9 Tips For Throwing a Housewarming Party
Buying a new home is incredibly exciting. So exciting, in fact, that it’s hard not to share your excitement with the world. A housewarming party is a perfect opportunity to invite your friends and family members over to celebrate this endeavor together.
To make sure that your get-together is a success, consider the following tips.
1. Wait a Few Weeks After You’ve Moved in
Moving into a new home can be overwhelming, so you don’t want to make things even more stressful by adding an extra event into the mix so soon after getting the keys to your new place. Ideally, you should be given the chance to move everything in, put everything in its place, and enjoy what life is like in a new home first. Once the dust has settled, then call in the troops and enjoy entertaining in your new crib.
2. Send Your Invites Out Well in Advance
Give your guests a chance to make sure their schedule is clear for your housewarming party. That means giving plenty of notice and not throwing a last-minute shindig. At least a week or two would be nice to give everyone on your guest list a heads up about your housewarming party. Besides, knowing how many people will be attending in advance will also give you a chance to get enough food and beverages and prep for the upcoming gathering.
3. Provide Detailed Directions
Since you’ve got a completely new address, many of your friends and family members might not know where you now live. As such, you’ll want to make sure that your invitations provide detailed and easy-to-follow directions.
4. Plan Out Parking
Depending on how many people you plan to invite, there’s a good chance that your driveway (if you even have one) won’t be able to accommodate all the cars that will need to be parked. For this reason, you’ll want to plan out where guests can park. This is especially important if your new home is a townhome or condo that has minimal guest parking. Once you have that all planned out, be sure to include these details in your invitations.
5. Treat it Like an Open House
Unless you have no problem with having guests lingering all day long, be sure to stipulate the time frame that the party will be held. For example, from 2 pm to 6 pm would provide enough of a window to get all your guests in to visit. They can show up whenever they like and leave at the time of their choosing, as long as it falls within the stipulated time frame.
This is especially helpful if your new home isn’t large enough to house everyone on your guest list. By specifying a time frame, people can drop in and out at different times, rather them all showing up at the same time.
6. Invite the Neighbors
You might be new to the area and don’t know anyone in your neighborhood, but now is a great time to get to know your neighbors. A housewarming party may be the perfect opportunity to get to know the people who you’ll be living in close proximity to. So invite them over – you might just strike up new friendships!
7. Be Prepared to Give Tours
Most people who visit your housewarming party will probably want to check out your new abode. It’s almost a given considering the nature of the gathering. So be prepared to take time out of serving food and mingling with guests to give a few guided tours of your home. Considering the fact that people will most likely see all parts of your home, make sure everything is prepped accordingly.
8. Have Food and Drinks Handy
While you don’t necessarily have to serve a full meal, having some appetizers and beverages handy during your housewarming is warranted. But when you choose your menu list, go for items that don’t require a lot of prep time and upkeep. You don’t want to be slaving over a hot stove while you should be getting to know the neighbors and showing off your new home.
At the same time, be sure to take different tastes and potential food sensitivities into consideration. Offer a few options so that everyone is covered.
9. Send Out Thank You Notes
After a successful housewarming party, take the time out to send out thank you cards to show your appreciation to all who came out. Most people will likely show up with some sort of housewarming gift, so you’ll want to thank them for their generosity as well. Rather than spending money on postage, however, consider having them ready-made to hand out with a party favor (if you so choose) as each guest leaves.
The Bottom Line
A housewarming party is a fun and exciting time for new homeowners. It’s a wonderful way to share your excitement with others and satisfy the curiosity that your friends and neighbors might have about what your new home is like. And following the above guidelines will help ensure a successful festivity.
