Have you ever walked into a party, be it a large wedding reception or a small dinner party with friends, and immediately thought “this is going to be fun”? On the flip side, sometimes even the swankiest of events fall flat on their face when it comes to making a good impression. Chances are, when you walked into the “fun” party it immediately tickled all 5 of your senses. Whether it was quite obvious or done on a more subliminal level, party planning for your guests’ senses is your solution to a picture perfect party!
Sight:
First of all, you want your guests to know which house is having the party. This means turning on both the interior and exterior lights. While your party may be taking place strictly on the first floor go ahead and turn on some of the lights from the second story. This will give the house a welcoming and warm glow. Drop a few hints outside to give guests an idea of what awaits them inside. Lanterns in the trees, luminaries lining the driveway, blooming flowers on the front porch, perhaps even a small table set up by the front door with snacks, drinks and fresh flowers. One of my favorite tricks is to buy a huge basket, or two, of blooming flowers the day before my party. Then, I drop this basket right into the urns outside my front door and I am guaranteed giant perfect blossoms the day of the party. It sure beats watering and coaxing flowers to grow weeks in advance!
You can even buy a few extra baskets for inside your house – you’ll have to move them outside the next day, but they’ll make a beautiful impression the day of the party. I have even found that buying hanging baskets is cheaper than buying cut flowers for arrangements. Another favorite trick of mine is to pull out all those random yards of silk fabric I have stored away for such an occasion. I love to keep a couple of yards of dupioni silk on hand (in various colors) to pull out for parties. I’ll fold it in thirds for a coffee table runner, swag it over existing draperies, lay two contrasting colors crossing my table for a tablecloth – the possibilities are endless. Silk is so unbelievable luxurious yet affordable. You can find great quality dupioni silk fabric online for about $15 a yard.
Sound: Don’t ever discount the importance of good music! It is imperative to a great party. Equally important is the level at which the music is played. You can’t simply throw in a cool CD, hit repeat and turn it up to level 10 – no no no. Your choice of music and audible level will have to change throughout the night. If you feel you will be too busy to attend to this task, you’ll need to assign to it. Lucky for me, my husband considers himself somewhat of a music aficionado and takes party music personally and seriously. In the beginning of the night when people are first streaming in you’ll want the music to fill the voids. The first few guests may not know each other and this great music will bridge the gaps. Choose popular and fun songs. If you have dinner planned, dim the music and put on something a little mellower. You don’t want your friends belting out tunes at the dinner table. You also don’t want people straining to talk over the music – turn it down. As the party hits full tilt, change the music to something with a good beat. While your guests won’t be listening to the words of the songs they’ll be feelin’ the beat! If you get to stage 4 partying, that’s the time to crank up the tunes and put on your dancing shoes!
Taste: Obviously if you are having a dinner party you already have this topic covered. Even so, be sure to have something prepared and ready for your guests as soon as they walk in the door. Perhaps it’s a tray of bite sized crab cakes or a glistening silver platter piled high with chocolate covered strawberries. Even if your party is not a dining one, food is just as important. You want food everywhere and anywhere. As the drinks flow and the evening progresses, your snacks WILL get eaten – I promise.
Touch: In relation to pulling together the perfect party, touch is not only in the literal sense (such as running your hand over something) it also applies to various epicurean textures (that means FOOD!) I try to make sure I serve something hot, cold & room temp. I also serve something salty, sweet, crunchy and soft.
Now this can be as simple as spinach & artichoke dip with chips (hot/smooth & salty/crunchy) crudités (cold veggies) & dip (cold/crunchy&smooth) + chocolate chip cookies (room temp/sweet). Of course you can take this idea to the next level with oysters Rockefeller, shrimp cocktail, + chocolate truffles. The idea is that this principle can be applied to both a beer budget and a champagne soiree.
Smell: From the front door all the way to the powder room, it’s not so much what your party does smell like; it’s what your party DOESN’T smell like. This means taking out the trash (and maybe even rinsing out the trash cans), cleaning the yard of any “dog presents” or the cat box, or cleaning up after any pet that you may have. Perhaps you even address the animal itself – Rover could use a good shampoo or a trip to the groomer. There is nothing more off-putting that being all dressed up and visiting a friend’s house that has a stinky smelly dog jumping all over you. At least you can take out the “stinky, smelly” part. Outside light some citronella candles which not only smell good, but deter those pesky mosquitoes. Be sure to add a small bouquet of flowers to the powder room. One of my new favorite devices is candle warmers. They slowly melt the candles instead of burning them (great way to prolong the life of your candle) and the smell gently wafts through your home.
Sight, sound, taste, touch, smell – that’s all it takes to throw a party that appears picture perfect. I can assure you it will all come together if you “use your senses”. Whether it’s a 25th anniversary party with 200 guests or dinner with the boss, you can pull it off with a smile knowing that you have the secret!
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Melissa Lauer creates amazing custom silk throws that will truly add glamour to your rooms. E-Mail her today at melissa_lauer@yahoo.com to find out how you can order her one-of-a-kind silk throws.
