Graduation is quickly approaching and it’s time to start planning those graduation parties. However, need some tips on throwing your graduation party? Wedding and Party Network has a few that will help ensure a memorable night. [Read more…]
Host A Holiday Craft Party This Season
Listen up all you DIYers, this is your time! There is no craftier season than December so start making plans now. Are your Pinterest boards already overflowing? Good! Grab your favorite project ideas, your best buds and host a fun holiday craft party to get in the spirit of the season. We know you’ll love getting together with your friends and unleashing your creative side. Relax, create and enjoy each other on this most festive time of year!
Holiday Craft Party Ideas
Ornament Party
Break out the hot glue gun! Ornaments are so fun to make and give as gifts. They are wonderful for your own tree but also as toppers on presents or stocking stuffers.
You can pick some simple ideas that can be done with the group or everyone can bring supplies for their own ideas. We love these simple cinnamon stick stars! And these is your chance to finally make those clever online ideas you love all your own. Cover your table and work area with some brown craft paper and get started making holiday magic.
For some extra cheer, cook up some fresh apple cider – spiked or not is up to you! It will be a joy to savor the flavors of cinnamon and spice while making some craftiness goodness for your holiday celebration.
To help with organization, try setting up dedicated work spaces for particular tasks
like hot gluing, cutting and definitely for anything needing glitter!
Card Party
Are holiday cards a tradition for you? If not, why not start! Sending holiday cards are such a great way to reach out to loved ones and rarely-seen friends. Whether it is a traditional Christmas card, a funny photo card, or your own unique season’s greeting, there is nothing like getting a real piece of mail from a loved one.
Don’t get bogged down by feeling like you have to write an epic Christmas letter or send all the school pictures. While those things are nice, just a quick line and signature on a pretty card is enough. So tell your friends to start gathering addresses.
Perfect time for some piping hot coffee and maybe a variety of biscotti to munch on while you chat and seal. Mix it up with some fancy creamers or favorite coffee shop add-ins like whipped cream and chocolate sprinkles.
Remember, the United States Post Office recommends mailing your cards
by December 20th to make sure they arrive in time for Christmas!
Cookie Party
This one is a favorite during the holidays. Each person makes an extra large batch of cookies and everyone swaps so you get to go home with many different varieties to offer at your house. Elect one person to bake plain sugar cookies before the party.
When the gathering begins, some can start decorating the pre-made sugar cookies while others can be mixing and manning the oven. This way there are fewer battles for counter space and switching up will be a breeze.
Bar cookies, drop cookies, rolled cookies and shortbread – Try all different types for great diversity. Grab your apron and turn on some favorite tunes to get in the spirit. You’ll love baking up a storm with friends!
Since it will be impossible bake cookies without sampling a few, consider serving something light to cut all the sugar. Offer up a colorful veggie tray with dip to snack on while the oven works it’s magic. Though you might want to break out the milk when it comes time to officially taste test all the varieties. Everyone needs feedback, right? Go here for more Christmas Cookie Swap Ideas.
Have everyone bring a big platter to take their cookies home.
Use cupcake wrappers to display smaller cookies and waxed paper to keep sticky types separated.
Snowflake Party
Who doesn’t remember cutting out snowflakes as a kid? Try it again as an adult and you might be surprised by the complex and lacy designs you can make. If you need a little reminder, do a quick search for “snowflake cutout patterns” and you’ll be on your way. These make beautiful decor for windows, walls or the tops of presents.
Tape multiple snowflakes to a piece of string to make a dainty garland, perfect for draping along your banister or mantle. With a ream of white paper and some sharp scissors, put on a favorite holiday movie and start snipping away with friends.
Serve your guests some creamy hot chocolate with lots of marshmallows and some warm muffins for a cozy evening snack.
To preserve particularly stunning snowflake creations, get a roll of clear contact paper
and sandwich your cutout in-between 2 pieces. Press flat and trim excess to 1/4 inch all the way around.
Photos provided by Robbie Ribeiro, Michaela Kobyakov and Robert Proksa
Party Favors for Kids this Winter
If you have a party to plan this winter, either for a birthday or for the simple reason of giving your kids something to look forward to, you can keep the kids happy even after they leave by sending them home with party favors. Of course, when you’re trying to get everything ready to host a party it’s easy to skip over this seemingly unnecessary detail. But if you have the time, here are a few unique presents to say “thank you” for showing up and giving life to your celebration.
Jewelry Kit: For the girls of the group, you can purchase plastic baggies or jewelry boxes at a dollar store and fill them with some string or yarn and a variety of colorful beads so they can make their own bracelets or necklaces when they get home. All of the components for this are fairly cheap since you don’t have to really worry about quality since it’s just for fun. This would be a fun project for the parents to get involved with, too. Your kids’ friends can have a little something to always remember your party by!
Healthy Sweets: Yes, this may sound like an oxymoron, but it’s completely possible! If you get the time between all of your preparing, bake up some delicious treats that are actually nutritious for the kids to snack on when they get home or for the rest of the weekend. The key is to use as few ingredients as possible. Make some cookies filled with the basics of flour (whole wheat flour if you have it), baking powder, about 1/2 a teaspoon of salt and vanilla, an egg, and a little bit of butter. For sweetness you can add some raisins, dried cranberries, dates, mashed bananas–anything that will actually put nourishment into the kids’ bellies instead of just sugar. You can also add some flax, oats, or sliced almonds for texture and extra fiber and protein. Then pack them up into cute baggies and close them up with some pretty ribbon. Simple, yet effective!
Snowflake Garland: This can double as not only a party favor, but also as an activity during your party. Teach the kids how to cut out snowflakes from construction paper and then string them together with yarn. They will be excited to show off their creation by stringing it up in their room when they get home. If you’re feeling extra brave, you can break out some glue and glitter and let the kids add some glitz to their snowflakes.
Bath Fun: After letting the kids handle glue and glitter, they may need a bath when they get home! So sending them home with something to make bath time a little easier is very fitting. Bath markers, crayons, or bubble bath go a long way. Attach a small typed out note to it with a phrase similar to, “Thanks for making a splash at our party!” or another creative pun you can muster up.
Round out any party this winter by sending your kids’ friends back out into the cold with some fun memorabilia to warm their hearts or their bellies. It’s an added bonus to the thoughtful gesture of providing them with an afternoon or evening of fun entertainment.
Get In The Spirit With Halloween DIY!
Are you ready for an all-night scary movie marathon, dancing in your cool costume and feasting on more candy treats than any other celebration?
Time to get your Halloween on and that means for your house as well! If you are hosting a orange and black soirée this year, here are some of the easiest ways to make your party decor a smash!
The best part about these DIY projects is you can knock them out in just a few hours and still have time for casting spells and howling at the moon. So play some spooky music and get in the spirit of Halloween!
DIY Halloween Projects
Paper Banner
Creating a paper Halloween banner is easy and can help create a focal point in your room. You can say it big or small without much effort.
“Happy Halloween” and “Trick or Treat” and “Boil Bubble Toil and Trouble” are classics.
But get creative! Have a favorite quote or something that would tie into your party theme? Spell it out with a banner.
- Take a look at these free Halloween fonts! Pick your favorite and print out your letters. Use a whole page for a large banner or half a page for a smaller one.
- You can trim each letter and back it with slightly bigger scrapbook paper to create a colored border.
- Hole-punch each top corner and string through with some ribbon or twine.
DONE! Now your are ready to hang your message that won’t go unnoticed by your guests.
Throw Pillows
Any designer will tell you that decorative throw pillows are the perfect way to add some spice to your space. And at a party, having decor that is both festive and functional makes your house all the more inviting.
We love this excellent tutorial for Glitter Blast Halloween Pillows by Chapman Place blog. This is a project that utilizes inexpensive and easy to sew canvas drop cloths and glitter spray paint to create awesome pillows you are going to keep around years!
Create your own set of Halloween pillows for your couch, armchair or porch swing.
Pumpkin Decor
There are so much more to pumpkins than just carving!
While carving a pumpkin is a great tradition and there are many amazing ways to be creative with cut designs, don’t overlook the beauty and mystery of different pumpkin varieties.
Hit up your local farmer’s market or pumpkin patch for some more unusual types than what you find at the grocery store. You can use pumpkins to create a great centerpiece, accent a shelf, or line your walkway. The possibilities are endless and they will last all season. Let nature show off with these colorful and highly textured pumpkin varieties.
Upcycled Display Jars
Add a touch of witch-y elegance to your party snacks with these display jars. Stuff with your favorite Halloween treats like candy, cookies and especially anything colorful that will add to your table.
- Remove the labels from jars of different shapes and sizes.
- Use a nail and a hammer to punch a small hole in the lid.
- Screw on a drawer pull or knob from your local home improvement store.
- Paint the lids and knobs with black, orange, green, purple or whatever color fits your theme.
Voilà! Not only have you upcycled some beautiful glass but you’ve helped build a tablescape perfect for anything you have brewing in the cauldron.
Finishing Touch Ideas
Use cotton “spiderwebs” to stretch over your existing decor. This a fast and easy way to give everything in the room a haunted touch without a lot of work. Remember the thinner and more wispy you can pull the webs – draping them across objects and connecting from high points to low points – the more realistic they will look. Suddenly your packed bookshelf, framed photos, and lamps are now part of the party decor.
Change the lighting in your bathroom. Put a eerie green light in the fixture over the shower. Hang a paper lantern decked out with bat silhouettes. Place a dozen tea lights or jar candles in front of the mirror. Choose whatever works best for your space. By adding this extra touch in a place where party guests are most likely to stop and notice the decor, you will really tie the atmosphere of your event together.
Place black paper silhouettes in windows, then cover with colored tissue paper for a simple glowing effect! As your party-goers or trick-or-treaters arrive, windows filled with fun images – spiky monsters, black cats, twisted tree branches, witches – and illuminated by your indoor lights make a welcoming sight on Halloween night.
Faux cobbwebs, colored lights and ghostly cutouts are simple ways to transform your house into Halloweentown. Find your closest party store here.
With your house totally party-prepped, you’ll be ready for all the excitement October 31st brings with it. Enjoy this fun holiday!
Photos provided by Chapman Place and WPN
Host Your Own Backyard Movie Night!
Do you love movies? Are you looking for fun activities to wrap up those last few summer nights? Host a movie night in the backyard that will become everyone’s favorite summer memory. With a little planning, you can transform your backyard into an outdoor theater!
Tickets, please.
Send out invitations to friends, family and neighbors about a week ahead of time. Here is a link to a tutorial to make your own super cool movie ticket invites! These are great because they look just like a theater ticket and also remind everyone to bring their blankets or lawn chairs.
Be sure and check what time the sun will be setting on your party date. Make your start time just a little before dark so everyone has time to settle in by the time it is dark enough to see the screen well.
Set The Stage
Decorate the entrance to your backyard with some colorful balloons and streamers. You can even print out your over movie poster on your home printer by creating a tiled print. Add a “Now Showing” sign to complete the theater look.
Unless you want to move your giant flat screen TV outside (That’s ok if you do. High Definition!) you are going to need a projector and a screen.
There are some mini projectors that you can get for your tablet (even your smartphone!) if you want to keep it pretty low key. If you already have a flat surface like the side of your house, garage door, or a tall fence, hanging a white sheet can do the trick for a DIY screen. Make sure and test everything well beforehand to work out all the kinks before guests arrive.
If you are throwing a blast to be remembered, there are lots of local event rentals that have everything needed for a picture-perfect night outdoors. Designate an area in front of your screen for blankets with lawn chairs making up the back row. And don’t forget to stock up on some citronella candles to keep away pests. The little extra candle light will shine the way to the snack bar when someone needs a refill.
Concession Stand Snacks
Lots of popcorn is on top of the list. But don’t forget drinks. Sodas, iced sweet, lemonade, or something stronger? Whatever will complete your movie experience, consider picking up some disposable cups with lids. It’s just like the movies and will prevent spills when setting drinks on lawn chairs or in the grass.
Pick up some theater-sized boxes of classic candy like Milk Duds, M&Ms and Red Vines that guests can share. Atmosphere complete without the sticky floor!
That’s a Wrap!
When the sun sets and the movie flickers, lighting up everyone’s face, your backyard will be filled with that unmistakable movie magic. Enjoying your favorite film outside is a great way to celebrate at home. Summer is passing fast so don’t wait too long or you’ll have to really wrap up!
Think this is a cool idea? Let us know in the comments. And definitely share some photos after you enjoy a flick out under the stars.
Not sure what to watch? Here’s some suggestions that are drive-in ready!
| Kids | Fantasia, E.T., Iron Giant, Wreck-It Ralph |
| Girl’s Night | Thelma & Louise, Breakfast at Tiffany’s, Dirty Dancing, Bridesmaids |
| Classic Hollywood | Citizen Kane, Gone With The Wind, Who’s Afraid of Virginia Wolfe, Casablanca |
| Creature Feature | Night of the Living Dead, Clash of the Titans, King Kong, Creature From The Black Lagoon |
| Summer Classic | Wet Hot American Summer, The Sandlot, Jaws, Caddyshack |
| Date Night | The Princess Bride, The Great Escape, Raising Arizona, Silver Linings Playbook |
| Art House | Easy Rider, Do The Right Thing, American Graffiti, Beasts Of The Southern Wild |
Some May Say White is the Absence of Color, but it’s Not the Absence of Fun
The Reason is the Season:
Labor Day, one of fashion’s most recognized calendar days, is quickly approaching. Closets everywhere are slowly changing their colors from pink, pale blues and white to dark browns, navy blues and blacks. Don’t let this fashion rule be a bummer; it’s a great reason to celebrate. It’s time for an all white Labor Day party! Round up the girls for one last summer fling before the weather turns chilly. An all white Labor Day party can be for celebrating the “White Labor Day,” rule or just your chance to rebel. Either way, this party is going to be a blast.
First, let’s start by walking into your closet. Since, Labor Day is the “last” day for white, it is the perfect time to clean your color palatte. Wear white shoes, pants and tops. Don’t be afraid to be funny or out of the box. After carefully picking out your outfit, all that is left color coordination.
Color Coordinating at its Finest:
Have a problem color coordinating? An all white party will make that difficult task non-existent. After planning your outfit, your room of choice will be a clean crisp paradise. To transform your living room or outdoor space, invest in couch covers. These actually don’t have to be much of an investment. They won’t stay white for long with party guests, but they will make a world of difference.
To add a touch of bling, add sparkly silver pillows. This look will add depth, glitter and creativity to your party location. Nothing starts a party more than comfortable guests.
Don’t stop at just the seating. For centerpieces, use lilies to send a sleek and classic look around the room, but don’t stop there. Grab several clear cylinder vases and fill them ¼ of the way with pearls. Then allow water to reach all the way to a third of the glass. Simply apply a floating white candle and you’ve created ambience an night lighting.
Don’t Stop There:
After the guests have admired the ambience of the All White Labor Day Party, it may be time to introduce them to another form of comfort: Champagne and White Wine. Conversations won’t dull with the favorites of your guests, and succulent desserts offered such as coconut cake, vanilla ice cream, and the white chocolate fondue station. The dessert table, white wine and seating will allow everyone to slip into one last relaxing oasis before the season slowly changes.
Don’t let this Labor Day pass you by; it’s the perfect excuse to celebrate.
Celebrate Everyday Life with A Simple Meal but a Fabulous Table
Most times we wait until a holiday or special occasion to bring out the nice dishes and decorate. I have begun to try to celebrate life at least a couple of times a week by dressing up simple meals or dressing up the yard for a shared glass of tea or wine on a cool summer evening. Most of us have all the ingredients to make this happen so the cost in approaching a daily celebration involves mostly our time. With just 30 extra minutes, most of this can be accomplished.
Setting the Table
I use white pottery dinner plates all the time. This enables me to change my salad or accent plate to make a big impact. I have collected many red accent pieces as the color adapts well for many holidays and other occasions, such as Christmas, Valentines, Fourth of July, Memorial Day and even Election Day.
The table I set this time is with white dinner plates, red salad plates, red cotton napkins and my vintage red stem wear. The cotton napkins are machine wash and come out of the dryer ready to fold and use. These particular napkins were my mothers and she used them much like I do. The bowls are colorful pieces picked up one at a time at a discount store. One is actually a large coffee cup that I have used here as a salad bowl. All of these pieces can be used for various occasions to dress up a table.
Adding That Special Touch
For the centerpiece, it is a potted plant that I have sitting in a window all the time. I try to keep this type of plant from the nursery because I do not always have fresh flowers handy. Plants work just as well as stunning centerpieces.
The place mats are some I have had for some time and prevent me from having to use a tablecloth (more laundry). These special touches are great accents to make your table even more beautiful.
What’s On the Menu?
The meal on this particular night was composed of a chicken Florentine bagged meal that took 10 minutes to heat on the stove. I had a half of watermelon left in the fridge and put together this delish salad with other items I had on hand. I always keep a loaf of deli french bread to serve with olive oil and balsamic vinegar. A glass of Sauvignon blanc complimented the meal.
WATERMELON SALAD
4 cups of seeded and chopped watermelon
1/4 cup sweet onion, chopped
2 limes, fresh juice
1/4 cup Kalamata olives, chopped
1/2 cup grated parmesan or crumbled feta cheese
Combine all but cheese and refrigerate for 30 minutes. Add cheese as you serve.
I have found that my spouse and I linger a little longer and visit at the table more if it is set for an everyday celebration. I almost always set a third place hoping someone will drop in and join us in our everyday celebration. On this occasion, it was our lovely neighbor. Clean up was pretty easy. Just load the dishwasher and put the leftovers (if there are any) away.
Try having an everyday celebration and without a great amount of trouble you may find your family and friends lingering a little longer. The extra 30 or so minutes is well worth the result.
Hosting a Meet-and-Greet
Every school year brings new students to your college or university. These students are looking for a place to belong, and as a member of a student organization, you are looking to recruit new members. One way to do this is to host an event that lets students get to know what your organization is all about. Your goal is to inspire them to enjoy themselves as much as you do and to become a member, so Wedding and Party Network has a few tips for hosting a meet-and-greet.
Start with invitations: Send invitations to members of your organization detailing the goal of your party and asking them to bring a friend. This will help hand-select individuals that existing members think would be a perfect fit. To draw in the general student body, place banners with your invitation printed on them in strategic places around campus. Close to the cafeteria, gym, and central hub of campus are great places. Banners printed on plastic and stuck in the ground with metal stakes will hold up through most weather.
Plan activities that show why you’re worth joining: Does your religious group have a worship team, or maybe your sorority has a step team, or could you possibly have some creative talents from other cultures to show off? In order to show prospective members why they should join, have current members provide entertainment. Your guests may find the niche they’ve been looking for by becoming the next talented member of your band or team!
Ensure guests have a good time by being friendly: Simply approaching someone, getting to know them briefly, and discussing your organization can make a lasting impression. Some new students come to college with no friends and are desperately seeking a friendly face.Whether or not they were looking for a ministry, cultural group, or student organization in the first place, they may choose to try your club to make new friends.
End the night right with party favors: Leave a lasting impression with your guests by sending home something to remember you by. A few great ideas for this are refrigerator magnets, cups, pens, and notepads.
- Magnets: Having magnets made with your logo and motto, a schedule of upcoming events, a link to a group page on Facebook, or a reminder of where and when your group meets can be very valuable. Help students spice up their dorm with a reminder of your organization that they will see every time they reach for a soda.
- Useful Items: A college student can never have enough cups, pens, or note pads. Personalize these items with your organization name and basic information. Every time they use them, they will remember your wonderful event.
With the right planning, any back to school meet-and-greet is a perfect way to jumpstart your organization’s membership. Serve snacks that guests can eat while they mingle and make sure current members are helping each and every person feel involved. By investing a little bit of time and money into your party, you can reap the benefits of not only growing your organization, but also knowing you made a difference by including someone new! These new students will appreciate the chance to become a part of something that can make the next four (or five or six…) years a blast.
How to Choose the Right Recruitment Food
When it comes to sorority recruitment, it’s easy to get caught up in impressing the PNMs (potential new members) and forget to make them comfortable. One of the easiest areas to make this mistake is in the food layout. PNMs enter the room afraid of embarrassing themselves and the wrong food choice is an embarrassment waiting to happen. So whether you are whipping up your own treats or hiring a caterer to organize your perfect recruitment menu, Wedding & Party Network would like to share how to get what you want – and need – out of your recruitment food.
1. Limit the size of your treats. You should have them in a medium range – averaging about 1 to 2 bites. If your recruitment food is too large, full mouths will stall conversation and PNMs will be fighting to take ladylike bites. Too small and you have to deal with the mess of utensils and spills.
2. Watch the food’s consistency. Soups and other liquid foods should be out of the picture simply because of the hassle, but you should also avoid foods with thin sauces or gravy. These are way too easy to spill and will leave stains on all the pretty PNMs. Sticky foods are also danger zones, as well as anything which typically remains in teeth.
3. Make sure you are serving something light. Every girl wants to look and feel her best and she won’t feel at the top of her game if your delicious spread leaves her feeling stuffed.
4. Take care of the pearly whites and reject any treat which will give your girls a colorful grin. The biggest trouble makers in this area would be icing and dark-colored drinks. Anything which has food coloring is sure to leave its mark, so opt for foods which have natural or light coloring.
5. Consider how the food will taste. Don’t choose anything that is too spicy, sour, or salty. These will leave a heavy taste in everyone’s mouth and people will worry that their breath has lost its freshness.
6. Think about the special diets of PNMs. Always avoid peanuts and check with your Panhellenic delegate to see if any PNMs have reported an allergy. Keep in mind the vegetarian and vegan girls. Fruit platters are always a good side dish to keep handy for them.
Some helpful tips:
- Use mirrors in your decorations so PNMs and sisters can check their smiles.
- Have bowls of mints set up around the room for fresh breath.
- Have napkins at tables if someone forgets to grab their own.
- Include a cheese platter. Cheese helps clean teeth after meals.
- Be courteous and empathetic if a PNM does have a messy bite or spill.
Whoever is preparing your food should keep in mind these precautions. If you are hiring a local caterer, they should be more than happy to discuss these details and make sure your recruitment food is delicious, affordable,and impressive. So, don’t sweat the small stuff and enjoy preparing that perfect recruitment event.
Fantasy Football Draft Party Tips
A fervor for football has inspired many fans to explore additional ways to get involved with the game they love. In recent years, that search has most often ended with the discovery of fantasy football. Not to imply that fantasy football is a recent invention, it absolutely is not, but with the advent of the internet and all the digital options for scoring and whatnot, it’s certainly become more accessible. As a result, people are jumping on board by the thousands every year.
With fantasy football comes the fantasy draft, and gathering your friends together for a draft is the perfect opportunity to have a party! I am the commissioner of my fantasy league and so I host the draft party at my place every year. I was planning this year’s event, and I decided that it would be a great idea to share some of these ideas with you.
Getting Ready for Draft Kickoff
I want the players in my league to know that the focus of the day is football, and I accomplish that in a few different ways.
- Show a Game on the T.V. with the Volume Turned Off: Our draft normally comes after the second preseason game. We wait this long so that everyone gets a chance to see the rookies in some game action, albeit preseason game action. Also, most teams wrap up training camp about this time so that the injuries players get from being out of shape when they arrive in camp have already occurred. Because we wait this long, I record one of the preseason games and play it during the draft. The volume is off to keep it from being too much of a distraction. After all, nothing says football like football!
- Wear Your Favorite Team’s Jersey and Cap: C’mon, don’t pretend you don’t have one. Answer the door flying your colors proudly! If you REALLY want to impress your friends, get a jersey made in your favorite team’s colors with your fantasy team name emblazoned on the back! I’m thinking a Shin Grabbin’ Momma’s Boys jersey would be EPIC!
- Play the NFL Theme to Signal Each Round: This has the potential to get annoying, so feel free to just use the NFL theme to start the draft and call it good.
Football Food
Once you’ve created the perfect atmosphere, you have to provide the perfect party foods! These are some beloved staples of football lovers everywhere.
- Hot Wings: No kidding, right? What football-themed party is complete without hot wings? Not one I’m going to attend, I’ll tell you that. And none of those store-bought or restaurant wings either, I make my own. If you’re interested in the recipe, click here.
- Pizza: Football and a slice, is there anything better? There are several pizza places that specialize in both pizza and wings, so you can kill two birds with one stone if you’re into the restaurant versions, but one of my league-mates is married to a woman that makes excellent home-made pizza, so I normally ask her to provide this.
- Chips and Dip: Get as creative here as you like. If you are a master of the cheeseball, try an oblong one decorated to look like a football! For the rest of us, we’ll have to make do with some store bought options or a little cheese melted on the stove with diced chilis, tomatoes, and onions tossed in.
- (Root) Beer: Whether you want real beer or root beer, you need something that ends in beer. That’s not just me talking either, I think it’s a law.
Draft Prep
After the food is ready to go, all you have left is making sure you’re ready for the draft. That’s kind of important, right?
Draft Board: Even if you’re using your computer to run the actual draft, most of the major websites have a draft tracker available, it’s always ideal to have a draft board so that everyone can see exactly who’s been picked and who’s still available. This can be as simple as a white board and a dry erase marker, or as elaborate as pre-made labels with player names printed on them. However you do it, make sure it’s big enough to be legible to everyone in the room.
- Adequate Seating: Make sure you have a place for everyone to sit so they can see the draft board. The board should be the main focus of the room, so you’ll want your league-mates to be sitting in a semi-circle around it. Make sure you have enough chairs for everyone!
- Writing Surfaces: You need to be sure that everyone has something they can use to write on. Not paper, they should have their own supplies, but a hard surface. If you don’t have enough tables, use clip boards, but everyone should be capable of keeping up with their own draft.
- Draft Cheat Sheet: Okay, this really isn’t a party accessory, but I’d feel remiss if I didn’t include it. It’s for you, not them. I consider myself to be very knowledgeable about football, and yet as the commissioner of the league I have a lot of things running during the draft. For that reason, I bring a cheat sheet for myself.
Most everyone does this, and most of my league-mates have one as well, but in all the preparation it can be easy to forget to have your own supplies. This sheet is nothing more than a rank of the top 20 players at each of the low quantity draft positions such as QB, kicker, D/ST and TE and a breakdown of the top 50 players at the big quantity positions such as RB and TE. I highlight the players I want ahead of time, so that during the draft I don’t have to spend a lot of time thinking about it and can concentrate on running things for everyone else.
And that’s it folks. Once you have all of these things ready to go, all you need to do is answer the door, throw some high-fives, and break out the trash talk. It’s time for football!
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