Dinner Parties Are The New Nightclubs

At least for me.

I have always been a homebody, after my rebellious teenage years that is, but the sudden shift in not being able to go out and then allowed - did spark a bigger appreciation for staying home. Now I am not talking about baking banana bread and tracksuits as uniform, I mean dressing to the 9's in your tallest heels and sequin minis.

Hosting dinner parties are so goddam satisfying for me, maybe it is due to the people pleaser in me? Or the Leo wanting to shine bright?

So I have created a little list of what will make your @ home rendezvous leave a fab taste in your guests mouth - almost as good as the taste of the cocktails served.

• Music Music Music! Nothing sets a scene more than a killer soundtrack. I tend to make a playlist that suits the timeline of a typical dinner party. Something along the lines of starting of with mellow elevator style tracks, ( think Toro Y Moi ) , followed by something a bit more upbeat ( Daft Punk? ) and then the rest is up to you! Might I add - a little bit of Marvin Gaye, Bees Gees and Kylie Minogue are the ingredients for a stellar digestif.
  

• All about the food... Now I'm not suggesting a 6 course dinner, but putting thought into the menu is one of the biggest highlights to hosting for me. I tend to go through the guest list and ensure any dietary requirements are noted - then its as easy as getting seriously culinary creative! An easy benchmark has always been 3 dishes, typically a smaller bite or starter followed by a heartier dish and then either a salad or side. But hey, in all means throw in a sexy desert if you have the time/energy/ingredients handy. Nothing comes close to the feeling of sharing your favourite hero dish though, so highly recommend whipping out the apron for that reason.

• Tablescaping. I mean who doesn't adore a picture worthy table setting? Think colourful candles paired with patterned placemats or in season flowers complimented by textured glasses. Whatever you do, don't be afraid to be bold with your table spread!

• Drinks are up there on the list but I didn't want to come across as thirsty to be fair. Depending on your drop of choice, there is pretty much endless options for dinner party drinks. You can be a little bit fancy and pair wines with your main dish of the evening or make custom cocktails to suit your overall vibe of the evening. Be sure to have options for non-alcoholic beverages as well. Just don't overdo it as no one wants to be properly sloshed cleaning up your brand new stunning dinnerware.

• Finishing touches. This can mean absa-bloodylutely anything by the way. I am a complete melt for making menus ( think I have to blame my love for using excel for everyday tasks ) , so I typically design a lil menu and print off to place on the table prior to guests arrival. Other ideas for a extra summin-summin would be a disposable film camera where everyone attending can snap pictures of the evening, or do a come dine with me style rating system where guests give your evening a score out of ten.

• Fit check; for some it may be last minute garms that you choose to wear but for me outfit planning is a task completed when the menus are locked in. Sky high heels that you couldn't walk up the nightclub stairs in? No problems @ home! Mini hemlines that make those bar stools feel like hell? Not a drama @ home. Heavy sequins straight from Europe's fall drop that you cannot live without but the Australian summertime says no? Control the temp @ home!

Keep scrolling for a lil' one stop shop for all things fabulous you may need for your next dinner party. Just click on whatever tickles your fancy and don't blame me if your bank account suffers ;)

I hope that this has not only encouraged you to give a dinner party a try, but also let you know that is completely fine to not feel the need to be out 24/7; especially after a worldwide pandemic made normal life not so normal. Dine, wine and have a bloody good time.

Till next time sweet peas xx

Maisie