With ever tightening purse strings, socializing can quite
often be one of the first pastimes to feel the crunch. A great alternative to dining out with
friends on a regular basis is to take it in turns to throw a small, informal
dinner party. Here are a few ideas for making it special without blowing your
budget.
Planning and
preparation can never be overdone. First and foremost, decide who you’d
like to invite. Make a note to check any dietary requirements of your guests.
Do you have any vegetarians or guests with a nut allergy on the invite list?
Knowing well in advance will help you to plan your menu and avoid any last
minute awkward moments as you’re due to serve up your starters.
Making it personal
has never been easier with the explosion of online craft marketplaces such as
Etsy and Folksy. A little online investigating can uncover some gems for
inspiration when creating place settings or finding bespoke napkin holders. Pinterest is also well worth a look as it
accommodates a range of ideas for DIY crafts and pre prepared items and knick
knacks and where to purchase them.
A themed night is
often a great option if your dinner party is in aid of someone’s birthday or
another similar special occasion. Sites such as Parteaz.co.uk offer a range of supplies for
themes such as a casino night or a Wild West evening. Having a theme can also
help streamline your choices when deciding on a menu. If you’re having a casino
night, nibbles are always great to put on as people can help themselves. If
this is slightly more low key than you had in mind, a buffet is another great
option as you’re almost certain to have something to suit everyone.
Choosing the
entertainment should be relatively straightforward as a chilled out
playlist or CD playing in the background is often sufficient at a dinner party.
There are plenty of sites which allow you to create playlists online if you
don’t have an Itunes account.
These tips have hopefully provided a little inspiration for
hosting from your home and proving that dining in is the new going out.
1 comment:
Some lovely ideas there :) at university we did our own version of "come dine with me" for just over a month so that we didn't spend as much as we would have done going out! A great cheap way to socialise :)
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