Housewarming Party Ideas

When to throw your Housewarming Party: You do not need to wait until every room is painted, every decoration hung to invite your family, friends and new neighbors over for your Housewarming party! Since most homeowners will tell you that the decorating is a never-ending part of home-ownership, your friends and family are there to celebrate your new house, not your decorating skills and paint color choices. So, throw your Housewarming party whenever your ready! There is no time limit to throwing the Housewarming.

Choose a Housewarming theme:

Most folks will show up with a gift (even though you're not supposed to expect them), but you could incorporate this into your theme. I like the idea of either going with something like a color (for example, if Green is an accent color of yours, everyone could bring something green - towels, plants, pillows, etc). Another great idea is to go with an item theme (for example, if you like eclectic dinnerware or collect wineglasses, perhaps - everyone could bring one item from that theme). Do you collect anything, or have a particular hobby, or perhaps a theme in your new home you want to achieve? Let this be known through word of mouth.

Note: It is considered bad form to ask for gifts from your guests at your Housewarming. If someone is throwing the party for you, it is much less tacky for them to mention it on the invites. A Housewarming is not a reason for gifts, rather a party to celebrate with family and friends. So, even though many folks may bring a gift for you to your Housewarming party, please do not expect them. Just thank them accordingly if you do receive gifts.

Housewarming Party Invitations:

So many people are using online invitations. This is okay if all your family and friends are online, but I think for your new home its much more exciting and personal to send regular invitations for your housewarming party. If you go with a theme, you can incorporate this into the invitations. Are you the crafty type who likes to make your own? If not, we do have some terrific themed invites, or you can find some great ones to print out online too! Be sure to give everyone very specific directions since they've never been to your new home before.

Housewarming Decorations:

Everyone is going to be much more interested in seeing your new home during your Housewarming party than wanting to look at decorations, so I would keep it very simple. A few balloons, a tablecloth on the dining room table, perhaps a welcome banner. Other than that, a couple of burning candles and some fresh flowers are best. Just don't forget to get paper plates, napkins and plastic cutlery. You don't need to be worried about doing dishes!

Housewarming Food:

I would keep it simple. You're going to be so busy greeting everyone and giving tours, you're not going to want to go with a sit-down dinner or anything - besides, everyone will be walking around your new house, you don't want the mess! Finger foods that work great are: little tea sandwiches, fruit and vegetable trays, appetizers like stuffed mushrooms, etc Something I think is fun is to setup food in several different rooms - that way your guests are greeted with little "surprises" as they tour the new place! If you do this, be sure to have small plates and napkins on hand around the food in each room too. This is also a great way to get strangers to start talking to each other, nothing gets people excited and animated like food! Need recipes? Email us for help!

Housewarming Party Recipes:

Bacon Bites 4 firm avocados, halved and peeled 36 slices Hickory Sweet sliced bacon freshly ground pepper salt 1/2 teaspoon fresh ground ginger juice of 4 lemons 1 teaspoon brown sugar Preheat grill. In medium bowl, combine lemon juice, ginger, salt, pepper and brown sugar. Cut each avocado half into 9 equal pieces. Toss avocado cubes in the mixture. Cut each bacon slice in half crosswise. Roll up each cube of avocado in one slice of bacon. Thread on 6 small skewers. Place on grill. Cook 2 to 3 minutes until bacon is crisp. makes 12 servings

Durango Drumettes 2 cups water 1 cup soy sauce 1 cup cooking sherry 1/2 cup Thrifty Maid light brown sugar 1/2 cup chopped green onions 24 chicken drumettes with skin removed In large skillet, combine water, soy sauce, sherry, brown sugar and green onions; add drumettes and stir to coat. Heat to boiling and lower heat. Simmer covered for 30 minutes. Uncover and simmer for 10 to 15 minutes, stirring and basting. Serve warm

Roasted Garlic & Red Pepper Party Dip 4 unpeeled whole garlic bulbs or 3 unpeeled whole elephant garlic bulbs Olive oil 2 (8 oz.) pkgs. cream cheese, room temperature 3/4 cup low-fat plain yogurt 1 (12 oz.) jar sweet roasted red peppers, drained, coarsely chopped 1/2 cup green onions, chops (tops and bottoms) 1/8 tsp. crushed red pepper Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Lightly brush outside of garlic bulbs with olive oil and place in shallow baking pan. Roast uncovered on center rack for 30 minutes. Cool. Press roasted garlic out of cloves. Set aside. Mix cream cheese and yogurt until creamy. Add remaining ingredients and mix well. Sprinkle with red pepper and serve with assorted chips.

Mexican Spread

3/4 lb crumbled feta

1 cup unsalted butter

3 tablespoons dry vermouth 8 ounces softened cream cheese

1 minced shallot 2 minced cloves garlic white pepper, to taste 1/2 cup toasted pine nuts 1 cup chopped sun-dried tomatoes 3/4 cup pesto sauce Using a food processor, combine cream cheese, butter, feta, garlic, shallot, pepper and vermouth until smooth. Oil a medium bowl or mold (line with plastic wrap for easy removal). Layer the dip: 1/2 the tomatoes, nuts, pesto, cheese mixture; repeat. Pat down mold, cover, refrigerate for one hour or more. Place on serving plate and serve with bread or crackers.

Housewarming Party Games and Ideas:

I would only plan on maybe having an ice-breaker or maybe one short game at your Housewarming. Just so your family and friends (and maybe you can invite some of your new neighbors to your Housewarming!) can get a chance to meet.

You can play Trivia about the new city or town, if you've moved. If this party is for someone else, get artifacts about the new area and either play trivia or a Welcome to your New Neighborhood game. This is a great way to celebrate a Housewarming!

Lastly, one thing I would definitely keep in mind - everyone will want a tour of your new house during your Housewarming, and not everyone shows up at the same time. Decide ahead of time, if you are going to give them the tours yourself, then have a family member or friend greet the arriving guests and show them to the food, drinks, etc. Or, you could greet the guests while this person leads the tours, or just let everyone walk around and mingle on their own. Just don't try to do it all yourself - this is a time for you to celebrate your great achievement and enjoy yourself!!! Happy Housewarming!

Shop for terrific Personalized Gifts to take to a Housewarming party, or treat yourself to some great gifts prior to hosting your own Housewarming Party!

Personalized Housewarming Gifts