Party Like You Have All Night
I'm sure you've all heard of those over the top kids parties. Pony rides, Oscar-worthy goodie bags, full spa days for 6 year olds- these things happen. There are people who spend $38,000 for children's parties. There are whole TV shows devoted to excessive, expensive parties. No wonder we sometimes feel like our frugal, homemade party is not enough. Even those of us who would never dream of spending the equivalent of a home down payment sometimes pause and wonder what our Superbowl party guests will think of the medium sized non flat screen TV, or what the other parents will think of our cake, punch, and pin the tail on the donkey.
The good news is that a lot of this top the last party stuff is often all in our heads. If your friends love you for you (and they should!) they will be pleased with whatever you offer. They're there to see you, not your things. They want to talk to you, and while be entertained by a hired fire juggler would be pretty neat, that's not their first thought when they accept your invitation.
In the past, I've been reluctant to entertain. I would get so stressed over every little detail. By the time the day came, I could hardly enjoy it. I was too busy trying to orchestrate perfection. The I noticed that the best parties we gave were the impromptu ones- the ones where we'd invite somebody over to dinner for whatever we happened to be having that night, or to watch the movie we'd picked up earlier that day at the library. My friends were the same- they enjoyed the party, regardless of the type. I could serve a gourmet meal with candles and beautiful desserts, or I could serve spaghetti and jarred sauce with generic ice cream. The friends were the same, but I was a lot less stressed with the second option.
Make the party less about the stuff (fancy dinner, amazing cocktails, etc) and more about spending time with those whose company you value. That's not to say you can't serve a stunning dinner for 8, featuring a Baked Alaska at the end, but if doing that is draining your bank account and emotional reserves, set it aside. Your friends will love you anyway.
What if you want to throw a glamorous grown up shindig or an awesome kid's birthday party? Where do you start? Here's some fabulous folks who have done it for cheap and lived to tell the tale:
Our own Meredith threw an awesome lego themed party for her son for $32. Ten kids and their parents attended.
Almost Frugal had an inexpensive surprise party for her husband with 40 guests.
Being Frugal.net had a glamerous American Idol party for her tween daughter for $66.20.
The Happy Housewife had a lovely family only party for her daughter without touching the savings account.
What kind of parties do you throw? How do you keep costs down? Has anybody ever turned up their nose at your frugal offerings, or did they even notice?
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2 Responses to “Party Like You Have All Night”
March 3rd, 2009 at 1:41 pm
We had a Superheroes party for my 4year old and his 6year old friend in January. We had so much fun eating and playing games at our house. I took me about an hour to decorate the cake and get ready for the games. And we only spent $15 on food/supplies. You can read more about it here – mommysecrets.blogspot.com/2009/01/super-heroes-party.html
March 4th, 2009 at 3:48 pm
I used to stress about having people over because our house is less than perfect. However, I’ve learned that people really don’t care about that stuff, so it helps me relax a bit.
We often have the stormtroopers over, and I always feed them. Grown men can naturally eat a lot. I tend to go towards soups, chilis, or a roast in the crockpot. They tend to feed many for less money.
When my husband threw a zombie party, we bought an inexpensive white sheet at target and hung it from the dining room ceiling. He borrowed a projector from church and projected the movies on the sheet, which served as a large screen. I did homemade foods like burgers and black-bean salad. Chips were bought on sale. Homemade dessert and cut up fruit and veggies. We had quite a spread for very little money. I even bought little popcorn boxes for holding individual servings of popcorn. I doubt we spent more than $30 or $40 on everything, including the sheet for a screen.
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