Raise A Glass
We can’t wait to usher in 2021. But just because we’re in a hurry to say “see ya” to 2020, doesn’t mean we can’t relish a New Year’s Eve party at home. Covesa Kelly, owner of Covesa Kelly Events, gives us a few tips on how to liven things up.
Down the Hatch
If you’re anything like us, a stiff signature drink will be on the menu. Kelly suggests a refreshing mix of melon liquor, coconut rum, sour apple schnapps, a bit of pineapple juice and 7UP, topped with a maraschino cherry, as a way to rinse this year away. She calls it the Pain in the Ass. “Don’t forget to add a little signage that says: ‘2020 was a pain in the ass,’ ” Kelly says. “Just something simple like that.”
Sweet Delights
Chances are, you and your friends and family dabbled in baking this year as a way to beat the lockdown boredom. Use the party as an excuse for everyone to flash their skills and have each guest make a platter of cookies. “If I brought oatmeal raisin, someone else can bring butter cookies, someone brings peanut butter cookies,” says Kelly. Have a station with little to-go boxes so guests can load up. “You can take your own cookie box and walk through and help yourself to some.”
Say Cheese
After the year it’s been, make some good memories on the last day of 2020. Kelly recommends an affordable way to set up a party classic photo booth by putting your phone on a tripod and creating a cool frame out of cardboard. The key to any good photo booth, she says, is the props to pose with that properly reflect the year. “So, having fun with the masks, or even having different faces on the masks,” Kelly says. “All of that would be really hilarious.”
Dinner Plans
There’s nothing quite like the holiday sounds of clinking glasses and talking over appetizers. But if you’re staying socially distant, food blogger Ann Marie Elaban gives us three tips on how to bring the family together around the virtual dinner table.
Send a formal invite
Before you even set the table or plan out the placement of your laptop, Elaban suggests making a virtual dinner feel as real as possible. Start by sending out cute e-invites for everyone to feel extra inclined to log on. “The invites can have little texts on them, like ‘you’re cordially invited’ with maybe a picture of a [set] table,” she says. “That’s a fun little touch to just get people excited.”
Keep the menu simple
As far as the main courses go, don’t overcomplicate it — you don’t want your guests being scared off with a recipe that’s too hard. “The simpler the better,” Elaban says. “I would even recommend making pasta for every dinner party, because it’s so quick, you can scale it up or down, depending on how much money you want to spend.”
Set the mood
Although everyone will be tuning in from their individual homes, Elaban suggests creating a setting that gets you in the party mood, even if it’s setting up a couple decorations in the background. “I would say what makes it fun is really setting the mood with decorations and stuff,” says Elaban. “So get the light dimmed low, get some candles and really try to make it feel like a different space.”
Star Turn
Add a dash of magic to the festivities and send your guests home with a fun memento with this glitzy star wand from DIY guru Karen Gall, who runs crafting blog Confetti Fridays. “If you can get kind of the whole family involved, it gives them something else to be excited about,” Gall says.
What you’ll need:
- 9-by-12-inch sheets of white felt
- Small wooden dowel or popsicle stick
- Silver and gold sequins
- Pillow stuffing or tissue paper
- Elmer’s glue or hot glue
Step 1: Sketch out and then cut out two sides of a star shape from the felt.
Step 2: Place the two sides together and using glue, connect the edges while leaving a hole open for the stuffing.
Step 3: Fill the star up with pillow stuffing or tissue paper as much as desired, while still leaving the small opening.
Step 4: Put a little bit of glue at the top of the wooden dowel and place it in the star.
Step 5: Use more glue to attach the edges of the star while the dowel is inside to make it secure.
Step 6: Create little embellishments by gluing sequins onto the star.
