With planning your holiday party, food is an absolute must. Now is the time to break out those recipes that you normally don't get to use throughout the rest of the year. So, go all out! Food is definitely a party accent that can take your party to the next level. Everyone remembers the food and that's what they look forward too. It's also a great time to try new holiday recipes and get creative with your food. So, Wedding and Party Network has some great ideas for your holiday menu.

Cheeseball – Yes, these are nothing new. They are seen at a lot of parties. However, they come in many flavors, so switch it up and try out a new one. The main key to make it stand out is how it's shaped. So, shape it into a Christmas tree, snowman or even a present! Use bell peppers or other vegetables for the ornaments on the tree and even the tree topper and use strands of celery to make a bow on top of the present. Surround with your favorite crackers and enjoy!

Fruit Tree – Another staple piece at any party is a fruit tray. However, take a different spin on it. Take a foam cone that you would find at your local craft store, toothpicks and fruit. Place grapes, strawberries, kiwi, pineapple cantaloupe or grapes onto the cone with the toothpicks to create a festive tree. Even use a star cookie cutter to cut out a star out of fruit for the top of the fruit tree.

Pinwheel Tree – Again, pinwheels are seen at a lot of parties. You can switch it up by trying out a new recipe with different ingredients. However, make sure your tortilla shell is green. You can then strategically place them on top of each other to represent a tree. Place cherry tomatoes around for ornaments and a star on top.

Gingerbread Sandwiches – This is a great treat for the little ones. Create a sandwich, such as peanut butter and jelly or even a turkey sandwich. Then take a holiday shaped cookie cutter and cut out the sandwiches. Just a different take on your regular sandwiches.

Christmas Tree Brownies – These are extremely fun! First off, prepare brownies in a cupcake pan. While they are baking, prepare strawberries and cut off the tops. Make sure there is an even surface to place on the brownie. Also, prepare green icing, yellow icing and whatever other colors you may want to use on your tree for ornaments. Use a star icing tip to pipe on the green icing around the strawberry, which will end up in the shape of a tree. Next up, use the different colored icings to decorate the tree. In the end, you'll have a Christmas tree brownie.

Reindeer Marshmallows – Lets not forget about the kids. This dessert will definitely win them over and it's extremely simple! Take a marshmallow, dip it in chocolate, place it on a lollipop stick, use M&M's for the nose, white icing for the eyes and a pretzel broken in half for the antlers. Simple as that and simply adorable!

Snowman Treats – A cute treat for anyone. Doughnut holes, black icing and carrots are all that you need for this little treat. Take the black icing and frost it on the white doughnut hole for the eyes and mouth and place the carrot in the center for the nose. The kids will love it!

Cookies – Everyone may have cookies at their party, and there are many ways that you can decorate them. What's important is how you display them. For example, if you have snowflake themed cookies, place them in a platter that is layered with blue sprinkles or if you are doing snowball cookies or even cupcakes, place shredded coconut onto the platter for a snow effect.

These are just a few ideas on party food for your holiday party. However, there are many ideas out there. A bread wreath, bread shaped into a candy cane, cheese and vegetable tray in the shape of a tree, black olive stuffed penguins or even a snowball cake. Don't forget to visit your local caterer for more great ideas, they're filled with them. If you have fabulous food, your party will absolutely be amazing!

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The holiday season is upon us, so it's time to start planning your holiday party. However, are you tired of doing the same holiday party themes each and every year? Are you wanting to freshen it up and put a fun twist on your party this year? Wedding and Party Network has some great holiday party ideas that will truly put a great twist on any party to live it up. From the decorations, food and activities, this years party will be absolutely amazing.

For your party, the first thing you must do is pick out a theme. It can be elegant, fun or traditional. Whatever you choose, that's the first thing you must decide to make sure your decorations and everything else match the theme. Once you have picked your theme, it's time to start picking out invitations, decorations and the food.

Holiday Decorations

Ornaments – Holiday ornaments are great decor ideas for your party and just great accents to have around the house during the holidays. Use vases of different sizes and shapes and fill them up with different colored ornaments. Even turn the vases upside down so the ornaments are enclosed for something unique. Also, hang ornaments from chandeliers, light fixtures, curtain rods or anywhere else you may think of. Pair the different colored ornaments with different colored ribbon to contrast each other. Next up, take candlesticks of different sizes and place ornaments on them instead of candles. This makes for a fun centerpiece.

Another fun approach is to actually hang ornaments from the ceiling with fishing line to make a floating tree. It may be a tedious task to align the ornaments up just right in the shape of a tree, but the result is a show stopper. Of course, you can always use ornaments on your holiday wreath, that never gets old and makes a beautiful accent to any door.

Holiday Candy – You just don't eat the holiday candy, you can also incorporate it into your holiday decor. You can fill vases up with candy and then place your arrangement in it or glue candy to cones to make for a candy Christmas tree. Don't forget stringing candy together or hanging it from your tree is always a great idea as well.

Vases – Another simple decoration that can be transformed into an elegant staple piece is a vase. There are so many things you can do with vases. You can create frosted glasses, paint the vases, fill them up with candy, fill them up with ornaments or create a beautiful arrangement using flowers or even holiday picks that you find throughout many stores. Even make a visit to your local florist to have them create a beautiful arrangement for your party. Also, don't settle on just one vase. Scatter them throughout your home in various sizes to add to the decor.

Lettering – Spell out the holidays at your next party by using lettering. You can either cut out letters from cardboard, construction paper or even find chip board at your local craft store. Add an extra touch by painting the letters, adding rhinestone or glitter and tying it off with a ribbon and hanging the letters from light fixtures, windows or from wreaths.

Lighting – This feature is extremely important for your party. Decide what kind of mood and setting you're wanting for your party? Do you want an elegant setting or a more vibrant and cheerful setting? Use candles throughout the party and white holiday lights for an elegant setting. If you're wanting a more festive decor, use colorful lights. Lighting truly sets the mood and helps convey the theme of your party.

These are just 5 tips on holiday party decor ideas. However, there are tons more like, using felt or scrap ribbon and fabric for wreaths, garland to strand on staircases or around doors, plants, feathers, ornaments as place settings or mini floral vases or even large wrapped presents to put out as a topiary as guests enter your holiday party.

The main thing is to get creative, figure out what direction you want to go in and just go with it. Your holiday party will be picture perfect!

Stay tuned for more tips on holiday party food & activities later this week!

This post is brought to you by Houston Florists.
Not in Houston, TX? No worries, use Wedding and Party Network's handy party planning directory to help you find a florist near you!

We all love the holidays, each and every one of them. We all love to decorate and share in the festivities through decorations. However, when people first get married they don't always have a lot of stuff, like dishes, furniture or decorations, let along holiday decorations. Therefore, throwing a holiday bridal shower is the perfect idea. It's a fun holiday party where guests can shower the bride with lots of holiday goodies. Here are a few tips, ideas and variations that you can do to throw a unique bridal shower!

A Festive Christmas Shower

If the bride is getting married around the holiday season or will share her engagement around Christmas, this is a great time to throw one of these fun bridal showers. There are lots of ideas out there that will be great for this shower.

Color Combo: First off, ask your bride what colors she wants to use for her Christmas decorations. Is it the traditional red and green or a unique color, such as green and silver. This is the key since all your party decorations can be catered towards the bride's color combo. Color coordinate the bridal shower invitations with the colors and include what holiday colors the bride will be using in her decor. That way guests can cater to her wants and needs.

Party Decorations: Since this shower will be around Christmas time, more than likely you have someone who has their Christmas decorations out. Therefore, you won't need a lot of party decorations. You want to focus more on the table.

Do you have Christmas tableware that you are planning to get the bride? Well set it out on the table, she'll love to see how she can use it. It plays up the party food table too. If someone plans on getting her a small Christmas tree or even a wreath, use it! She'll be excited when she finds out that she gets to take that home too. Decorating is a cinch around the holidays, so make sure you plan and especially around this time of the year.

Party Food: There are lots of variations that you can do when deciding on what type of party foods you will serve. Does the bride have a sweet tooth? Throw an all dessert bridal shower. You can do a white powdered doughnut tree, which can resemble a snowy covered tree. Unique cake pops are always a hit. You could also do chocolate covered strawberries, brownies, wedding cupcakes, gingerbread men, Christmas themed sugar cookies and all the holiday favorites, such as fudge and divinity. So yummy!

However, if the bride isn't much on sweets, you can do appetizers. Place broccoli on a Styrofoam tree and accent it with cherry tomatoes. It'll look like a Christmas tree with red ornaments. Super cute! You can do veggie trays, dips, cute ornament shaped sandwiches, pine cone or Christmas wreath shaped cheese ball and an adorable themed cake to go with it.

One example, I had my bridal shower this past weekend. My colors are chocolate-brown and blue, therefore, they created a cake with chocolate icing and accented it with adorable blue ornaments. It was absolutely darling.

However, if you're not up for stressing over the food; hire a party caterer! There are lots of appetizers that can be catered towards Christmas. Plus, they're all tasty and extremely delicious!

However, the holiday season is ideal to throw this event, you can do it year round too. Just throw a general holiday shower, where guests can bring her items to decorate for spring, Easter, St. Patrick's Day, Thanksgiving and Halloween. You can host a holiday bridal shower however you would like to.

Ask the bride, what does she want most. What are her colors? Just remember to style it towards the bride and your shower will be a hit!

This post is brought to you by St Louis Wedding Decoration Providers.
Not in St Louis, MO? No worries, use Wedding and Party Network's handy party planning directory to help you find wedding decoration suppliers near you!

Lets continue our Crafty Christmas week with day 2 featuring none other than Christmas decor! When decorating for Christmas, putting up fun and festive decor is a must. Especially if you plan on throwing an impressive holiday party. It absolutely puts everybody in the holiday spirit and helps them get in the spirit of giving and remembering what the holiday season is all about. So lets continue on with these fun ideas on Christmas decor!

Christmas decorations comes in a variety of colors and styles. So first thing is first, pick your style. Pick something that represents you, especially if you're going to be looking at it for over a month. It's just like picking out your home decor style. There's the traditional red and green, winter white, golds or the glamorous pink and blue. Make sure it represents your style and just go with it. To get you started, here are a few tips to get you along your way to creating the most fabulous Christmas decor.

Entering A Christmas Wonderland: When walking into your home, you want it to immediately give off that Christmas vibe.  Start with your entryway. Let beautiful garland adorn your door and welcome your guests with a beautiful floral arrangement. Nothing says welcome into my Christmas home better.

An indoor wreath would be ideal to start showing off your Christmas style. Which you can create a wreath out of almost anything from fabric, ribbon, string, sweaters to even candy! Recycle what you have around your home. For our Christmas dinner party, we created an indoor Christmas wreath out of recyclable sweaters. Be sure to watch our Christmas wreath tutorial to get you started. See, you can create a holiday wreath out of almost anything! Let your guests feel welcomed by all the holiday warmth they feel when they walk into your home.

The Main Focus: Of course, your main focal point of the house is the Christmas tree. Start showing off your style through that. There are endless possibilities while creating your tree. Start with the colorful lights and add some beautiful ribbon, mesh or beautiful garland.

Add feathers, sparkly Christmas picks, ornaments or your little one's handmade ornaments. You can go modern, contemporary or traditional; it's completely up to you. There are tons of new trends, upside down Christmas trees, covering them completely in ribbon and mesh, bold colors and themed trees. So, which one will you choose?

All The Right Accessories: Along with the tree, focus on pulling all the right Christmas accessories to finish off the look. Decorate with the extra ribbon or garland you have left over and decorate your mantle. You'll probably have some of your things left over, so reuse it.

Set out snowflakes, extra ornaments, nutcrackers, Santa figurines, nativity scenes or snowmen. Make it personal and add homemade Christmas decorations, like a fabric tree, handmade wreath or home-made ornaments. There are so many options out there, so find your style and have fun with it.

Whatever your style, you should definitely show that throughout your home. Especially with holiday decorating. If you are throwing a party or just enjoying the holidays together with family, be sure to bring the holiday spirit into your home. Your guests will enjoy it, as well as you.

This post is brought to you by New Orleans Party Decoration providers.
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Recently I attended a Christmas party at a coworker's home. With the host being a graphic designer, I knew I'd be impressed by his modern Christmas decorations. What I didn't know was just HOW impressive it would be.

Lucky for us all, my gracious host took a few pictures of his decor  share with you! Enjoy a glimpse into the winter wonderland that was his contemporary Christmas decor.

Hint: Click on each photo for more description and a few design tricks.

Most of us have friends or family who are of different faiths than us. As the holiday's approach and we start planning our parties questions will arise on planning an interfaith party.

Food is the biggest concern when planning an interfaith party. Including your friends with dietary restrictions takes a bit of extra planning and preparation. A cocktail party is a fantastic way to accommodate different dietary needs. By serving finger foods, you can prepare different serving platters based on dietary restrictions or customs. This is especially helpful if your Jewish guests observe kosher laws.

Anytime you host a Christmas/Hanukkah party, you should include kosher foods into your celebration menu. You can purchase kosher foods or you can make them yourself or hire a kosher caterer.  I suggest purchasing kosher or using a kosher caterer, that way you know your food has been prepared according to the Jewish tradition.

You will want to make sure the party date does not fall during Hanukkah, which is December 12-19, 2009.  Scheduling your party is very important, for both your Christian guests and your Jewish guests. As it gets closer to the holidays, both groups will have their own traditions to keep and religious ceremonies to attend.

Once the date is set and the invitations sent, food and decorations are at the top of the party planning list.

Food & Drink Suggestions

For a cocktail party, finger foods work the best. Try incorporating a few of these kosher food ideas in your menu.

• Potato Latkas(potato pancakes) traditional food for Hanukkah
• Baba ghanouj (eggplant dip)
• Kosher franks wrapped in dough
• Jelly Doughnuts ( jelly filled doughnuts are traditional Jewish food served during Hanukkah)
• Blintzes
• Rugulach
• Wine, water, mixed drinks, soda's are all okay to serve but they must be kosher.

Look for a local kosher deli or bakery, they can also make suggestion for food.  If you wish to serve some kosher items found in grocery stores, you can look for kosher symbols on the products. Look for these symbols on soft drinks, wines, mixes for mixed drinks, crackers, chips, dips and other food items.

It is best to serve your food and drinks using plastic  plates, glasses, and utensils. Plastic products ensure that your Jewish guest can keep kosher.

Inter-Faith Decorating

For decorations, I suggest using your traditional Christian or holiday items, but include some Hanukkah decorations as well.  Items such as Star Of David, dreidel, and a menorah can be easily incorporated with your toher decorations. Think optional holiday colors.  Blue and white are good colors to use for Hanukkah celebrations and still appropriate for the season. So forgo the traditional red and green holiday arrangements. Instead use flower arrangements with blue and white flowers or decorations with silver embellishments.

With a bit of effort you can throw a great interfaith party, that shows you care about your guest religious traditions as well as enjoy their company.

This party planning tip was brought to you by WeddingandPartyNetwork.com

Need ideas for a corporate Christmas party? Planning a children’s Christmas party? Here are simple but effective Christmas party ideas for the planner who has to please  a ho-ho-whole lot of people.

Now is the time of year when Halloween planning subsides and Christmas party planning takes over. You may be one of those people who attends a ton of these parties every year but has never thrown one. Maybe you're the Christmas party queen or king and people look to you for their party ideas. Well, we've taken some hassle away, whether you're the belle of the ball or the newbie host. These ideas will make planning an office Christmas party or kids Christmas party much simpler.

Corporate Christmas Party Ideas:

Themes are where it’s at for any Christmas party, especially an office Christmas party. Adults need a little incentive to participate and fun themes provide that motivation. Festive themes with an adult twist are big hits, like a “Christmas Cocktail Party” or “Saint Nick’s Pub Party” where guests can enjoy a round of “North Pole Karaoke” and belt out favorite Christmas songs.

Office Christmas party food should be centered around the guests as well as the holiday. Eggnog is always a favorite holiday beverage. A bowl of red punch beside a bowl of green punch is a neat and simple holiday decoration as well. Need ideas or someone to provide the festive treats? Many local caterers create holiday menus for special occasions like office Christmas parties. This takes the strain off of the planner (you); which is like a Christmas gift to yourself!

Corporate Christmas party games are as much fun as they sound. Christmas party games are a chance to bond with coworkers you may not see often. Offering door prizes is incentive to play and to attend. Big or small, door prizes are a surprising boon to holiday cheer.

Keep in mind that departments make great teams. Be careful not to treat the games like team-building activities (even though they are). A relaxed environment and semi-competitive spirit are as essential to Christmas party games as mistletoe is to the decorations.

Children's Christmas Party Ideas:

Want tips for throwing a kids' Christmas party? Take your cues from the little ones. Here are the top ten kids Christmas party ideas that we have found.

Kids' Christmas Party Idea #1: Use bright colors in the decorations, foods and giftwrap of any door prizes or presents. Kids love bright and happy colors, such as blue, yellow, orange, purple, green, red and pink.

Kids' Christmas Party Idea #2: Take a hint from pop culture for the theme. Look at popular television shows, books, movies, sports and music to decide which theme is right for yours kids Christmas party. For example, if your kids are into The Jonas Brothers, have a "Christmas With The Jonas Brothers" theme. Your theme should flow smoothly between your decorations, music, games and gift choices.

Kids' Christmas Party Idea #3: The more candy, the better. Kids love sweets, but their parents may not be thrilled with the idea of a lot of sugar. Please both by thinking outside the candy box for your treat ideas.  A "Gingerbread House Decorating" Party (see below) is a fun place to start, and it puts a limit on the amount of sugar consumed during the evening. Even sugar-free candies go over well with children, so long as they are packaged or presented in an appealing way.

Kids' Christmas Party Idea #4: Games rule. If you plan to have games, have lots of them. Children usually have short attention spans, so keep the games short, fun, lively and switch it up often.

Kids' Christmas Party Idea #5: Encourage parent participation. Enlisting the help of other parents will prove beneficial once the excitement of the little ones takes over.

Kids' Christmas Party Idea #6: Play fun Christmas music. Find Christmas CDs released by young pop stars and mix these with the traditional songs on the playlist. You can also throw in some seasonal favorites from older pop stars for the parents’ ears. Another alternative is to hire musical entertainment for the night and provide them with a list of classic songs you’d like to hear.

Kids' Christmas Party Idea #7: Sleepovers make the best Christmas parties. If you’re brave enough to host this kind of children’s Christmas party, your kids will be forever grateful. Get ready for a late night. Don't forget to invite a couple of parents to help, even if they don't spend the night.

Kids' Christmas Party Idea #8: Keep gifts and door prizes simple. A $1-5 budget per gift is perfect for a varied group. Children of all ages and family incomes will feel welcome and comfortable.

Kids' Christmas Party Idea #9: Have a plan for skittish animals. If you have a pet that is not keen on large groups, have a place for  he/she/they to go during the party. Trust me, this is a rarely-mentioned but gem of a tip.

Kids' Christmas Party Idea #10: Keep it moving. Switch often between playing a game, grabbing a snack or other activities. This will keep the children's attention and prevent parents from hearing the “I’m bored” whine.

Whether your audience falls into the “adults only” or the “you must be this tall to ride” category, hosting a Christmas party for them will be the most delightful (and busiest) part of your holiday season. There’s nothing like watching your friends, family or coworkers line up to play a holiday game and seeing their faces light up like Christmas tree lights. With these simple Christmas party ideas, your holiday hosting will be a night or day full of cheer.

For more party planning tips, visit www.WeddingAndPartyNetwork.com.

You may also be interested in these Christmas Party Ideas:

Throwing A Fun Gingerbread House Decorating Party
Holiday Office Party Etiquette: Celebrations For All To Enjoy
Traditional Christmas Meets Contemporary Atmosphere

Christmas is my favorite time of year, which means Christmas parties are my favorite kind to host. I always get so excited about my annual Christmas party and this year I wanted to do some really unique things. Done with Christmas trees and garland, I decided I wanted to create a very modern, but whimsical atmosphere for this years’ party.

Add A Little Party Sparkle

I decided that lighting would be my main focus to create the atmosphere I wanted, and what better and more practical than strands of clear lights. Inexpensive, resourceful and able to be used later for Continue reading "Traditional Christmas Meets Contemporary Atmosphere" »