Party Prep & Tips

I am up to my eye balls in party planning for this Saturday's big affair ; Hubby's 35th. Thanks to the caterer backing out at the last minute I am now handling the entire event on my own. Luckily I have plenty of help and a very resourceful sister-in-law who came up with the perfect entree solution.

For now, I'm busy prepping the party decor, setting up various bars & buffets, & shopping for an endless amount of food.

Given the size of our family it isn't unusual to have 60-80 people over for a birthday bash.  Throughout the years I've been able to refine my prepping. Here are a few of my top tips:

• Set up your space early. This way you can tweak to find the perfect mix of form & function.
• Label all your serveware. When you do this it helps prevent forgotten items both on your buffet & from the grocery store. 
• Order is important. You don't want to clean your whole house and then start all your baking. I tend to use a week long plan to prep larger parties, tackling a different job each day.
• Day 1: Layout buffets & bars
• Day 2: Shop for paper goods & non perishables
• Day 3: Bake/Cook
• Day 4: Clean
• Day 5: Shop for perishables 
• Day 6: Prepare free food items & floral

So today is day 2 and I'm off to scout the town for my never ending list of supplies. Given my full schedule this week, I'll only be posting the fireplace tutorial as promised. Hopefully I'll be back next week with reports of a successful party.