How To Plan A Perfect Christmas Party In A Flash

To prove planning a festive knees-up in a hurry doesn’t have to be the nightmare before Christmas, we challenged blogger Bethanie Lunn to throw together a Christmas Party at the last minute using decorations and accessories from our Christmas store. 

 

I’ve got the turkey and all the trimmings, all the presents are bought and wrapped and my final Christmas party is organised.

 

Said no one, ever.

 

When did Christmas get so stressful?

 

I personally feel torn between several roles right now – well, that always rings true – but at Christmas time that pressure is heightened. As a blogger, independent online retailer, mother of two kids, and a Personal Shopper (what am I doing??), the festive season has been renamed ‘party season’ for me, since I have so many to attend.

 

My latest Christmas Party was held at a central location in Brighton offering alternative Christmas shopping in a party atmosphere, complete with sweet treats, festive fizz and fun décor.

 

The Panic Was Over

 

I was panicking about where to find the décor in a hurry due to being so time short and to be honest, I didn’t fancy lugging a load of balloons halfway across town on my own. So in stepped Partyrama to help!

 

It was like uncovering a treasure trove of delicious fun for every possible occasion and theme. You’ll also find helpful sections that group everything together for ‘grown up parties’ or ‘kids parties’, giving you inspiration if you need it, as well as the ability to shop by occasion or product type.

 

My Christmas Party plan

 

So for Christmas, they’ve got everything, and I mean everything. Balloons, fancy dress, gift bags, piñatas and games, noise makers, tableware and even life size cut outs.  Life size cuts outs! I love that you can have personalised balloons, ribbons and banners too for that extra special detail at your party.

 

I was looking for a fun but simple theme – a style that combined all the festive feels but also oozed elegance. I didn’t want to overdo it and I wasn’t looking for chintz so I favoured gold, white and pink gold.

 

My festive picks

 

Let’s start with the centrepiece: gold foil giant letter balloons to spell out M E R R Y  X M A S. These were highly impressive and made a huge impact upon walking into the room. They were very easy to inflate, thanks to the self-sealing nozzle. We also picked up some curling ribbon, weights and helium tanks to finish the job nicely.

 

White and gold polka dot table covers, dressed with doughnuts and charming retro sweets, served on stunning vintage porcelain style paper plates and topped with pink napkins – along with festive fizz served in matching polka dot paper cups.

 

If you are going with a theme in colour or pattern, you are able to search via these filters for all you need. There are catering sets available with matching table covers, paper cups, plates and napkins or you can choose to vary it like I did while ensuring they complement each other by sticking to a certain shade.

 

Irresistible Extras 

 

There was a handful of other things that I just couldn’t resist.

 

This inflatable pink flamingo for a touch of neon fun. No party is complete without a pink flamingo, obviously.

 

A giant T-Rex balloon so my son can enjoy his own party at home. Trust me on this one – your kids will be entertained for hours and their little faces were so worth it.

 

I’ll be buying another one as a Christmas present for sure – there is a vast array of dinosaur designs to choose from as well as superheroes, monsters, popular characters and these awesome Airwalkers that are slightly weighted so they move about at the party just like one of the guests. I mean, can you imagine a kid’s reaction?

 

And lastly, a silver ‘YAY’ phrase balloon for no other reason than sheer awesomeness.

 

Finally, I couldn’t ignore a touch of sparkle with some table confetti. We ended up blowing glitter kisses and having the shimmery magic go everywhere, but Christmas parties are supposed to get messy, aren’t they?

 

I am now seriously hooked on shopping at Partyrama. I’m already planning my daughter’s first birthday in February and I might even stretch to a romantically decorated candlelit table on Valentine’s Day. I’m thinking a bunch of ‘love’ phrase balloons and red and gold décor.

 

So if you want a stress-free, easy and fast solution to kitting out your party, or just want to impress the boss by faking your super organised, in-depth research and logistics skills – then you’ll be sorted out here. You’re welcome!

 

Merry Christmas! x