The holidays are over, so what's next? Time for a breather or you can go ahead and start planning a rockin' Valentine's Day party! Planning a Valentine's Day party is stressful. You may be unsure on what direction to take with your party, such as, you may want to get away from all the love and romance and just make it fun. Well, Wedding and Party Network has a party idea that is fun, out-of-the-box and everyone will enjoy it!

Party Theme – When you think about this holiday, you immediately think of love and romance. Some people aren't a fan of this holiday since they don't have a significant other in their life. However, it's fun for everyone! Invite your closest friends over and host a Rockin' Valentine's Day Party! This theme takes a different take on this holiday by throwing some rocker accents into the party.

Rockin' Party Decorations – Think guitars and rock and roll. However, keep it within the holiday colors, like red, pink, white and purple. Don't forget to add some black into it though to give it that rocker edge. Feature a sign with a big guitar, banner with edgy font & designs and incorporate it mainly everything you can. Also, instead of soft colors, choose bright hues.

Fun Party Food – Of course, you can stick with the appetizers you normally serve at your party. Vegetable platters, dips, meat and cheese tray, mini sandwiches or fruit trays are all great items to serve at your party. It's all in how you present the food. So, for this party, choose brightly colored platters and create little guitars with the name of the food printed on it.

Now dessert is where you get creative. Feature brightly colored cupcakes with guitar toppers instead of a party cake. Also, you know those candy hearts that come around during this time a year? Use that concept for sugar cookies and place cute sayings like, "love rocks" or "you rock." Don't forget to incorporate some guitar-shaped cookies in with it. Have cake pops and spell out words with them or even colorful drinks with fun heart straws. There are so many creative food ideas out there, just remember to incorporate Valentine's Day, a little rock and roll and display it in a fun way.

Say Thanks – Don't forget to say thanks to your guests. Find little mailboxes and decorate them with guitars and saying for your guests as a little Valentine's Day mailbox for all their cards. You can even suggest that your guests or the children bring cards for everyone to exchange.You can even have a candy bar and let your guests fill up their mailbox with lots of goodies.

Activities – For the children, let them decorate their own cards or mailboxes. Now for an activity that everyone can enjoy, set up Guitar Hero or Rock Band. The adults and children will love doing this activity together.

Instead of focusing on romance, host an event for everyone that is absolutely rockin'!

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It's time to start planning your New Year's Eve party. So, do you have any idea on what you want to do? Sure, you can go out, however, every place will be extremely crowded. Maybe you enjoy that or maybe you don't, whatever you enjoy, you definitely want to have plans for New Year's Eve. If you want to enjoy the evening in, then why not host a party of your own with a timely dinner party? This party theme fits the holiday perfectly and you can share it with your closest friends for a great night in for New Year's Eve.

Sparkly Decorations

 

Sparklers

When you think of this big event, you may always think of glitter and sparkle everywhere. It's definitely the time to bring those elements out. Therefore, incorporate them into your decor is an absolute must.Think glitter, sequins and metallic. Don't forget to incorporate a few clocks in there as well. Use glittery ornaments, spell out "2012" using Styrofoam and coat with glitter, set up metallic streamers in your choice of color for the party decor.

Use various sized vases, champagne, wine and martini glasses to create unique centerpieces for your party. Fill each one with metallic streamers, glitter, confetti or talk to your florist about coming up with a sparkly centerpiece that will grab everyone's attention.

You want this party to be elegant, yet fun. You can do this by choosing the right color combinations, like jewel tones, black and silver, black and gold or even a jewel tone pink and aqua. All these colors will create a great setting for the night.
Party Tip – Don't forget to create signs for your food table to let guests know what's what. Use elegant typography on color schemed paper that matches your party and attach them to sparklers. Place it in the middle of each dish.

Elegant Dinner

Along with this party, delicious food is a must. If you have some great dishes you would love to share with your guests, create it. However, since this is such a special occasion, you may think about having the dinner catered. Having an experienced caterer that has many options for dinner, along with a wait staff will definitely make the night much more special. A full course meal along with a spectacular dessert will truly make the night special.

When The Clock Strikes Twelve

When the clock strikes twelve it's time to start ringing in the new year. How? You can do the normal party blowers or have a little firework show of your own. Gather everyone up outside and light sparklers up. It's a fun way to ring in the new year and can also add to the decor of your party. Remember those martini glasses, stick the sparklers in one of those that is filled with glitter and it's an added special touch.

When planning your New Year's Eve party, think about having an elegant, low-key party inside your home. This beats the crowds that you'll face out on the town and you can share it with your closest family and friends. Who could think of a better way to spend this holiday?

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When planning a birthday party or just wanting something unique that everyone will have fun with, a carnival themed party is the way to go. This party brings on the kid in everyone. Who doesn't enjoy attending a carnival? A carnival is filled with yummy foods, bright colors and games that everyone can enjoy. It's a great time to be had by all. So, this is the ideal party for anyone and Wedding and Party Network is here to give you some party tips to host this great carnival themed party.

Carnival Decor – First off, think bright and colorful for this party. Colorful balloons and banners are the key to the party decor, it's that simple. Just place them throughout the party to get the feel of a carnival. Also, if you're wanting a floral arrangement, stick with bright colors. Tell your florist the party theme and they'll know just where to start.

Party Set up -For this setup, it's great to have it outdoors. That way, you can have the big tent out back, which you may can find at a party rental store. Plus, this gives you more room to set up different areas for the kids. However, you can also do this indoors if the weather isn't fitting into your plans. Create booths from cardboard or set up different tables for face painting, games, ticket booths, rides, foods and prizes.

Party Games -Of course, this party wouldn't be complete without party activities! Bean bag toss, balloon popping, duck pond, balloon animals, prize booth, guess how many, face painting, bounce house are all great ideas for a carnival themed party. Just think about what you see when you go to a carnival. Have banners hanging up or signs displaying what each booth is for that particular game. You can find all your party supplies at your local party store, as well as the prizes.

Party Food -Ask yourself, what do you see and smell when you attend a carnival? You see candy apples, funnel cakes, corn dogs, popcorn, caramel corn and candy. Therefore, that's what your guests need to see at this party. However, display them in great ways. Get corn dog and popcorn sacks and add great touches to them, cellophane wrap with adorable ribbon for the candy apples and serve cotton candy on miniature sticks and mini funnel cakes. Don't forget about serving cupcakes or a party cake for the guests as well.

All these party ideas combined makes for a wonderful carnival themed party. The main key is to think about what you would find at a carnival. Think of the sights, smells and activities that you do. You can easily find these items at your local party store and even talk with your caterer to find some unique ways to display the food. This party is a great way to let the inner child come out of everyone.

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Let Your Holiday Party Stand Out

So many times you host a holiday party and it's the same each year. Why not switch it up this year? It's always fun to make some changes to your traditional holiday party. It doesn't have to be anything major, but a few simple switch ups can make your party stand out even more. We've got a few holiday party tips that you can incorporate into this year's party.

Party Colors – Instead of the traditional green and red, why not update it to the latest holiday color trends? You can choose from red and aqua, natural inspired Christmas, winter white and blue or bright and colorful pinks and blues. By just switching up the color of your party, it can make a huge difference.

Decorations – If you change-up your colors, you must find decorations to match the theme. Ornaments are great decor besides being just for the tree. You can string fishing line through them and hang them from windows or chandeliers. Fill vases with ornaments for centerpieces as well. Don't forget to use candles throughout your party and flowers for beautiful centerpieces. No need to go over the top in decorations, when you can use beautiful flowers, a few ornaments and candles to set the mood of your party.

Holiday Food - If you normally do finger foods and appetizers for your party, think about switching it up to a sit-down dinner, potluck or cookie exchange. If you decide on a sit-down dinner, think about having your local caterer prepare the holiday feast. That way you can focus more on decorating or creating your favorite holiday appetizers or desserts. Even setting up the food or dessert table featuring different heights, fun shaped platters or colors can help change-up a party.

Instead of hosting your basic, traditional holiday party this year, think about switching it up.

If you are planning a holiday party, let Wedding and Party Network help!

Charlie Brown Christmas Party
Who doesn't love Charlie Brown, especially the Christmas movie? It's a holiday classic that comes on television everyday holiday season and a movie that everyone must watch at least once during it. Since this movie is an absolute must, why not incorporate this into your holiday party. It can be the main theme of the night. How great is that? Read more about Charlie Brown Christmas Party

Christmas Tree Tips
Soon after Thanksgiving is over, it's time to start thinking about Christmas. Are you ready to get your tree out and start decorating it? Do you dread getting everything out? Or are you in need of a fresh new take on your holiday decorations? Read more About Christmas Tree Tips

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December is in full force since the holidays are upon us. There are holiday parties, Christmas, Hanukkah, Kwanzaa and a great time for family get together. The holiday decor, snow, sparkling lights and the time for giving is here. So, it's time to celebrate and get those holiday parties ready! Wedding and Party Network has some great party ideas and tips for the month of December to make your party stand out.

Holly

Fun December Facts

December is the 12th month of the year and one of the seven months with 31 days in it. It also starts on the same day as September every year and ends on the same day that April does. In Latin, it means 10, which it was the 10th month in the Roman calendar.

Birthstone & Flower

The birthstones for this month are turquoise, lapis lazuli, zircon, topaz or tanzanite. Gorgeous blues and to a reddish-brown; all are simply beautiful. You can definitely incorporate these colors into your holiday party. The flowers are narcissus or holly, which are both perfect for this time of year. The narcissus is a daffodil, which comes in beautiful whites and yellows.

The holly on the other hand is green with red berries, which you see a lot this time of year. The best way to incorporate these flowers into your party is by adding them to centerpieces for your tables and scatter them throughout your home.

December's Astrology

December's astrology signs include Sagittarius and Capricorn. Sagittarius is the ninth astrological sign and are outwardly expressive and extrovert. However, they are blindly optimistic and careless. Capricorns are practical and prudent, yet pessimistic and grudging. Hosting an astrology party is a fun theme that you may want to have during the month of December since it's a great indoor party.

Special Events & Holidays

Hi Neighbor Month
National Stress Free Family Holiday Month
Safe Toy and Gift Month
Read A New Book Month

December 1st – Eat A Red Apple Day, National Pie Day
December 4th – National Cookie Day & Wear Brown Shoes Day
December 6th – Mitten Tree Day & St. Nicholas Day
December 7th – National Cotton Candy Day & Pearl Harbor Day
December 8th – National Brownie Day
December 11th – National Noodle Ring Day
December 12th – Poinsettia Day
December 13th – National Cocoa Day
December 16th – National Chocolate Covered Anything Day
December 20th – Games Day
December 22nd – First Day of Winter
December 24th – Christmas Eve & National Egg Nog Day
December 25th – Christmas
December 26th – Kwanzaa Begins
December 28th – Card Playing Day
December 31st – New Year's Eve

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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!

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Are you in the process of planning out your Thanksgiving dinner? It can be stressful, especially if you're hosting your whole family at your house. You want this day to be about family and sharing ever lasting memories together. Therefore, in your mind, everything should be perfect. Along with trying to make it perfect, comes stress. However, don't stress over it. There's no reason to, everything will still be fabulous, especially spending this time with family. Wedding and Party Network has some stress free planning tips for hosting your Thanksgiving dinner.

Plan Ahead – This is a MAJOR part when hosting a Thanksgiving feast. Sit down and write out who's coming. That way, you know how much food to prepare and how many place settings you need at the table.

Once you know how many people you have coming, plan out the menu. It's all close family and maybe even friends, therefore, you can plan out their dislikes, likes and even allergies. Plan out vegetarian dishes, the turkey, side dishes and desserts. If you have a set plan, it makes grocery shopping easier and planning out a cooking time line. You can even grocery shop a few days in advance and start putting meals together the day beforehand. Knowing who's coming & what you're cooking is half the task. Once you figure that out, everything else is a breeze.

Decorate – Decorate your home in festive Thanksgiving accents. Use fall colored leaves, pumpkins, acorns, candles and floral arrangements for centerpieces. Also, plan this out at the beginning of Thanksgiving. This decor fits this month and even October. Therefore, you'll have everything already out, except maybe the centerpieces. However, plan a visit with your florist about a week or so in advance and discuss the design and what you're wanting. That way, you have already picked something out and all you have to do is take a quick trip up there, maybe even when you plan on going grocery shopping.

All The Extras – If you get the main components planned out ahead, then you can go the extra mile and come up with Thanksgiving Day crafts for the children, football snacks for the guys and even family traditions that you can start now and share throughout the years.

Planning your Thanksgiving dinner is a breeze. It's simple if planned out ahead, It makes the day stress free and more enjoyable to spend time with your loved ones. So, don't forget to plan and you'll have an unforgettable Thanksgiving with your family.

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Are you in the process of planning out your Thanksgiving dinner? It can be stressful, especially if you're hosting the whole family at your house. You want this day to be about family and sharing everlasting memories together. Therefore, in your mind, everything should be perfect. However, don't stress over this day. Wedding and Party Network has some stress free planning tips for hosting your Thanksgiving dinner.

Plan Ahead – This is a MAJOR part when hosting a Thanksgiving feast. Sit down and write out who's coming. That way, you know how much food to prepare, and how many place settings you need at the table.

• Planning The Grocery List – Once you know how many people are attending, you will know exactly what to cook and how much. You can stay away from certain dishes if someone doesn't like a particular item or if they're allergic, and be sure to prepare all their favorites. Once you have a menu, you can plan your grocery list.
• Cooking – Once you have the menu planned out, you can create a timeline of cooking. Not all dishes have to be prepared that same day, some can be prepared the day before. So, plan it out so you're not trying to cook everything at once with limited space and hands.
• Decorating – Of course, you have to have decorations during this time of year. However, plan a few weeks in advance and start decorating your home then. Your fall decorations will carry over into this holiday too. Don't forget to visit your local florist to discuss what type of centerpiece you would like as well.

Planning Thanksgiving dinner at your house doesn't have to be stressful. Just keep the main component in mind, which is PLAN AHEAD.

If you are planning a Thanksgiving dinner, let Wedding and Party Network help!

We Are Thankful For…You!
With Thanksgiving approaching, take time out to show your close friends how truly thankful you are for them. What is the best way to show them? Why a dinner party, of course! Sitting around, sharing memorable laughs with each other will remind you how truly thankful you are for each other. There are a variety of ideas when throwing a dinner party, especially one near Thanksgiving. Read more about Thankful For You

Yummy Fall Treats
With fall here, it's time to start planning all your fall parties. You have the perfect backdrop for beautiful outdoor parties now with the gorgeous colors and the amazing weather. So, what is the perfect pairing to your fall party?
Read more about Yummy Fall Treats

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Thanksgiving is an important holiday that people celebrate. It's a time for family, quality time and learning about traditions. Everyone gathers around the table to share in a great feast and spend quality time together. After that, it's time for football for some. However, how do you get the kids involved? It's an important day for them to understand the meaning behind the holiday. Wedding and Party Network has some great activities to get everyone involved in this holiday!

Design Your Hats – Of course, along with Thanksgiving, comes the story of the Pilgrims and Indians. This is a must tell story for your kids. Therefore, make this craft a must. Let the family design their own hats. Whether it be a turkey hat or a Pilgrim hat, everyone will have fun decorating their own hat. Maybe even reenacting the story of Thanksgiving Day between the two.

Turkey Luminaries – This is a great craft for the kids to do before the Thanksgiving dinner. Along with any table setup, people like to put out centerpieces and create a fall tablescape. Therefore, let the kids help. By letting them create these luminaries, they can make a great statement piece on the table. Let the kids draw on paper sacks and put led lights in the. A great centerpiece and the kids will feel like they had an important part in this day.

Place Settings – With some families, a kid's table isn't unusual for holiday feasts. Therefore, let them design their own kids' table. For the tablecloth, find long enough construction paper that they can draw on, turkey napkin holders, turkey place cards, utensil holders and even fun place mats. These are great activities for the kids while everyone is cooking or visiting.

Felt Food -An easy project for you and your child to do the night before or even a few days is to create felt Thanksgiving food. Which all you need to do is find different colored felt, fluff for the inside and scissors to cut out the designs. This is great for the kids to play with during the day on Thanksgiving and make their own feast.

Volunteering – This is a great tradition that the family can share in, which is spend time volunteering at your local soup kitchen or food bank. It's a great time to appreciate what you have in your life and this holiday.

This holiday is a great time to spend time with family and be thankful for all you have in your life. While you're cooking and maybe the guys are watching football, the kids can have some fun activities to do during the day and some with the whole family.

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Are you in the process of planning an engagement party? If yes, engagement parties are something that should represent the couple. It's a great time to get together to share this special occasion with friends and family. Engagement parties are focused on the couple getting married, representing them through the party and the joining of everyone together to celebrate. So, since it's all about the couple, everything should represent them. However, if you don't have a clue and want a party theme that is truly unique and can represent them, Wedding and Party Network has a few of our favorite engagement party themes.

A Night In ____ – The theme originates from A Night In Paris, which is ideal for any couple that loves Paris. However, if there's a certain place that they love or have always wanted to travel to, make that the theme of the engagement party. Make sure that the party decorations, party food and everything else represents the place they love.

Movie Inspired – There are some couples out there that share the love of movies together. Therefore, a movie inspired themed engagement party is ideal. Maybe they have certain movie genres, like comedy or horror, that they enjoy or maybe they have just one movie in particular that they love. Whatever movies they enjoy, go with that theme. For a certain movie, make the party represent that movie. Show that favorite movie, serve popcorn and even make a step and repeat for when guests arrive.

Art Inspired – Again, maybe the couple shares a love of art together. If there's a certain type or era they enjoy, make the engagement party centered around that. Create the cupcakes different shades of colors to represent an art pallet, use a rainbow of colors and even create a canvas where guests can sign their names, which will make a unique piece of art in the couple's home.

Lumberjacks & Jill – Do you know a couple who enjoys being outdoors? This shower is for them. Plaid decor, outdoor food, mason jars and all around rustic feel is what this engagement party is all about.

Destination Inspired – Is this couple having a destination wedding? Well, the theme of the engagement party can be the place where they're going to get married at. If it's an island get away, make sure to put leis everywhere and serve tropical food & drinks.

What Do They Like? – Combine everything that they enjoy into this party. If they share a favorite sport's team, food, colors or anything that they enjoy, make sure and include it in their engagement party. The couple will love it and guests will immediately get the sense that they are at this couple's engagement party.

The main key when planning an engagement party is to make sure it's suited towards the newly engaged couple. If it's suited towards their personalities and what they enjoy, the party will be a success!

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