If you’re hosting a New Years Eve party this week, you’re probably feeling both excited and apprehensive! Inviting guests into your home can get a little out of control, especially when there are drinks flowing and celebrations taking place.
To help you out on the night, we’ve rounded up some savvy tips and tricks to create the perfect mood, atmosphere, and ambiance for you and your guests.
1. Give lighting a thought
Your aim should be to create a warm, welcoming environment , as this will help your guests to relax and unwind. Unless you have a dimmer switch, don’t even think about using your ceiling light as that will be far too harsh and cold.
No dimmer? Replace the bulb with a low-wattage coloured light bulb in a warm orange, red or yellow tone or you could grab a bargain in the Christmas sales and buy one of Philips’ colour-changing lights , such as the LivingColors and LivingAmbiance range. They come with a remote control giving you the option to choose from millions of lighting options.
Indoor fairy lights are always a great choice for creating a party atmosphere too. Plus, they’re inexpensive and super pretty!
2 . Avoid cleaning up
The trick is to try and use as many disposable table items as possible – that way it can all just be thrown in the bin after the party so you don’t have to slave away doing the washing. The thought of waking up to a ton of dirty dishes on New Years Day isn’t great, right?
Always use a tablecloth and cover up nice furniture too. It doesn’t have to be a festive one – use table confetti to add a little sparkle to a plain cloth.
And don’t forget to scatter some coasters around for wine glasses and cover your sofa with a throw and remove any valuable or delicate accessories that might get knocked over.
3. Set your house rules
If you don’t like to have outdoor shoes worn in your home, a subtle way to drop the hint is to leave a couple of pairs of shoes by the front door.
If that doesn’t work, place a little basket of rolled up socks or some slippers in the hall for guests to borrow and explain that you have just had your carpets shampooed.
4. Avoid the usual tangle of coats
You can avoid the inevitable confusion at going home time by investing in a clothes rail and some hangers to give other people’s coats the respect that they deserve.
You can pick up one from IKEA at £6.95.
5. Wine glass charms
There’s nothing worse than losing your drink, or drinking someone elses at a party, so why not get some wine glass charms to stop the confusion? These are cute little chains which you attach to the stem of a wine glass. Each one is different, as the idea is that it will help guests to keep track of their glass.
This also means you save on washing up and booze, because they won’t be running back to the kitchen for a new one every time it gets misplaced.
6. Get a helper
Running in and out of the kitchen for canapes and topping up glasses is what the host spends most of the party doing, and sometimes they don’t actually get to enjoy the evening.
So why not hire a responsible teenager (if you know one who is free) for a couple of hours to do the running around while you enjoy yourself? It won’t cost a fortune – think babysitting rates plus a bit extra – and they could even go on to their own bash after your busy period has passed.
7. Party poppers and streamers
If you want to leave 2020 with a bang – you’ll need to make sure you’ve got lots of streamers and party poppers. Make sure every guest who wants one has at least a couple to let off – and how about getting some fireworks in the garden if you really want to wow them?
