I love throwing parties – I’ll take any chance to celebrate. Birthdays, holidays, weddings and baby showers, and graduations – count me in. Random brunch on a Sunday, dinner with the extended family, Game of Thrones series finale? Definitely!

In fact, I love throwing parties so much that I keep a party journal. And the really funny thing is that I recently found out that my grandmother did the same thing! My grandfather was a diplomat for the State Department in the Philippines so they often hosted diplomatic dinners. She kept a journal of who attended and which food they served to ensure they didn’t repeat any menus. I was named Dorothea after this amazing woman, so I loved learning that we had this in common.  

Here are some of the tips I have learned over time.

1. Flowers are a must! I always have flowers when I throw a party…even if just a bunch of baby’s breath wrapped in a simple ribbon.
   • Here’s one of my best tips: Did you know you can order bulk flowers at Costco and Sam’s Club? For this party below of 24, I bought all thee flowers for about $175. Four 6’ greenery runners, delivered to my house for $109.99. They are fresh, live greenery…ready to place directly on the table. And they come boxed so it is easy to transport.  Then I dropped by my local florist to grab some peonies to add color.

And this retirement party for 200 people, with 25 tables, we bought all of the flowers from Costco for less than $400. This included bouquets and greenery on every table and flowers at the bar and guest book. We actually had too many flowers and were putting bouquets everywhere!

2. Have to-go boxes on hand. I always have extra food and no one ever wanted to take it home. As soon as I started pulling our to-go boxes, everyone would bring home the extra food.  
   • Along the same lines, bring large clear plastic cups and the guests will take the flowers too!

3. Little gestures go a long way! Pay attention when you are at your friends’ houses or when you go out to dinner and take notes.
   • When having a dinner party, serve your guests their favorite beer or soft drink. 
   • Do they always ask for lemon for their water? Grab a lemon and have it cut and ready to go.
   • Do they hate chocolate? Make sure to have a non-chocolate dessert. The other option is to exclude them from your life, because what weirdo doesn’t like chocolate? But that might be too extreme. 
4. Always have pitcher(s) of water on the table so your guests don’t have to get up if they need a quick drink.

5. Write up (or print out) menu cards to show your guests what you are serving. That way, they don’t have to ask what they are about to eat. And note when they are friendly for different dietary restrictions.

6. Buy extra paper products and leave them unopened. You can return them if necessary but have them in case of an emergency. 
7. Learn from The Bear and mise en place!! It’s a French culinary phrase meaning, “put everything in place”…or a fancy way of saying to get your shit ready. This past Christmas, I made an apple galette for Christmas Eve dinner. While you probably can make this ahead of time, it is best right out of the oven. To save time, I had everything ready! The apples were thinly sliced, sitting in lemon juice in the refrigerator. The spices were measured and placed in a Ziplock bag. The baking sheet was ready with parchment paper. Even the butter was cubed. After dinner, I was able to quickly roll out the dough and assemble the galette. It took less than 5 minutes. And because I prepped ahead of time, I could wash those dishes ahead of time which meant my kitchen stayed clean.