HOW TO: Make your holiday party spectacular

The holidays are a time to gather with the friends and family you love. If you're throwing a holiday party this season, you'll want to create a spectacular gathering to remember for years to come. Here's some of our favorite tips for a memorable holiday season.

Use Lighting to Set the Scene

One of our favorite tips for setting a holiday mood is to use lighting to your advantage. For a cozy intimate setting, dim the lights and use plenty of candles to set the scene like one of our past brides Jenny did at her wedding (see the gorgeous tables above!). For an ugly sweater or kids party, hang colorful string lights, like these from lights.com, along the ceiling to create a playful environment. 

Create a signature drink- but also ask guest to BYOB

Guests at your party will love if you provide a signature drink, but providing more alcohol than that can get pricey. If you're worried about the skyrocketing cost of throwing a party, tell your guests to bring their favorite bottle of wine on the invitation to help pay for the costs of drinks. In terms of creating your signature drink, there are so many unique drinks to make with winter ingredients like peppermint or pomegranate martinis, cranberry margaritas, or spiked hot chocolate.

Play an appropriate playlist to reflect the mood

The music playing at your party says everything about the tone you want to set. For an intimate gathering, create a playlist with holiday crooners like Michael Buble or Kenny Loggins. To get guests dancing, play a Holiday Classics playlist with songs like Feliz Navidad and All I want for Christmas is You from music streaming services like Spotify or Pandora. 

What's your favorite holiday party tip? Leave us a note below in the comments!