
How You Handle Extravagance When Your Wallet Doesn't FitThe truth of the matter is, it's uncool to complain - especially about being broke. No one wants to hear that. Besides, you never want to diminish the appearance of anything about your party, especially when you're the host. You want your party to be as "sexy" as possible, yet within your budget. So quite naturally, people don't need to know that you barely scraped some things together.
Just remember, when you want to host a party and you have limited funds, you still have options... just not as many options, but that doesn't mean that it can't be nice.
Bacon and scrambled eggs with fresh chives
When in doubt, go with Plan B. "B" is for breakfast.To save money, host a breakfast or a brunch. These types of parties are easy to prepare, require no expensive alcohol - which of course makes them less expensive than a dinner party.
Always a winner, a breakfast or brunch event is "different" and will usually surprise your guests - throwing them off about the start time a little, at first.
The upside to a breakfast or a brunch gathering is, "the sooner (you convene), the better" (and earlier you finish). Another way to look at it is... the sooner, the cheaper too - all the way around. You can plan and shop early, get started on the day of your party early, and get your guests out of the door early which means clean up can be done early.
You'll be surprised at the money you can save planning a breakfast or a brunch party. Serve an assortment of fresh muffins, fresh fruit, scrambled eggs, bacon and sausage patties, fresh orange, apple, and tomato juice, coffee and tea.
Buy your muffins at a Costco Wholesale store. You can't order them online. You'll have to actually go to one of their locations. Their muffins are worth every penny, I promise. And they're a great value. Costco muffins are consistently the best. They're nice and big too - so big that most of your guests will probably only eat one.
Watermelon and cantaloupe, that can be cut up a day or two in advance, are easy to serve choices. And if you can catch a sale on Egg Beaters or decide to buy the store brand, this is a perfect to scramble eggs fast - just shake, pour, and cook on low heat for perfect scrambled eggs. The good thing about buying meat is that you can, again, look for a sale and you can freeze the meat for a few months before you host your breakfast or brunch shindig - thus, again, saving you money. You don't have to serve juices, but if you want to, here's something you're likely to find on sale too, if you're not serving expensive alcoholic fruit drinks like Bacon Bloody Mary's, why not go for it? And if you decide to leave out fruit juices, you can then afford to be a bit more extravagant, serving Starbucks brand coffee and Twinings teas.
*****
I do this... I write to help to create to opportunities for all of you who choose to pursue your passion to have parties, also taking into account today's economic constraints.
I think if we keep talking about the cost of parties (I write the blog posts, you write comments), together, maybe we can break down some of the party industry's price barriers and shame some of the people who've taken your money and delivered a poor quality product right into growing a conscious and treating you right (nice thought, huh?).
Opportunities to be inspired about parties are everywhere. Yet, people looking out for your wallet are few and far between. My goal is to inspire you, causing you to question the way things are that have been the status quo for too long. When we stand together and speak up, we can be a powerful force.
Let's keep the conversation of change going. Because in the sea of everyone talking, one voice is a whisper... several voices are a scream.
Leave a comment and share your thoughts, ideas and suggestions below. Remember to be as specific as possible because what you have to say helps us all.
Always... be encouraged and encourage others too,
“Truthbomb #240: We need you.” - Danielle LaPorte
Image source: Google Images
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