Party Planning Checklist-A Party Planner's Bible

You're about to start planning a party, but don't know where to start. You run to the grocery store, looking at this and that, deciding on a few things you may need, knowing the whole time you've forgotten something. Now it's time to head over to the local department store for some decorations. You follow the same unguided principles you went through at the grocery store. Then once again you missed a few things at the liquor store. You've also forgotten to send invitations to so and so and a few others and the party is only a few days away. Suddenly you find yourself scrambling back to all the same stores trying to find the items you missed the first time around. Then out of nowhere the night of the party arrives and you realize you don't have enough food for all the invited guests. Then the worst possible thing happens, you hear a knock at the front door. It's as if a new and frightening nightmare has blossomed out of thin air. You feel the shakes coming on and your stress level is reaching new and incredible heights. I could go even further, but I think you get the idea. If only you had begun your planning by keeping track of all that you need, every purchased item and menu dishes prepared. If only you had made a party planning checklist none of the awful party mistakes listed above would have happened. Now that I've gotten the point across about how important a checklist is I will now inform you about what it needs in order to make it work.

A party planning checklist should consist of the type of party you plan on having, it's budget, the guest list, venue, decorations, food and beverages and the time and date of your party. Start by writing yourself a header. Something like, 'Luau party planning checklist', will do just nicely. The reason it's a good idea to create a headline is it will make it more difficult to deviate from your parties theme if you keep reading it over and over.

The next aspect of your checklist should definitely be your budget. Creating a budget and keeping track of all your spending is very important. Your budget will be the key reason for many of your up and coming party decisions. The checklist is a way of keeping everything in order so you don't overspend in one area and leave another area short.

The item listed after the budget on the party planning checklist is usually your venue choice. If you are planning to have the party away from home the venue choice will cost money and will come out of your budget and a time will have to be arranged for decorations and so forth. If your party is going to be at home, and you have to hire a professional to come and clean some unwanted stains out of your rug the parties budget will be affected, making it an important listing in your checklist. Of course, if your home needs nothing besides some freshening up you may leave it off your list for now.

The checklist is about to be hammered with information and the reason for this is you're about to create your guest list. Here you should write out the invitees names, phone numbers and addresses. You will be needing this information for the invitations and it makes it much easier than trying to look through your address book and try and remember who was invited, what their numbers are and where they live.

The menu should be added once you have completed the above. Now you will have a clear idea as to what you need and how much. List the items you need, then check them off the list once purchased, while also keeping track of prices. The same goes for decorations.

The information listed above should help prevent problems created by trying to 'wing it'. If not, there is plenty of available information out there, you just have to know where to look.
Good luck on your up and coming party and have a great time.