How to Minimize Stress with a Party Planning Timetable

*Collaborative post

 

Planning the perfect party can be a lot of fun. It’s a chance to get creative with things like themes, gift ideas, and even decorations. What’s more, throwing a great party is also an opportunity for you to show someone you love just how much you care about them. Unfortunately, a lot of beginners in the party planning world struggle with one essential issue: time management. They assume that they can get everything done a week before the party is scheduled, then panic when they don’t have enough time to bake the cake, order presents, and complete the guest list. If you’re new to party planning, the following timetable will help you to keep your anxiety to an absolute minimum.

 

 

8 Weeks Before the Party

2 months before your party might seem like an early time to get started. However, remember that you need to give people time to actually get back to you about whether they can attend. Sit down and think about the person you’re planning the party for. Will you need their input on the theme and who to invite? Alternatively, do you know your honouree well-enough that you can go it alone?

Some of the initial things you’ll need to decide on include a date, a budget, and how many people are going to be coming to the event. This will also help you to make a decision about a venue, or entertainment. If you’re only having a basic get-together, then you could throw the party at home instead.

Write a guest list, and a list of essential party supplies that you need to budget for, this includes your gift for the birthday girl or boy, and essentials like food and catering.

 

5 Weeks Before the Party

If you haven’t sent your invitations out yet, now’s the time to start. You can either create invitations and put them in the post or send them over the internet. These days, invitations delivered via email and social media often get a quicker response than those sent in the mail.

Your invitations need to include the data of the party, the start and finish times of the event, and details for how to get in touch with you. Make sure that you include information on where the party will be and how to get there too.

If you’re inviting children to this party, keep in mind that they might not be able to stay active all day without a nap. It might be worth keeping things brief if your party guests are particularly young. At this stage of planning, you can also shop for party supplies, like decorations!

 

 

2 Weeks Before the Party

A couple of weeks before the party, you need to settle on a menu and make sure that you know what you’re doing about the cake. If you want a professional to bake for you, don’t waste time. Make sure that you’re in your favourite chef’s diary now.

A couple of weeks before the party is also when you can begin to make or buy party favours. You might also look into some activities that you’re going to use to keep the guests entertained. The kind of activities that you choose will depend on various things, including the age of your party-goers, and the theme you picked when you first started planning.

If you need any help with things like getting the venue ready, now might be a good time to reach out to the people closest to you.

 

The Week of the Party

In the week of the party, the main focus is making sure that everyone who hasn’t RSVP’d can give you an answer on whether they’re attending or not. Make sure that the entertainer and venue are confirmed, and shop for any items that you need for food to cater the big day. You can also use this time to wrap birthday gifts and arrange to have your neighbor or a friend watch any pets if kids are going to be running away and causing stress. You should also buy any party supplies that you might still need, such as extra matches for the cake, or dinnerware.

Prepping the party area for the big day is handy too. Make sure everything is clean, and you can start decorating the night before the big day too. If you’re celebrating a child, it might be worth waiting for them to go to bed before you begin decorating, so the experience can be more of a surprise