How to Throw a Holiday Party

Why is throwing a holiday party so much fun? It is the Yuletide cheer? The toasty, roasty cocktails? The ability to wear sequins and a horrible reindeer sweater in one crazy look and get away with it? Whatever the secret ingredient, Mixbook totally gets the excitement in the air come holiday time and is ready to help you get your holiday party invitations in order!

Office parties needn’t look like a party with your besties, which needn’t look like getting the family together to sing carols and talk about when Uncle John went to the big house. Each party should have its own flavor and its own signature element. Get inspired by these fun holiday party ideas and matching holiday party photo card invitations.

HOLIDAY PARTY IDEAS FOR FRIENDS

Your friends love you so whether your budget is $10 or $10,000, rest assured, everyone is going to have a blast. Pick from one of Mixbook’s many holiday invitations to let friends know the details and to give them an excuse to brag about your fab party when people see the holiday dinner invitations hanging on the refrigerator.

Signature Appetizer

Maybe your budget calls for pigs in a blanket or maybe you’re splurging for caviar fresh from the Caspian Sea – whatever way the menu goes, just make sure that it goes. Nothing is worse than a menu that doesn’t match. My favorite appetizer is often handmade pizzas with unusual toppings, baked in the oven and cut into thin slices to savor, but not fill up on.

Signature Cocktail

When it’s your besties, why pick one when you can pick two? Eggnog Martini? Candy Cane Cocktail? Pick some drinks that will start the party off on a fun foot. Holiday drinks can receive a festive upgrade with a crushed candy cane rim. Just dip the rim in sugar water and then into crushed candy canes.

Fun Activity

Truth or Lie. As friends socialize, help them break the ice with this fun game. Each person must tell 3 stories (2 true and 1 lie). Afterward the listener has to guess which one was the lie. The best part of this hysterical game is that there are no losers.

Signature Décor

Candles. Candles. Candles. A glow of light around your house whispers intimacy, coziness and warmth. Just be sure to use unscented candles, or limit the number of scented, to keep the smell in check.

Group Crafts

Hold a crafty hour for your friends. DIY gift tags are super easy to make using a variety of paints, markers, sequins, or glitter. They’ll be able to use these tags during their holiday gift wrapping.

FAMILY PARTY

Assuming that there are folks of all ages coming over to celebrate the holidays, keep your party fun, casual and comfortable with a holiday invitation to match. Make sure that your 91-year-old grandmother is as happy to be there as your 2-year-old niece.

Signature Appetizer

Add some seafood to the holidays in bite-sized bits that the littlest of hands can swipe and gobble. Crab cakes, popcorn shrimp, stuffed squid and seared octopus are just a few of the delicious options that will have your family hoping you host again next year.

Signature Cocktail

Cranberry cocktails for the grown-ups and hot cider for those with chilly toes. The best part about using a cranberry theme isn’t just the color, but that the little ones can drink the juice too.

Fun Activity

Numbered Gift Exchange. Have each person bring a brightly wrapped gift in an agreed-upon price range that everyone’s comfortable with. When they come in, take the gift and give them a number. Last number goes first and gets to pick a present from the assortment. Each following number gets to choose whether they want to take a new present or a present that’s already been opened. If #12 takes #18’s present, #18 gets to pick a new present. Whoever gets #1 gets pick of the litter. The kiddos love this game.

Signature Décor

Go classic. Choose from one of Mixbook’s many holiday dinner invitations to set the tone and then keep it simple. Walks down memory lane are also a good idea so if you know where that video from Christmas 1983 is, feel free to play it in the background.

Hanukkah

If you’re celebrating Hanukkah, Mixbook carries a beautiful range of holiday cards and invites for the Jewish community. Our bright and festive designs welcome the exciting eight days of celebration.

Group Crafts

The younger members of the family might need something to distract them from all the gifts under the tree. Grab some construction paper and a glue stick to make easy holiday wreaths. Trace around a handprint, cut out those hands, and glue them layered into a circle.

And last, but not least, remember that there’s always a lot going on come holiday time. Get your holiday party invitations out before Thanksgiving so people can reserve their calendars for you!

HOLIDAY OFFICE PARTY IDEAS

The first thing to remember is that decorum and appropriate behavior should never be thrown out the door when it comes to work. You might all be friends, but there are lines that need to be observed. That being said, holiday parties with work associates can still be a lot of fun. Just try to keep the emphasis on a great meal or a cool location rather than the open bar. We all want to let our hair down, but don’t come to work the next day with a Facebook full of regret.

Office Appetizer

Stick with a crowd-pleaser – fancy meat-and-cheese charcuterie assortment with fresh baked bread, dipping sauces, exotic olives and a crudité platter.

Office Cocktail

Cocoa Nog! Like eggnog, but with less alcohol, the cocoa nog is festive, sweet and perfect for sipping. Plus, it’s totally hip!

FUN ACTIVITY: SECRET SANTA PARTY

Gift exchange with a twist. This year do your Secret Santa with a theme: kitchen-only gifts, handmade gifts (no one said you had to make it!), board games only, photo books only – the options are endless. Just make sure your invitation has all the details clearly stated so no one shows up empty-handed.

Office Décor:

If your holiday party isn’t at work, keep it classy and respect that not everyone might celebrate the same winter holiday that you do. If your fete is at the office, hit up your local 99-cent store. Nothing makes people smile at the office more than total cheese. Do it up. Transform your office from a serious place of business to an explosion of holiday tackiness.

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