A Professional Party Planner’s Guide for Hosting a Murder Mystery Dinner Party

If you are looking to plan an amazing and memorable party for adult guests, consider the idea of hosting a murder mystery dinner party. I have had the pleasure of attending a murder mystery dinner party in the past, and I can tell you that we all simply had a blast.

You may be wondering exactly what a murder mystery party is about. If so, I can tell you that it was similar to a murder mystery dinner theater, except that we as the guests were the actors rather than simply observers trying to figure out who was the murderer. And, unlike professional dinner theater, all of the guests had a much easier time communicating their clues to each other.

When you are planning your murder mystery party, you have two options as for what to do about the storyline and characters. The first is that you can attempt to create your own murder mystery. The second, and much more common, is to purchase a kit from your local party store. The party kit will contain a murder mystery story, a specific number of characters (depending on how many people will be at your party), background information on the characters, costume suggestions for guests, a package of clues for each guest, and usually initiations to the party itself.

In addition, many kits come with a guide that you can follow to have a fun and successful party; and some even come with gifts to give to the winners of the game. Some guides let the party host know how the murderer is; other kits let that be a surprise.

When you are throwing a murder mystery dinner party it is vital that all of your characters attend and come on time as well. Let your guests know this ahead of time and require a simple RSVP for the evening early enough in the planning process that you can always find new characters to attend if you need to. The worst thing that could happen is that your murderer will be absent from the party – and how horrible would that be!

Once you know for sure who will be attending your murder mystery dinner party, then it is time to deliver to each person the information on who their character is, their costume suggestions and their specific background story to share with the other guests as part of the game. As the evening progresses your guests will be providing each other with information which has come from your kit.

It is common for a murder mystery dinner party to start out with each person introducing their character. Then, between courses, each person will again speak about their character and give hints which will be needed to solve the murder mystery. When you run your dinner in this fashion, you can count on your dinner lasting about two to three hours, and your mystery to be solved during, or directly after, your desert time.

The murder mystery dinner party I attended was a mob hit in Italy. We came to the party dressed as stereo-typical mob characters from the old days, and our location was in a local Italian Restaurant. We had all of the characters you can associate with the mob, and we shared our information and hints with each other between courses. Our murder mystery dinner party lasted about three hours and our murderer was given a small prize for the amazing acting they did that night.

A murder mystery dinner party can be a great escape for you and your friends to play one night while the kids are out of the house. The only real limitation on the evening is your own imagination and that of your friends and relatives who you invite. This is definitely an informal party and one which you will want to invite everyone you know to attend – especially the “odder” people in your life. To your party!

A Party Planner’s Guide to the Best 4th of July Celebration Ever

If you are looking for something special to do for this year’s 4th of July celebration, throwing an awesome party can be both fun and rewarding for you, your family, and your friends.

Ever since the first 4th of July celebrations in the late sixteenth century, parades, festivals, feasts, and fun have been the norm. Today, a celebration usually starts with a party at someone’s home or a local park, and then ends up with watching the community fireworks go off at the local community park.

If you would like to have a 4th of July party this year, the first thing that you will want to decide on is the location you will have it at and the time your party will start. While clean-up is much easier if you have your party at a local park, there will be many other families trying to have their celebrations at your local park as well. For this reason, you might choose to have your party at your home and go to the park later in the evening to watch the fireworks.

You will need to send out invitations to your 4th of July party as soon as you know where it will be held. Your invitations are the first sign to your guests of what your party may bring. By either printing or purchasing some theme invitations you can start to set your party’s theme even before the big day. This will help your invited guests to begin to get excited about attending your event.

Once you have your initiations you should fill them out by hand, or print them on your computer, and make sure to include your phone number on them. In addition, if your party will be held outside make sure you let your guests know this so they can bring the appropriate clothing for the event.

Decorating for your 4th of July party can be one of the most fun parts to the day for you. With a red, white, and blue patriotic theme you can really go all out with streamers and Balloons. Your plates, cups, napkins and tablecloths can be red, white, or blue or a nice combination of all of them. In addition, add some American flags in appropriate areas to show your patriotism. Hanging a large American flag near your front door or garage is a very appropriate thing to do for the 4th of July.

The typical menu for a 4th of July celebration is hamburgers, hot dogs, corn on the cob, deviled eggs, potato salad, and anything else you might have at a family barbeque. For desert you can make a wonderful creation using red and blue Jell-o or a simple white cake with red and blue icing.

No party is ever complete without some music, and the 4th of July is no exception to this. However, mixed into your regular dance tracks should be some more traditional patriotic American music as well. Songs such as “America the Beautiful” and “The Stars and Stripes” are meant to be played on the 4th of July and will be enjoyed by all.

Make sure that during the daytime hours you take some time out to take photos of your guests in places such as in front of the American flag. These photos can later be printed or e-mailed to your friends and family as mementos of the day. In addition, they can be shared with loved ones who were not able to attend the event itself.

A great ending to a 4th of July party is a trip downtown to your local community park to watch the local fireworks. If your city or town allows it, take some sparklers and safe fireworks with you for the kids to enjoy while you wait for it to be dark enough for the bigger fireworks.

Most important of all is to enjoy your 4th of July celebration and remember that it is about spending time with friends and family as well as the independence of our country.

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Holiday Party Planning Tips

The holidays are a time of feasting, generally, in the company of family, friends and loved ones. How many times have you heard someone say they "love the holidays", simply for all the parties that exist? Holiday party planning is not only important to many, but one of the busiest and most exciting planning events, as well.

Of course, the holidays that fall in wintertime are not the only times for planning a holiday party. There is Fourth of July in the United States, and comparable holidays in other countries. In any case, sometimes a holiday party is thrown just because the planner loves holiday party planning so much. It can be quite fun for the person who has a love for parties and for planning them.

There is, of course, not a lot of difference in planning for a holiday parties and the planning of other types of parties. Just the reason has changed. The needs of the planner to plan the perfect event is still intact. Holidays party planning involves calculating a guest list, menu and decor, just like any other party.

However, more people do holidays party a lot more than any other party types, or, at least, it seems that way. When too many people are trying to organize holiday parties at the same time, catering and party supply rental companies find themselves overwhelmed. So the wise planner starts party planning for holiday months in advance.

And, of course, the big holiday parties, Christmas party, is the most hectic one. Along with the party itself, one has to work in the present shopping, holiday decorating and all the other various and sundry activities that happen at that time of year. Often times, the smart host/ess will opt to hire a party planner to do the holidays party planning for them, and avoid one bit of holiday stress.

Still, there are those die-hard holiday party planning fanatics who want to do it all themselves. Be especially kind to these people at those times of the year, for they are giving their all to make your holidays memorable. Planning a holiday parties is not easy, especially when there are many other things to do at that time, as well.

Holiday party planning has only one easy part-the choice of theme. Obviously, one is not going to throw a costume party for Christmas or Hanukkah, although it could be done for New Year's. In any case, the theme is generally already clearly defined for most holiday party planning. The tough part is doing something different from year to year. That's where rabid holiday party planners love to shine, by trying to top themselves each year. Or sometimes, the holiday party planning competition is not with themselves, but with a rival. Is it any wonder the holidays are particularly stressful for some people?

Very often, people use the excuse of holiday parties to let off some mid-winter stream, and the organizer of holiday party planning knows this. It's a time of festivities and fantasy that people love to dive into for a little escape and lots of fun. This is often the reason why a planner feels the need to top themselves each year. When the party-goers go home, the planner wants to know that they are looking back and saying, "That was the party of the year!" Great holiday party planning depends on the planner's success in that area.

For more information about Holiday party planning [http://www.partyplanningsavvy.com/holiday-party-planning], visit [http://www.partyplanningsavvy.com/].

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The Professional Party Planner Guide to Bridal Showers

A bridal shower is one of those parties which you can throw which will be fun and yet practical at the same time. While the purpose of the bridal shower is to give the bride things which can be used in her marriage, another fun reason is that it allows some hours away from the planning and stress of the wedding itself, for the bride and family to just play games and have some good clean fun.

The bridal shower is the perfect occasion to share funny family stories and for friends and relatives to gather to give the bride advice and support for her marriage. It is also another occasion which the bride gets to be the princess of the day, without having to deal with all of the stress of the wedding itself. It is a much more casual and comfortable event than the actual wedding or reception generally are.

In planning a bridal shower, it is generally the responsibility of the maid-of-honor and the bridesmaids. While it used to be considered poor etiquette for anyone else to host the bridal shower, today it is perfectly acceptable. However, it is vital in your planning that you take into account the bride’s wishes and don’t make any plans or games which could make her feel uncomfortable or angry. You should consult with the bride and ask what she would like for her shower. Generally, it is best not to have a surprise bridal shower unless it is far before the wedding and you think the bride would really appreciate one.

The bridal shower should be held between two to eight weeks prior to the wedding date. Only invited guests of the wedding itself should be invited to the bridal shower. The time of your bridal shower is up to you and the bride; however the standard tradition is generally in the early afternoon. Today some people hold their bridal showers at a spa or even on the beach for a BBQ and party; it just depends on the wishes of the bride and groom.

Also, you will need to decide if the bridal shower will be a traditional “girls only” event, or if you will have couples. If you will have couples, then the party is generally referred to as a “Jack and Jill” party rather than a bridal shower. For a Jack and Jill party, gifts are generally less gender specific and more home related.

In addition, the other popular themes for a bridal shower are: around-the-clock showers, lingerie showers, kitchen showers, and travel gift showers. For an around-the-clock shower, each guest is given a time of day and their gift should reflect that time when purchased. For a lingerie shower the bride is given lingerie to enjoy with her new husband after the wedding. A kitchen shower consists of all gifts being useful in the kitchen, and travel gifts are for when the couple travel together.

At the end of the bridal shower make sure that you have a small sentimental gift for each of the attendees. Your gift can be something to commemorate the day, or even something simple such as a bar of gourmet soap. It is always nice to send your guests back to their homes with something special, in addition to their wonderful memories of the day.

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Surprise Party Planning Etiquette

Surprise party planning requires a little more advanced planning on the part of the host or hostess than normal parties do, only because everything you are doing must be kept a secret from the guest of honor. The most successful surprise parties are when the guest of honor has no idea that anyone is hosting a party for them.

If you are planning a surprise birthday party, the birthday boy or girl obviously knows they have a birthday coming up, and this makes it even harder to keep the secret all the way up until the day of the party. One way around this would be to host a surprise birthday party on some other day rather than the actual birthday of the guest of honor. The date chosen for the alternative birthday party should be in close proximity to the actual date of their birthday, because if it's six months away, you may as well go ahead and celebrate the next birthday coming up too.

Surprise parties are usually more appreciated by the guest of honor because they know how hard it must have been to plan a surprise party and they will greatly appreciate all of your efforts. If the surprise party is going to be at a location other than your own, prior arrangements with the owner will need to be made so that all the necessary things to do in order to set up the party can be accomplished ahead of time.

Parking is usually a dead give-away if the guest of honor arrives and there are already a lot of cars right in front of the location of the party. Try to ask your guests to carpool together to cut down on the number of cars and then ask them to park around the corner or out of sight so the surprise won't be given away before the party begins.

Office surprise parties are fun as long as all of your co-workers know each other well enough to know that the guest of honor won't be embarrassed by having a surprise party at work. Employees might be startled or embarrassed to be having a party in their favor at the workplace, so be sure to get a feel for everyone's opinions on the subject before planning a surprise party at work. Also, don't forget to include the boss in all of your party planning ideas and get approval before proceeding too far in your efforts. Remember, the workplace is for working and you're not getting paid to party.

There are many different types of surprise parties. You could host a surprise party for someone turning over-the-hill, or an anniversary party, welcome home party, congratulations on your new job party or just because party. Whatever the occasion is that you are celebrating, if you think it will add to the celebration and make the guest of honor really happy, go ahead and plan a surprise party for them.

The main thing to take into consideration when surprise party planning is to think about how the guest of honor will react. Will he or she be happy or uncomfortable? If someone doesn't like to be in the spotlight, a surprise party is probably not the best type of party to plan for them. That doesn't mean they wouldn't appreciate a party in their honor, just that they would rather not be surprised and perhaps embarrassed in front of all the guests.

Whatever type of party you plan, always think of your guest of honor, think of all of your guests, and be sure to include yourself on the guest list. Plan your party so that you can enjoy yourself as a guest too.

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Location, Location, Location. - 3

Now that you're beginning to narrow down your theme, you need to decide on the location for the event.  If you have enough room in your home and would like to host it there, great. 

But maybe you don't want to go through all the necessary preparation for a home-based party.  When you hold your party at home, you not only have to plan the party itself, but you have to expend time and energy to ensure your home is clean (in my case, lots of energy goes into this) and is capable of holding the number of people you've invited.

This shouldn't be too difficult of a decision.  In visualizing the success of your party and its theme, you probably have a good idea for an appropriate location already.  You just need to firm up a few details, that's all.

Consider these questions when deciding on the location for your party:

How many people am I inviting?

How much can I afford to spend on the party?

Do I want an indoor or outdoor party -- or a little of both?

Is the location I have in mind related to my theme?

Will the guests have enough room to park their cars?

Does the location I have in mind allow the serving of alcoholic beverages?

These are just a few of the questions that need to be answered before you choose a location.  

Don't let anyone tell you that you need to have big bucks to throw a fabulous bash -- that just isn't true! 

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Barefoot Contessa Parties! Ideas and Recipes for Easy Parties That Are Really Fun

"A good party is not about the food," says Ina Garten, "it's about the people." That may be true, but her Barefoot Contessa Parties! will ensure that your next party is a fabulous one, regardless of your guest list. Garten, author of The Barefoot Contessa Cookbook and a monthly column in Martha Stewart Living, has been catering since 1978. So who better to put together a collection of entertaining theme parties? She's included everything from drinks and hors d'oeuvres to dessert and coffee, as well as notes about what "surprises," atmospheres, venues, and table decorations lend themselves to each. Because she likes to attend her own parties (and who doesn't?), almost every recipe is make-ahead and remarkably uncomplicated.
From casual get-togethers, such as the Pizza Party--which includes recipes for Caesar Salad with Pancetta, California Pizzas that your guests can assemble themselves, and Ice-Cream Sodas--to the elegant Academy Awards dinner--where your guests will enjoy Raspberry Vodka, Rori's Potato Chips with Caviar Dip, Smoked Salmon with Mesclun, Filet of Beef with Gorgonzola Sauce, Roasted Cherry Tomatoes, Garlic Roasted Potatoes, and Chocolate Ganache Cake--Garten's parties are well thought out and well organized. Divided by season, you'll look forward to Summer's Outdoor Grill, which starts with Real Margaritas, followed by Endive and Avocado Salad, Grilled Herb Shrimp with Mango Salsa, Spaghettoni al Pesto, Tomato Fennel Salad, and Peach Raspberry Shortcakes for dessert. Autumn brings beautiful menus like the one where you cook with your guests and end up with a feast of Potato Pancakes with Caviar, Salad with Warm Goat Cheese, Rack of Lamb, Orzo with Roasted Vegetables, and Apple Crostata. Winter's menus bring soul-warming food, such as Seafood Chowder, Butternut Squash and Apple Soup, and a recipe for possibly the world's best Chocolate Chunk Cookies. Spring offers menus such as the Sunday Breakfast, with a main course of Roasted Asparagus with Scrambled Eggs, and the Jewish Holiday Party, with Chicken Soup with Matzo Balls.
Filled with funny party anecdotes, a bit of Ina Garten history, and clever hints and tips to help guarantee the success of these recipes, this collection, subtitled "Ideas and Recipes for Easy Parties That Are Really Fun," delivers on every count. --Leora Y. Bloom
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Choosing a Party Theme That Fits YOU!

Worried about choosing a theme?  I've got you covered.  Let's start with picking your brain a little and see what you've liked and disliked at past parties.  Because this is your chance to create the party of your dreams (and hopefully your guests’ dreams, as well).

Just about anything goes when it comes to themed parties.  Of course, you'll still find yourself asking all the standard planning questions: Am I serving food?  How much? What kind of serving plan should I use -- a sit-down dinner or a buffet?

But the ultimate question is what type of party do you think you'd be most comfortable hosting?  If the thought of throwing eight of your closest friends together at one table for any period of time sends you running for cover… perhaps the sit-down dinner isn't a good choice.

If, on the other hand, you love to cook and wouldn't mind a few more guests -- as long as they don't mind serving themselves -- then perhaps buffet-style dining is more suitable.

Now you get to pick your theme.  And if you can conceive it, you can carry it out.  It's a lot like in that movie, Field of Dreams:  "If you build it, they will come!"

The key rule to remember about party planning is actually quite simple:  Plan the event around your talents, desires, and style.  If you do this, the party just has to be fun and a big success.

The only exception to this rule is if you're hosting a party to celebrate the birthday or accomplishment of another person.  Then the party theme should revolve around your guest of honor.

You may be planning a party to commemorate a birthday of an older person -- let's say your 92-year-old grandfather who is still in amazing health.

What are his interests?  What did he do as young man?  What are some of the changes he saw as he aged?  This opens up the party to several theme ideas, from a "20^th Century party” -- showing the changes that occurred in his life -- to a more family-oriented theme.

Whatever you choose, just make sure you keep it light and lively.  

Discovering the purpose of the party!

Why party? 

Well, to have a good time, of course!  That’s the stereotypical "frat boy" answer to partying, but that's not the real question being asked here. The real question goes just a little bit deeper: What is the purpose of your gathering?

Is it to celebrate someone's birthday?  Commemorate an anniversary?  Mark a significant milestone?  Or perhaps it's just to bring your closest friends together?

The reason why you're throwing the party will inevitably help shape and structure the event.

“Unique, yet the same.”

That's the mantra you need to keep in mind as you plan this party.  Perhaps you've been tasked with hosting a small event commemorating the retirement of one of your colleagues.  Why did they ask you? They chose you because someone recalled that great small gathering you held at your house several months ago.

That's fine, you think.  But a small gathering of close friends is easy to plan.  A retirement party?  That's different.

Yes and no.  Obviously, no two parties are alike -- each has a distinct purpose and direction.  But when you scratch the surface of a party, they all have common elements.

All adult parties can be classified into three major categories: dinner, cocktail, or buffet.  Each type has its own unique style and requirements.

In addition, your guest list and the alcoholic beverages you serve (if any) will vary with each type of party, as will the food. Even the time of day you throw a party will differ depending on the event’s category.

There, you'll discover my complete party planning system.  It takes the fear out of preparing your home for guests.