How to Throw a New Year's Eve Party at Home

The first step for planning an at-home party is to decide on the guest list. Many factors go into setting the number of guests and choosing who to invite. The size of your guest list will help you determine the other elements of your party. When creating a guest list, consider how large your home is and how much space you’ll have open to guests. Decide what you want the overall feel of the party to be. Do you want a lot of mixing and mingling or a more intimate setting?

Alternatively, a theme can ask for guest participation. For instance, your party could be a black-tie event or a masquerade. Whatever theme you choose, let it be your starting point for planning the rest of your event.

Themed New Year’s Eve parties are a lot of fun. They provide a cheerful background for memorable photos and add an extra element of festivity and ambiance. Choosing a party theme can also help you plan other aspects of your party, including catering, activities and decorations.

When you come up with a theme, think beyond the decorations. Even if the party doesn’t involve costumes, give your guests an idea of the aesthetic so they can wear something to match. A well-communicated and executed theme elevates the look and feel of any party. Add another element of fun by encouraging guests to participate in a costume party and plan a mini award ceremony. Best couple, best costume, funniest design, etc.

Tip: Send out invitations to your event three to six weeks before the date. Include information about bringing additional guests to manage your total party numbers..

Strategic lighting can make your New Year’s Eve party feel special and intimate. Dim or turn off your overhead ceiling lights. Instead, focus on warming the space with a lit fireplace, floor and table lamps, candles and string lights. At a busy party, use LED flameless candles in place of real flame candles to avoid fire hazards.

You can even take this opportunity to repurpose your Christmas decorations before packing them away for the year. Lit Christmas trees add gentle lighting and a festive ambiance. Swap out the more Christmas-centric ornaments and decorations with glittery ornaments and winter-themed decor.

To keep your guests at the scene of the party and away from other parts of your home, create clearly designated party areas.

• Declutter the rooms in which you plan to host guests, and rearrange the furniture to suit your needs.
• Take coats, purses and other items from your guests when they arrive to keep the socializing areas tidy and free of clutter.
• Close the doors to rooms that are off-limits and keep the lights off in hallways and areas you don’t want guests wandering. If necessary, use a room divider to block off areas while adding some extra decoration.
• Areas for dancing should be near the source of music and cleared of furniture and breakables.
• Areas for cocktails and conversation should be far enough away from music for guests to hear one another, and they should also have plenty of cozy seating and places to set food and drinks. Decorate the area with festive throw pillows, warm throw blankets and tablecloths.
• Poufs and ottomans can serve as extra seating in a pinch.

Whether you are serving a sit-down meal, offering a buffet or letting your guests snack on finger foods, beautiful table settings can elevate your party decor.

• Tablecloths will not only look lovely but will also protect your tables from messes and spills. Choose either a washable or disposable tablecloth to make the after-party clean up quick and easy. Tablecloths will also allow you to make use of whatever tables you have available while keeping your decor coordinated.
• If you want to dress up a simple or disposable tablecloth, add a table runner or use decorative placemats.
• For a sit-down dinner, set the table with festive dinnerware and matching cloth napkins. You can either purchase napkin rings to give the table a little something extra or create your own napkin rings using ribbons, leftover gift bows, glittery pipe cleaners or gold wire.
• For a more casual cocktail party, supply your guests with plenty of fun, disposable holiday napkins.
• Flameless candles, mini string lights and clear vases with vase fillers also make for great New Year’s Eve tabletop decorations.

Of course, you will need good food and drinks to make your decorative table settings worthwhile! The theme of your party and your personal preferences will decide the types of food and drinks available, but here are a few tips to ensure whatever you serve is a raging success:

• Make sure beforehand that you have the
  serveware
  you need for the type of food available. Serving spoons, forks and knives are a necessity for both sit-down and buffet-style dinners.
• In a self-serve dining setting, use chafing dishes to keep all your offerings hot and fresh.
• Craft a signature cocktail or mocktail and keep it readily available throughout the night in a drink dispenser. Have a second drink dispenser for water or keep water bottles on ice in a beverage tub.
• Decorative drink stirrers and glass charms are cute, unique touches and will help your guests keep track of their beverages.

Plan a few party activities to keep your guests entertained and to help break the ice if necessary. Here are few ideas to keep your party lively:

• Place an assortment of fun New Year’s Eve party favors either at the entrance or near the drinks and hors d’oeuvres for guests to take. Party poppers, noise makers, party horns, paper hats and prop glasses are all great options to help kickoff the celebration as soon as the guests arrive.
• Put a wish jar in a central location. Supply pencils and slips of paper so that your guests can write down wishes and resolutions for the new year and put them in the jar. To make a decorative wish jar, first cut a slot in the top of a large mason jar. Next, paint the interior of the jar so that no one can see inside. Allow the paint to dry.
• Create a photo booth station. Use hanging party decor to create a backdrop for guests to take photos in front of and supply props like feather boas, hats, oversized glasses and frames. You can make a prop frame that looks like an oversized polaroid photo by cutting out a square from a large piece of white paperboard. Don’t forget to write a caption on the bottom!
• Create board game stations. While guests mingle and enjoy their drinks, they can stop by different tables to play classic board games. Keep the board game selection limited to those that have quick rounds or can easily be put down and picked up again.

Follow tradition by popping bottles of champagne at midnight, or start a new tradition by bringing out a serving cart to commence a coffee and dessert hour. Make the moment memorable in whatever way you think your guests will appreciate.