Hosting a Dinner Swap Party

Hello my friends, have you heard the news? Our table linens have recently been dubbed a favorite at the International Housewares Association! I knew I wasn’t wrong when I talked about how great they are. Have you checked them out yet?

Okay, so now that I have done a little bragging, it’s time to get to the point of today’s blog. Dinner swap parties. Have you ever done one? I have and let me tell you, they are a blast and actually save a lot of time for all of us busy people who don’t have time to fret over dinner every night. I like to plan dinner swap parties once a month and for me and my group of dinner swap buddies, that typically gives us each about a week’s worth of meals that we don’t have to prep for throughout the month.

First and foremost, do you know what a dinner swap party is? Well, do you do any freezer meal cooking for yourself? This is the same thing, except that you bring your friends along and you don’t have to come up with all of the ideas!! Here are my steps for planning and hosting a dinner swap party:

• Plan the invite list. Decide how many people you want to invite. If this is your first time hosting a dinner swap party, you might consider inviting 5 people or less to ease the pressure.
• Plan the meal of the night. This one is on you. No, you don’t have to feed your guests, but c’mon, what is a party without food, right? I always like to make something simple like spaghetti or lasagna and of course I have wine on hand. What’s a ladies night or a dinner party without wine, am I right?
• Plan your freezer meals. In our group, we like to make as many meals as we have party attendees. That means if we have 5 people at the party, we are each expected to make 5 meals. No that doesn’t mean we have to make 5 different meals, only that we make enough of one meal to feed 5 families. We bring them wrapped and ready to bake for each party attendee. Ideally, in a ready to bake dish (hit up the dollar store for inexpensive disposable foil pans). We also like to create meals that don’t cost a lot to create. Before you make your meals, be sure and double check with the other party members and see if there are any food allergies to watch out for. Here are some of the favorites at our parties:
  • Lasagna
  • Chili
  • Meatloaf`
  • Orange Baked Chicken
  • Pizza
  • Bread (I always bring bread sides to dinner swap parties)
• Get the house ready for a party. Once again, you are hosting a party, you need to get your house in order and ready to do so. With our dinner swap parties we always invite the kids, but we order pizza for them and they stay in the playroom. I like to make a pretty scene for my guests by using my favorite serving board to present appetizers like cheese and crackers and we all know I like to decorate, so I pretty up my table with the Sassafrass Table Linens (20% off right now btw - just use promo code AIRLAID20). I love that we have a variety of table linens to choose from, all of which are adorable. These ones though, are my current favorites:
  • bollicine 39" table covers
  • bollicine table runners
  • bollicine napkins
  • our “paper” table linens look, feel and drape just like real linen — without the hassle of washing, drying and ironing! this contemporary, colorful pattern adds instant life to your party table setting! great for a summer picnic, a baby or bridal shower, a backyard brunch or a friday night pizza party. it’s casual, but sophisticated. match your tablecloth to the napkin, or try the grey tablecloth and pick up some extra packs of colorful napkins! you’ll love our bollicine pattern! best of all — they’re disposable! and recyclable, too.
• Party on. So now that your friends are all here and ready to go, just enjoy yourselves! You have each hopefully brought the required number of meals, put each of the meals in your own stack and into the refrigerator or a cooler of some sort while partying. Now sit back and relax knowing that you have several days worth of dinner that you don’t have to worry about this month!
• Start planning for next month. That was fun, wasn’t it? A dinner swap party is a great excuse for a gathering of friends, be sure and make it a regular occurance.

I am so excited for my next party!

Oh, and while I have you here, I wanted to let you know that our stools have arrived and they are absolutely adorable! If you haven’t ordered yours yet, check them out now! They make great room decor for kids of all age!