When you’re throwing a cocktail party, it’s important that you get the guest list right: after all, there’s a fine line between awkward conversation and fun times, and you don’t want to spend the whole night making sure your guests are mingling. As summer approaches, you may be thinking of throwing a shindig of your own, so read on for the 10 ingredients of a successful cocktail party.
Serve good food
From sophisticated canapes to chips and dips, all good parties have one thing in common: great food. It doesn’t have to be restaurant-quality — unless you’re holding a sit-down dinner party, in which case your guests will be paying a lot of attention to the menu — but delicious, fresh bursts of flavor in bite-size form will do.
Invite a good mix of people
It goes without saying that if you have a great group of friends, your party will be a huge success. Good conversation, lots of laughs and casual mingling makes for a great party, so invite the right people; the last thing you want to be doing is baby-sitting guests when you should be having fun!
Supply endless cocktails
It’s really bad form to runs out of drinks, especially if you keep your guests waiting while somebody goes to make another beer run. Make sure you have plenty of cocktails on hand. To go one step further, add a touch of elegance by creating a drinks menu for your guests to browse. Print it on cute notecards and “hire” one of your willing friends to be the bartender for the evening.
Monitor the drinking
Having said that, you don’t want to turn your guests into drunk slobs! Let’s hope that your friends know how to handle their liquor, as a messy guest can turn a great party upside down. Keep your guests in check by making sure no one is drinking way too much, way too fast.
Don’t court drama
Make sure your guests leave the drama at home. If you have friend that you know causes a scene when they’ve had a few too many bevvy’s, then don’t invite him! Instead, keep the guest list intimate by inviting people who vibe well together.
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