Holiday Entertaining – How to Host an Open House
Tips and Ideas for Hosting a Festive Party
Nov 10, 2009
The holidays are a busy time for everyone and it seems like there's hardly enough time to fit in all the people we love. But spending time with friends and family is what the season is really about. A great way to see a lot of people in a short amount of time is to host a holiday open house.
What is an Open House Party?
An open house is a party that lasts for several hours over the course of a day. Rather than arriving and leaving at specific times, guests are welcome to drop by at any point over the duration of the party. There is no sit-down meal. Instead, drinks, hors d'oeuvres and appetizers are served throughout the party. People come and go as they please and can stay for as long as they like.
Planning a Holiday Open House
The first thing to do is to decide on a day and time. Open houses tend to take place during the day rather than go into the night. Decide what time works best for you.
A brunch open house is a fun idea and less likely to conflict with people's other holiday plans. A time frame from 10am to 3pm would be great for this type of party. Appetizers can be geared towards breakfast and lunch foods. A great drink to serve would be champagne and orange juice.
An afternoon open house from 2pm to 7pm gives people plenty of time to stop in on their way to or from other holiday activities. Serve food and drinks that are geared towards lunch and dinner items.
There are no set times or rules for this type of party. If you feel up to it you can host all day long and have friends and family from the breakfast hour right through dinner.
Prepare for Holiday Parties in Advance
Planning is key to ensure a relaxing and fun party for hosts and guests alike.
- Make sure the house looks it's best by decorating the outside, stairways, mantels, and any other areas you normally decorate for the holidays.
- Prepare food ahead of time and freeze it. Also purchase plenty of frozen appetizers. They can be thrown into the oven and ready in minutes.
- Have a large variety of finger foods on hand and keep food simple. This is not the time to try complicated recipes.
- Purchase more drinks than you think you'll need. Make sure there's enough milk, cream, and sugar for coffee and tea. You might also want to purchase an extra bag of ice for cold drinks.
- Purchase plenty of cocktail napkins and small paper plates. If you use regular dishes you'll be washing them all day. Same goes for disposable cups.
- Stock the bathroom with plenty of soap, toilet paper, and guest towels.
- Pick out holiday music and have it ready to go. Make a long playlist so you won't have to constantly change the music.
- Clean out the hall closet to make room for coats and shoes. If there's no front closet designate another area to place coats where guests can easily find them when leaving. With so many people coming and going the host won't always be able to run around searching for coats.
When everything is prepared in advance a holiday open house can be an extremely fun and relaxing way to spend a day. Having friends and family come and go from your house will remind you of what's important. So fill your home with good food, good friends, and lots of cheer this holiday season.
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