Want to be the friend who hosts the most excellent get together?

Here are some tips to have your friends thinking you host the coolest get together ever!

A nice casual get together might be just what everybody needs right now. You can to catch up with your friends, relax, and have fun! And it doesn’t have to be fancy, expensive, or time consuming.

Of course, it’s always fun to just have people over for a casual meal! Invite as few as you want or as many as your table can hold! Cook up something yummy, set the table, and you’re ready to go!

However, if you’d like to have a get together that’s a little out of the ordinary, here are a few fun ideas! And you can have all this fun without a lot of cost, prep, or clean up!

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— Keep the Get Together Small —

My extensive party “research” shows that about 6 – 12 people is a good size for a get together. Small enough for everybody to be in on the main conversation, but big enough to handle it when side discussions (or dancing) develop.

— Have a Fun Activity —

Here’s where you can really make your get together a cut above! There are so many super fun ways to entertain! The possibilities are endless, but here are a few!

MOVIE NIGHT

For instance, we have a great group of friends that used to get together every once in a while for a Stinky Cheese party! Everybody brought their favorite kind of “aromatic” cheese, and we watched the cheesiest movie we could find. It was super hysterical and fun!

There are so many great movies out there! So, here are a few of my favorites. Remember the popcorn!

GET TOGETHER TO DO A CRAFT

Like the quilting bees of old (or new,) it’s really fun to work on a project with friends. You can all do the same thing, like these drawings.

Or, everybody can just bring their own project. You can knit, while maybe one friend makes earrings and another arranges dried flowers. Maybe your other friend glues interesting small things to bottles and spray paints them gold … Just a suggestion!

(Actually, I knew someone who did that once! The bottles were so fun and everybody really liked getting them for presents! But maybe save the spray paint for another get together. You’d hate to have a gold stripe down the side of your knitting.) (Or maybe not … !) ANYway, crafting is a fun thing to consider!

PLAY A GAME

Here are some super fun games I love! Click on the pictures if you want to score one of these for yourself! (Shopping, that is!)

Catch Phrase. This is a blast! It’s really fast-paced and keeps everybody involved. Before the timer goes off, you have to make your partner guess a word without actually saying it! Then, when the buzzer does go off, you pass the unit to the next team as fast as possible! They get to try – buzzer! – then it’s back to your team! First team to seven, wins!

My husband (a musician) and his teammate (also a musician,) got the word “Practice” once because my husband used an old musician joke as a clue. How do you get to Carnegie Hall? Practice of course!

Jenga is a classic! Although it’s less frantic than Catch Phrase as it goes along, it’s just as exciting at the end! You stack wooden blocks and try to remove and re-stack as many as you can before the whole thing collapses! (See picture above!) SO fun!

Important Safety Tip: Don’t play near china, crystal, or fish bowls, however!

Charades is another classic! Even though there are several different charade-type games out there, I like this one because it’s fast! Choose whichever variety you like best.

DO A PUZZLE

Puzzles are super fun! We did the one above at our casual Christmas get together, and it was a total hit! At one point, of the 13 people in the house, 12 of us were gathered around the table working on this puzzle! We were Hootin n Hollerin and celebrating every time we found a piece! We could barely tear ourselves away for snacks!

But can I just say – Liberty Puzzles! Our Christmas puzzle? It was custom made from a promotional poster featuring my brother in law! He’s a jazz musician, and tours and teaches a lot in China. His sister sent the poster file off to Liberty, and they made a puzzle out of it!

And what a puzzle! It’s wood, and the pieces are little characters and amazing shapes! They’re so much fun to put together! And it was a lot easier than we thought. Because the pieces are so unique, finding the shapes wasn’t hard at all. We had a blast!

Plus, how fun is it to have a puzzle out of your very own picture?! And what a great gift! I see a Mantel and Table puzzle in my future!
However, if you just want to order one up, Liberty also has really cool pre-made puzzles

GET TOGETHER FOR A FOOD NIGHT

Make fondue, do a wine and chocolate tasting, have a chocolate fountain. You could make spaghetti or pizzas, decorate cookies, or stuff spring rolls. Because, any kind of fun Group-Food event is always great!

(Ok, but chocolate!)

— Serve Finger Food —

As you know, people love to graze! And it’s fun to be able to just hop up any time you’re snack-ish and grab a bite sized thing to eat! In addition, you won’t need to wash any silverware!

— Make it Pot Luck —

Ask each of your guests to bring an appetizer. People love to contribute their specialty. And with appetizers, I’ve found you almost never get two people bringing the same thing. Lots of variety, and not a lot of preparation for you!

— Prepare Your Food Ahead —

Although, what you do prepare, you can make in advance! Here’s a Do-Ahead recipe that’s a total favorite at my parties. In fact, my friends like these so much that by the time I get to the buffet, there are never any left! You can make them several days ahead and just reheat them for your get together.

My recipe is adapted from Albertina’s Exceptional Recipes, one of my favorite cookbooks. You can read more about Albertina’s in this post.

Also, you can get a printable copy of this recipe from the Members Library. If you’re not already a member, you can sign up when you get there.

Chicken Pesto in Puff Pastry

Ingredients

• Poached* chicken breast pieces, (12) 2″ squares
• Pesto, (12) Tablespoons
• Thin slices of pepper jack cheese, (12) 2″ squares
• Deli ham slices, (12) 2″ squares
• 1 package frozen puff pastry sheets
• 1 egg white, slightly beaten
• Parmesan cheese

To Prepare Puff Pastries

• Preheat oven to 400 degrees
• Let frozen pastry thaw until it’s just rollable. You don’t want it too mushy!
• Cut each sheet into thirds, and roll each piece so it’s big enough to wrap around the chicken, etc.
• On top of each cut pastry, layer one piece each of the chicken, ham, & cheese, and 1 Tbs pesto
• Wrap up the fillings with the pastry, into a little pillow shape
• Pinch the seams together
• Place, seam side down, on an ungreased baking sheet
• Brush with egg white
• Sprinkle with parmesan
• Refrigerate for about 30 minutes (I get a glass of wine or a snack, and read a book during this time!)
• Bake for about 15 minutes, then check. (Everybody’s oven is different.)
• Pastries should be a nice golden brown on the outside. The insides are already cooked, so if the tops are brown, the insides will be fine.
• It’s ok if some of the filling leaks out!
• Let them cool just a bit before you take them off the baking sheet. Use a strong turner – the bottoms might stick to the sheet a little.
• Place on a serving tray, garnish if you want, and enjoy!

*Note: to poach chicken, put in a skillet and cover with salted water or diluted chicken broth. Bring to a boil, then turn heat down immediately and simmer on low until cooked through. (The time will depend on how large the pieces are. If you do breast halves, it takes about 15-20 minutes.) Remove from water and cool, then cut into pieces.

— Use Paper Plates, Napkins, & Cups —

Paper plates have come a long way from boring and flimsy white! If you want to use paper, but would like a little more class, you’re in luck! There are a ton of choices out there!

These are a few of my favorite sets (there are really so many options!) Just click on the pictures to shop.

— Have Your Trash Can & Recycle Bins Handy —

So, this is kind of a weird one, but it really works for super easy clean up.

Put your trash can and recycle bins in a noticeable place!

Your guests might not feel too comfortable opening the cupboards under your sink, looking for the trash! However, if the bins are out in plain sight and easily accessible, they won’t have to wonder. They can put their things right in the bins – not on the kitchen counter for you to throw away later! Saves you all kinds of time, and your guests are happy to help out! Also, you can easily see when the bins get full.

I like the straightforward look, above. On the other hand, a little more subtlety is nice too! Tons of different looks and options!

— Have a Great Time! —

No matter what you end up doing, hanging out with your friends is so much fun! With these tips, you can host a super great get together that’s easy and inexpensive. And one that your friends will be talking about for a long long time!

This Post Shared With

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