How to Plan a Christmas Party

Step-by-Step Guide

1. 1

   Step 1: Plan early.

   You need to give yourself enough time to work out all the details of the party.
   
   Try to start your planning around a month before Christmas.
   
   This will not only give you enough time to plan the party, it also will allow you to invite your guests early so that they won’t plan anything else for that day., Don’t plan your party too close to Christmas.
   
   Many of your guests may be leaving town to visit family, so if you plan your party the day before Christmas, many people may not be able to come.
   
   Instead, try to hold the party at least five days before Christmas.The weekend is usually the best time to hold the party, because your guests won’t have to go to work in the morning.
   
   Also decide if you want your party to be during the afternoon or a night.
   
   Most parties are held in the evening, but try to choose what is best for you and your guests.
   
   Get some input from your guests if you aren’t sure when people would be able to make it. , When you hold a party at your home, you have several options as to how you are going to feed your guests.
   
   You may decide that you have the time and the resources to cook and bake food for the party and provide alcohol.
   
   However, you may decide to make things easier for yourself by making the party potluck style, where guests all bring a dish with them.
   
   You can also make the party BYOB so that you don’t have to provide the majority of the drinks. , Decide in advance whether you want your guests do a gift exchange like Secret Santa or White Elephant.
   
   This is not a necessary part of the party, but it can add some excitement and give your guests an activity to bond over.To do a Secret Santa, give your guests the name of another guest, preferably a person that they already know, to buy a gift for.
   
   For White Elephant, all guests bring a small or funny gift that anyone could enjoy.
   
   Then each guest picks whichever present he or she wants during the party. , Once you have pinned down the details of the date and time of your party, send out invitations either by email or mail.
   
   Make sure that the invitations include the date, time and address of the party.
   
   Also make sure that the invitations tell your guests to RSVP, so you will have a sense of how many people will be at the party.
   
   If you decide to do a gift exchange, give your guests the information on what they need to bring.
   
   If you decide to make the party a potluck with a BYOB policy, make sure to also include that in the invite. , Draw up a general budget of your party.
   
   Unless you are doing a potluck, providing food and drinks will probably be the most expensive aspect of your party.
   
   If you are preparing food yourself, estimate the approximate cost of ingredients for dishes you plan to make.
   
   Think about if you need to rent anything like chairs, tables or coat racks to accommodate guests.
   
   Also take into account the cost of Christmas-specific decorations you will have at your party, such as the Christmas tree, garlands, stockings, or other small pieces of décor.
2. 2

   Step 2: Choose a date and time.

3. 3

   Step 3: Decide how you will serve food at your party.

4. 4

   Step 4: Decide whether you want to do a gift exchange.

5. 5

   Step 5: Send out invites.

6. 6

   Step 6: Budget the party.

Detailed Guide

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