You have just moved into your new home, congratulations! Make your new house feel like home by inviting over your friends and family to celebrate this new chapter of your life with you.
We have carefully put together these 14 ideas for a housewarming party that will make your housewarming party a memorable and stress-free experience for you and your guests.
You may even want to use this opportunity to invite your new neighbors and get to know them. Bottom line is, have fun! Moving into a new place should be fun and exciting and something worth celebrating.
If unpacking boxes and organizing everything seems like a grueling task for you at the moment, use having a housewarming party as your motivation to unpack and get things in order as you want them.
Not many people enjoy unpacking, but if you have something forward to look to after it is all done, it might be less stressful!
Here Are 14 Ideas For The Best Housewarming Party:
- Plan Ahead
- De-Clutter & Clean
- Choose a Theme
- Send Out Invitations
- Decorations
- Invite Your Neighbors
- Set Up an Online Registry
- Have Food Options
- Simple Comfort Food
- Buffet Style
- Set Up a Bar & Have Drink Options
- Play Some Music
- Open Up Your Space
- Have Party Games
1. Plan Ahead
Just like any party, it is important to plan ahead. This will prevent rushing to throw something together and make you less stressed out throughout the whole process.
Decide on your guests: Now is also a good time to get your guest list together so you don’t miss anyone important! Other than friends, family, and co-workers, it might be a good time to invite your new neighbors
Pick a date/time: Take some time to carefully think about when you would like to have your party and stick with it. This is very important for a housewarming party because your party date will give you the motivation to have your house put together at that time. Picking a date early will also give your guests enough time to make sure they can make it.
2. De-Clutter & Clean
It goes without saying that organizing your house and cleaning up is a no-brainer before you have a party in your home. Here are a few tips for ways to cut the clutter you may have brought to your new home:
De-clutter little by little: Clutter is one of those things that can get really out of control very quickly. As humans, we tend to like to hold on to everything we have either bought or been given. However, getting rid of unused belongings always seems to take much longer than how fast they were acquired. To get rid of clutter it is best to set a specific time to tackle certain areas little by little every day.
Clean before you unpack: If you have just moved in, a good time to start the after moving cleaning process on your home. Use the ability to get in the cracks and corners of spaces that are soon to be occupied by your furniture.
3. Choose a Theme – + 31 Theme Ideas
Have a little fun at your party and give it a theme for your guests to enjoy! Popular housewarming party themes include:
Potluck: Have your guests bring over different dishes and enjoy the food and company
Unpacking Party: If you haven’t unpacked yet, use your housewarming party as a way to get some help. Just order some pizza and serve some drinks and make it fun!
Painting Party: Can’t decide on paint colors? Have your friends help you! Put out swatches in each room and have them pick their favorite.
Garden Theme (Spring & Summer): If it is the right season, then move your party outdoors! You can have guests bring plants to put around your house interior and exterior.
- Stock The Bar
- Block Party
- Casino
- Gatsby
- Hollywood/VIP
- Decades
- Tiki/Luau
- Western
- Masquerade
- Alice in Wonderland
- Cocktail
- Space/Galaxy
- Blacklight
- Wine/Beer Tasting
- Carnival
- Coffee & Tea Party
- Murder Mystery
- Fiesta
- Rock N Roll
- Sports
- Movie Night
- Karaoke
- Disco
- Star Wars
- Superhero
- Rainbow
4. Send Out Invitations
Now that you have picked your date, time, theme, and your guests, it is finally time to create your invitations! We are ow in a world of technology and have numerous ways to send out invites. Here are a few different ways you can sed out your party invites:
Mail card invitations: The most glamorous way, of course, is to send out a beautifully crafted paper card out to your guests. A few examples can be found at Zazzle or Greetings Island.
E-vites: There are a few different ways you can send invitations through email. You can craft your own email or you can even hire a service like Paperless Post and use one of their pre-made designs.
Text invite: Texting your invitation out might not feel as formal as you would like. However, if you’re looking for something more than just a plain group text, try the app Hobnob. They have plenty of professional-looking housewarming invite designs.
Facebook event: If you are looking for something simple, it is becoming more and more popular for people to create “facebook events” for party invitations. They can be made very easily and you can get an idea of how many people will be attending.
5. Decorations
When it comes to decorating for a housewarming party, think less is more. The point of having your party is to show off your new home to your friend’s and family so try not to cover it up too much.
If you decided on a theme for your party, go with it. Choose decorations that are associated with your theme. For example, if you are having a painting party, you may want to decorate with paint swatches or rainbow-like colors.
Most importantly, focus on the essentials. Having nice matching tableware, table cloths, napkins, and glasses will make your party feel organized and look very aesthetically pleasing.
You can also get creative and use your own plants and flowers to liven up your new space in an elegant but affordable way.
6. Invite Your Neighbors
Getting to know your neighbors is very important after moving to a new space. Feeling like you are surrounded by people you know will make your house feel even more like home.
Meeting your neighbors can make you a little nervous, especially since you know you will be seeing them often. However, inviting them to your housewarming party might be the best opportunity to break the ice with them right off the start.
7. Set Up an Online Registry
Setting up an online gift registry can make gift giving simple for your guests and also be beneficial to you. There are many online stores that allow you to set up a registry and easily email the link to your guests.
Popular online registry websites can include Target, Crate & Barrel, Bed, Bath & Beyond, etc. Or you can use a website like MyRegistry.com and invite your guests to view your registry with items from many stores.
Items that you might want to include in your registry might be:
- Kitchen essentials
- Tableware
- Cutlery
- Home decor
- Bedspreads/sheets/pillows
8. Have Food Options
Yes, of course, it is impossible to please everyone in the food department nowadays with all of the diet restrictions. However, you can be mindful and provide options for your guests.
If you plan on serving meat as your main dish, having a hearty side like pasta can be accommodating to those who don’t eat meat. Other suggestions can be providing a large green salad, fruit, bread, or even a vegetable soup if the weather calls for it.
9. Simple Comfort Food
When you think of home, you most likely think of a warm home-made cooked meal. Give your guests that feeling of welcomeness and comfort by providing them with dishes that bring everyone together.
Since there are many things that need to be done for the party, try and think of comfort foods that can be prepared in large batches to save you some time.
A few examples of types of comfort foods that are easy to prepare for a large group are:
- Mashed potatoes
- Macaroni & cheese
- Lasagna
- Soup
- Any type of pasta
- Garlic Bread
- Chili
- Stew
For recipe ideas check out 74 Comfort Food Recipes Cozier Than Your Favorite Pair Of Sweatpants.
10. Buffet Style
Take the hassle out of serving the food during your party and set it up buffet style. Allow your guests to chose what they want most of and feel welcomed to seconds!
The point of a housewarming party is to mingle and enjoy each other’s company. Laying out the food buffet-style will make it easiest for everyone to get their food and have time to socialize.
11. Set Up a Bar & Have Drink Options
If you have space in your new home, have a designated space for drinks. Since this area will be used often for your guests, it is best if it is separated from food preparation.
Consider having options for different types of drinks like beer, wine, and champagne. Also, keep in mind that you should also have options for those who will not be drinking alcohol.
12. Play Some Music
What is a party without some music?! Make sure you have your BlueTooth speakers or stereo set up for your housewarming party.
If you are not sure what to play, browse music streaming apps like Spotify or Pandora and select a playlist.
13. Open Up Your Space
Whether you have a large crowd or not, space is important. Opening up space in your home will make your guests much more comfortable.
Make your new home feel bigger by trying one of these tips:
- Hang mirrors
- Pick furniture that can be used as storage space
- Place your curtains closer to your ceiling
- Decorate with light colors
- Hang oversized art pieces – it gives the illusion your house is larger
- Let the natural light in – having a bright space makes it feel more open
14. Have Party Games
Start creating fun memories right away! Having party games will keep your guests entertained and engaged with each other.
A few fun games you can try include:
Pick A Key: Place a bowl of keys at your front door and have each guest choose one. Next to the bowl, display a picture of the lock they will be trying to open. Then, later on in the party, gather your guests and have them come up one by one to see if their key fits in the lock. The one that fits will get a prize!
Key’p your Mouth Quiet: At the bigging of the party, give your guests one key. Let them know during the night they will not be allowed to say the words home or house (whatever other words you would like to add). If they use one of the words and someone catches them, they give up their key to them. At the end of the night, whoever has the most keys wins a prize!
Room Memory Trivia: Have your guest look around a specific room for 60 seconds. Then, take them out of the room and ask them to write down their answers to basic questions about the room. For example, “What pattern was on the pillows? How many plants did you see? How many windows are in the room? Etc.” Whoever comes up with the closest correct responses, wins a prize!
What To Put On Your Housewarming Gift Ideas List?
If you really want a great gift from someone for your housewarming party (not just the same old “Welcome Mat”), I recommend heading over these housewarming gift ideas. We have organized theses housewarming gift ideas by the interior design style. That way, you’ve assured yourself that you’ll get something you actually like!
Moving into your new home should be something you’re proud of! Having the best housewarming party can make all the difference in breaking your home in the right way. With these 14 ideas for the best housewarming party, your guests will be ready to celebrate this exciting moment of your life with you!
