How to Host a Last Minute New Year's Eve Party

During the post holiday craze, not many people have time to throw together the masquerade-themed, dressed to the nines kind of New Year's Eve party they would like…or do they? Here are some tips, as showcased on “Live with Regis and Kelly,” on how to host a last minute New Year's Eve party that will have your guests partying like it's 1999 and beyond!

Instructions

Difficulty: Moderately Easy

Things You’ll Need:

• Fabric or wallpaper
• Glitter letter supplies
• Framed photo wall supplies
• Wardrobe station supplies
• Disco ball piñata supplies
• Find-a-Gem drinking game supplies
• New Year's Eve cake supplies
• Guilty Pleasure buffet supplies
• Fortune teller supplies
• Personalized place setting supplies

1. Decor
   
   This party is all about action, so make your décor part of the fun! Use a fantastic fabric or wall paper as a table cloth, then attach glitter letters to the edge or have guests attach their own right on top with their New Year’s resolutions.
   
   Not sure what to do with all the holiday photos you have taken and received? Make a modern photo frame wall. Attach silver wrapping or wall paper to a wall, then place a variety of matting boards on top. Ask guests to bring a photo, then frame family and friends’ photos. You can even throw in a random character in the mix here and there (i.e. the Grinch, a celebrity, your local postal worker). This is a great way to decorate and get the crowd involved, all while using the left over photo cards you didn’t send out.
   
   Personalize the place settings on your New Year’s Eve table by including one or all of these interactive elements:
   • Storytelling name cards
   • New Year’s Eve resolution cards
   • Plate liners
   • New Year’s Eve-themed centerpiece
2. Food/Beverage
   
   The New Year is the perfect time to get anything off your chest you’ve been holding onto...like a secret guilty pleasure! Instead of stressing over the food, set up a guilty pleasures buffet equipped with the works:
   • Chinese take-out
   • Pigs in a blanket (Regis’s favorite)
   • Trashy cheeses (yeah, we’re talkin’ to you cheese in a can!)
   • Twinkies, Ho Hos and Ding Dongs
   • Funyuns
   
   Start a new tradition by taking the New Orleans king cake to a whole new level. Bake a lucky New Year’s Eve cake with a “lucky” trinket inside. It can be anything from a Baby New Year token to a horseshoe. When the cake is cut and passed around, the person with the trinket in their slice will have fortune smiling down on them with lots of good luck bestowed on them that year.
3. Activities
   
   Get your costume on! Get the wallflowers dancing on the bar by having a wardrobe station set up with tons of costume entities (i.e. boas, hats, ties, sunglasses) for them to try on and rock on! (see link below)
   
   For the kiddies: Pre-party, stuff a New Year’s Eve disco ball piñata with all the goods needed to make some noise when the clock strikes twelve. (see link below)
   
   Encourage a little friendly competition by setting up a “Find-a-Gem” drinking game (can be non-alcoholic too) for all you sober drivers and/or under age party-goers out there. (see link below)
   
   Wondering what the New Year has in store for you? Set up a fortune teller making station (formerly known as cootie-catchers...see link below). Who knows, a new beau or a career change (you may end up working as a Rockette or taming lions in the circus) may be in your future!
4. Remember, whether Regis and Kelly show up at your door (hide the pigs in blankets), make the holiday season about caring and sharing special moments with family and/or friends!

Tips & Warnings

• If you are crunched on budget or time, make the guilty pleasures buffet a potluck so every guest can bring their guilty pleasure favorite and really let variety be the spice of life (and the party).
• Get the scoop on king cakes. (see link below)
• Last minute parties are what they are--last minute! Don’t forget to focus on the friends and family, not the kitchen and craziness.
• Don’t go overboard! You’ll surely blow your holiday budget if you spend too much time on the glamor and overlook the glitz of simple festive magic. Also, try to delegate to share in the responsibilities and the fun!