Party Planning Tips
"When you are arranging a party you may find it bewildering at first knowing there are so many things to organise and so little time to plan them."
First things first: Relax and take a deep breath. Secondly, find a pad of paper, a pencil and a quiet corner and begin making notes of what needs to be achieved and a diary or a time grid to begin prioritising key essential elements.
Below are some of the main areas you will need to address and the detail you will need to cover:
Venue - Select location that matches style and theme of the event.
Catering - Menus, style of food service, drink requirements and hire.
Production - Lighting, theme, floristry.
Staffing - Bartenders, waitresses and supervisors.
Entertainment - Band, DJ, act(s) or performers.
Invitation/Guest list management - Names and attendees on spreadsheet.
Operational - Event scheduling, venue access, contact details, supplier arrival times.
Logistics: Power Requirements, supplier kit specification, venue dimensions.
Health and Safety - Supplier Risk Assessment and Method Statements.
Insurance - Public Liability, Accidental, Indemnity.
At Evolve, we never take anything for granted and therefore we place huge emphasis on what we term the three P's: Planning Planning Planning
You can never do too much planning and by crossing the t's and dotting the i's, checking and double-checking you are taking the right steps to ensure your event runs smoothly, effortlessly and without unforeseen surprises.
Remember: never leave anything to chance and never merely hope that on the day everything will turn out well.
Evolve Events & Venues' Top 10 Party Planning Tips
-Always start planning early and never leave anything to chance.
-Choose your creative angle and then a venue that reflects the idea.
-Always arrange a site visit to each venue.
-Confirm power requirements and venue dimensions with all suppliers.
-Read venue contract and "Do's" and "Don'ts" thoroughly.
-Choose food and beverage that ties in with creative angle.
-Build in more than sufficient time for set-up - you will always need more time than you think!
-Checklist of all suppliers with contact details including arrival and finishing times.
-A schedule outlining every activity during your event.
-Confirmation of numbers with caterers at least one week in advance to ensure adequate supplies of food, glassware and staff are present at the event.
By Evolve Events
First things first: Relax and take a deep breath. Secondly, find a pad of paper, a pencil and a quiet corner and begin making notes of what needs to be achieved and a diary or a time grid to begin prioritising key essential elements.
Below are some of the main areas you will need to address and the detail you will need to cover:
Venue - Select location that matches style and theme of the event.
Catering - Menus, style of food service, drink requirements and hire.
Production - Lighting, theme, floristry.
Staffing - Bartenders, waitresses and supervisors.
Entertainment - Band, DJ, act(s) or performers.
Invitation/Guest list management - Names and attendees on spreadsheet.
Operational - Event scheduling, venue access, contact details, supplier arrival times.
Logistics: Power Requirements, supplier kit specification, venue dimensions.
Health and Safety - Supplier Risk Assessment and Method Statements.
Insurance - Public Liability, Accidental, Indemnity.
At Evolve, we never take anything for granted and therefore we place huge emphasis on what we term the three P's: Planning Planning Planning
You can never do too much planning and by crossing the t's and dotting the i's, checking and double-checking you are taking the right steps to ensure your event runs smoothly, effortlessly and without unforeseen surprises.
Remember: never leave anything to chance and never merely hope that on the day everything will turn out well.
Evolve Events & Venues' Top 10 Party Planning Tips
-Always start planning early and never leave anything to chance.
-Choose your creative angle and then a venue that reflects the idea.
-Always arrange a site visit to each venue.
-Confirm power requirements and venue dimensions with all suppliers.
-Read venue contract and "Do's" and "Don'ts" thoroughly.
-Choose food and beverage that ties in with creative angle.
-Build in more than sufficient time for set-up - you will always need more time than you think!
-Checklist of all suppliers with contact details including arrival and finishing times.
-A schedule outlining every activity during your event.
-Confirmation of numbers with caterers at least one week in advance to ensure adequate supplies of food, glassware and staff are present at the event.
By Evolve Events
8:06 AM | Was this helpful? | 
Progressive Dinner Parties
How it Works
If you're looking for a way to socialize that requires little work or expense and that keeps the party moving all night, then a Progressive Dinner Party may hold the answer for you. At a Progressive Dinner a group of friends plan a meal together where each course is served at a different participant's home, so that the party literally moves from place to place throughout the evening.
This party style works especially well for friends who live close to one another either in a neighborhood, an apartment building or a condo complex. Then everyone can walk from home to home without worrying about organizing cars and designated drivers. It also facilitates digesting between courses!
When planning your dinner, you should schedule no more than 3-4 courses. Beyond that the logistics become too complicated with too much time wasted on traveling. Plan on at least a three hour evening, in order to allow for 45 minutes to an hour at each stop.
Here are suggestions for potential courses:
- Hors d'oeuvres and cocktails
- An appetizer course
- A first course such as soup, salad or pasta
- The main course including side dishes Cheese, fruit and nuts
- Dessert
Some groups hold monthly Progressive Dinners with a different theme each month. The course responsibilities can be rotated among participants, or everyone can always be responsible for their favorite course. You can pick holiday themes, seasonal themes or different cuisines for each dinner. Tie-in your decorations with the recipes, asking each host home to use decorations representing the nationality of the course they are serving, or picking up on your seasonal theme. Or make the menu items challenging by preparing alphabetical dishes, e.g. the first home prepares an appetizer beginning with the letter A, the second home prepares a main dish beginning with the letter B, and so forth. The next month continue with the letter where you left off in the previous dinner. Good luck to the host who gets the letter X! Whatever you do, have fun with it!
Sometimes organizations such as churches, woman's clubs, or veterans groups hold an annual Progressive Dinner so that new members can meet the group under more intimate circumstances. In that case the planning is usually a little different. Depending on the size of the group, the hors d'oeuvres course is held with everyone gathered in one home or location such as the church or veterans' hall. Then the group splits off into small groups for the next two courses in volunteers' homes. At the end of the evening the whole group reconvenes in a large home or facility to share dessert. If this is the case, some people might be asked to bring appetizers and a side dish, others might prepare a side dish and dessert. The members hosting the main course have no other responsibilities.
You can handle beverages several ways. With small groups you could ask each host to provide the beverage that best suits their course. With larger groups you could make it BYOB for alcoholic beverages and just ask the hosts to provide soft drinks and coffee.
Avoid These Problems, Plus, The Menu
From my experience, and after checking with friends who have participated in progressive dinners, there are several drawbacks to this plan. Unlike a potluck dinner where everyone brings food to one location, every host has to prepare his home for receiving guests, as well as having the cleanup afterwards. Also, it can be difficult to move people out of a home to go to the next course when the party is really rolling along. Finally, unless you pick the right recipes, the host for the subsequent course generally has to cut her current course short to run home and get ready for the next round. With all of that in mind, here are some final tips for hosting one of these dinners:
- The closer the participants live to one another, the better for minimizing travel time.
- Never plan on more than three changes of locale.
- Choose recipes that can be made ahead and simply reheated and served when the guests arrive.
There's no time to fuss in the kitchen when everyone needs to get up and leave within the hour.
- Set your table prior to leaving your home for the first course.
- Appoint designated drivers at the first course if you'll be driving between homes. When organizing a dinner for a large group, allow extra time for the hors d'oeuvres and dessert courses where everyone will be together.
- Try to devise a way to motivate people to move along to the next stop. Perhaps give everyone a certain number of poker chips at the first course. As they move from home to home, the last arrivals lose their chips. Whoever has the most chips at the last stop wins a prize.
A Harvest-Themed Progressive Dinner Menu for 8
Appetizers
Bruschetta with White Beans, Tomatoes and Olives
Brie and Red Pepper Mini Quiches
Garden Dip (served with crackers or veggies)
First Course
Butternut Squash Soup
Main Course
Crock Pot Cider Pork Stew
Carrots Glazed with Balsamic Vinegar and Butter
Golden Potato Wedges
Dessert
Quick Apple Tarts
By: Donna Pilato
If you're looking for a way to socialize that requires little work or expense and that keeps the party moving all night, then a Progressive Dinner Party may hold the answer for you. At a Progressive Dinner a group of friends plan a meal together where each course is served at a different participant's home, so that the party literally moves from place to place throughout the evening.
This party style works especially well for friends who live close to one another either in a neighborhood, an apartment building or a condo complex. Then everyone can walk from home to home without worrying about organizing cars and designated drivers. It also facilitates digesting between courses!
When planning your dinner, you should schedule no more than 3-4 courses. Beyond that the logistics become too complicated with too much time wasted on traveling. Plan on at least a three hour evening, in order to allow for 45 minutes to an hour at each stop.
Here are suggestions for potential courses:
- Hors d'oeuvres and cocktails
- An appetizer course
- A first course such as soup, salad or pasta
- The main course including side dishes Cheese, fruit and nuts
- Dessert
Some groups hold monthly Progressive Dinners with a different theme each month. The course responsibilities can be rotated among participants, or everyone can always be responsible for their favorite course. You can pick holiday themes, seasonal themes or different cuisines for each dinner. Tie-in your decorations with the recipes, asking each host home to use decorations representing the nationality of the course they are serving, or picking up on your seasonal theme. Or make the menu items challenging by preparing alphabetical dishes, e.g. the first home prepares an appetizer beginning with the letter A, the second home prepares a main dish beginning with the letter B, and so forth. The next month continue with the letter where you left off in the previous dinner. Good luck to the host who gets the letter X! Whatever you do, have fun with it!
Sometimes organizations such as churches, woman's clubs, or veterans groups hold an annual Progressive Dinner so that new members can meet the group under more intimate circumstances. In that case the planning is usually a little different. Depending on the size of the group, the hors d'oeuvres course is held with everyone gathered in one home or location such as the church or veterans' hall. Then the group splits off into small groups for the next two courses in volunteers' homes. At the end of the evening the whole group reconvenes in a large home or facility to share dessert. If this is the case, some people might be asked to bring appetizers and a side dish, others might prepare a side dish and dessert. The members hosting the main course have no other responsibilities.
You can handle beverages several ways. With small groups you could ask each host to provide the beverage that best suits their course. With larger groups you could make it BYOB for alcoholic beverages and just ask the hosts to provide soft drinks and coffee.
Avoid These Problems, Plus, The Menu
From my experience, and after checking with friends who have participated in progressive dinners, there are several drawbacks to this plan. Unlike a potluck dinner where everyone brings food to one location, every host has to prepare his home for receiving guests, as well as having the cleanup afterwards. Also, it can be difficult to move people out of a home to go to the next course when the party is really rolling along. Finally, unless you pick the right recipes, the host for the subsequent course generally has to cut her current course short to run home and get ready for the next round. With all of that in mind, here are some final tips for hosting one of these dinners:
- The closer the participants live to one another, the better for minimizing travel time.
- Never plan on more than three changes of locale.
- Choose recipes that can be made ahead and simply reheated and served when the guests arrive.
There's no time to fuss in the kitchen when everyone needs to get up and leave within the hour.
- Set your table prior to leaving your home for the first course.
- Appoint designated drivers at the first course if you'll be driving between homes. When organizing a dinner for a large group, allow extra time for the hors d'oeuvres and dessert courses where everyone will be together.
- Try to devise a way to motivate people to move along to the next stop. Perhaps give everyone a certain number of poker chips at the first course. As they move from home to home, the last arrivals lose their chips. Whoever has the most chips at the last stop wins a prize.
A Harvest-Themed Progressive Dinner Menu for 8
Appetizers
Bruschetta with White Beans, Tomatoes and Olives
Brie and Red Pepper Mini Quiches
Garden Dip (served with crackers or veggies)
First Course
Butternut Squash Soup
Main Course
Crock Pot Cider Pork Stew
Carrots Glazed with Balsamic Vinegar and Butter
Golden Potato Wedges
Dessert
Quick Apple Tarts
By: Donna Pilato
9:19 AM | Was this helpful? |
