Timing is (truly) everything. Part 1
Tuesday, January 19th, 2010The Golden Rule of Timing a Great Party
One of our most heard misunderstandings about parties is the idea that parties should last a long time. Not true. My father was totally right when he told me to “leave them wanting more.”Part 1) The Cocktail Hour (or so).
Most large events that include a dinner and/or entertainment start with a cocktail hour (or so) prior to the festivities really getting started. The purpose of this is several-fold. First, it’s a time for the guests to mingle amongst themselves, get a bit to eat and start getting the sense of your celebration. Plus (if your celebration is a wedding), it gives you time to get through photos, then do some mingling of your own. Because I HATE receiving lines (and I really really do) and I’m not a big fan of contrived table visits, either, I think a great cocktail hour (or so) is the key to a very successful celebration.
A truly great cocktail hour depends on some key ingredients: 1) food & drink, 2) music and 3) lighting
Photo by Sarah DiCicco
Photo by Matthew Hollerbush
Rule #1: Have enough food and drink and make sure it’s accessible.
There is really nothing less enjoyable than standing in line for food or at the bar (unless it’s standing in a receiving line — just sayin’). It’s great to have food stations, but make sure there are passed yummies as well.
Photo by Barnaby Draper
The same goes for the bar. To avoid a line forming at the bar, have wine, champagne and maybe a signature drink passed. The number of bars, bartenders and food stations is dependent on the number of guests.
Photo by Michael Branscom
Rule #2: Your music should not be loud or too hi-energy during the cocktail hour. Remember, the primary purpose of your cocktail hour is for mingling. I’m all in favor of really interesting, fun music that steps a bit out-of-the-box, but make sure that it doesn’t overwhelm your guests’ conversation with each other and with you!
from lapisluna.com
Photo by Marie Labbancz
Rule #3: Great lighting creates great atmosphere.
Enough said.
Photo by Cliff Mautner
Photo by Marie Labbancz
If you’re hosting a great cocktail party, then you can stop here (obviously). Plan to start kissing your guests goodbye after about three hours. Otherwise, if you’re moving on to the dinner/dance portion, my favorite length of a cocktail hour (or so) is about 1 1/2 hours. But make sure you don’t run out of anything!
See you for Part 2 soon!
