New Year’s Eve Soirées
For those of you who like to focus your entertaining energies on New Year’s, I’ve have a few ideas for you. There are so many fun themes and ways to celebrate and decorate. A setting of silver with red is classic and versatile.
Get The Party Started
Use a party blower to announce your shindig. Just unroll the curls and paste on your party message. Hand-deliver or mail in a padded envelope. Invite the ladies to dress in red.
Real Simple.com has a double-duty Mad Lib invite that let’s guest RSVP and make a song request so you can put together a party list. It is perfect for a New Year’s buffet potluck.
It’s a party in a box! Plum Party’s Holiday Candy Yum Box is ready-to-mail. Who wouldn’t come to your party after receiving a box of candy?
Martha’s flute invitations are sure to put guests in a bubbly mood.
Setting the Scene
Fill clear vases or bowls with silver- or gold-wrapped candy like Hershey’s Kisses, party blowers and noisemakers.
Hang onto those pieces of ribbon from holiday gift wrapping to tie around the stems of your glasses. Not only is it festive, it will help guests keep track of their glasses.
A beautiful white arrangement – Remove the tops of various sizes of silver ornaments so that the ornament will fill with water. Fill a vase about halfway full with the ornaments, then slowly pour water into each vase, allowing the ornaments to fill and sink to the bottom. Trim and arrange the stems by sticking the stems of your favorite white flowers between the ornaments for support.
Give your dining table a whole new look by creating a runner from large mirror squares. It will reflect everything that rests on it. Photo courtesy of Real Simple: Celebrations
Set the table with a white tablecloth and tie red ribbon around silver napkins. Or tie a bundle of silverware with metallic pipe cleaners. Tie the ends in a starburst.
Ball-shaped ornaments displayed in glass flutes mimic the rising bubbles in a glass of Champagne.
The Munchies
Celebrate with a culinary journey around the world. Each hour, set out bite-size snacks from a city in the order in which each is welcoming in 2009.
Ring in the New Year Beijing-style with spring rolls and dumplings. Little quiches are perfect for Paris, and try your hand at empanadas, a favorite in Rio de Janiero. When the ball drops in your time zone, cap the evening off with distinctive sweets from your area. My choice would be Trophy Cupcakes…mmm.
What to Do
As if drinking all night isn’t enough, before your guests get “festive”, create some memorable moments. Fill a colorful gift bag with novelty items and have guests reach in and grab an object to predict what kind of New Year they’ll have. For example, a ring means love, and a chocolate gold coin fortells money.
At her party last year, a friend had each guest fill out a postcard with a New Year’s resolution, collected them, then mailed them out to us a month later as reminders of promises to keep.
Set up a photo area with Mardi Gras beads, masks, and top hats, and capture your guests in full regalia. Send it out as a postcard thank you. You can get photo-mat postcards at your local drugstore.
Send Them Home With a Smile
Ah, that Eleni’s Cookies, true baked confectionery genius! I love all their designs, they are a bit of a splurge, but can you pass up their New Year cookies?
