You trod along Sproul Plaza as trees prepare to grow scarlet and orange for autumn. At the start of the fall semester, most people have recently settled into new dorms, apartments and co-ops. Yet, with all the excitement, you walk around your new place thinking, \u201cWhat\u2019s missing?\u201d Despite the newly cleaned countertops and perhaps your co-op\u2019s cozy couches, you feel a shiver in the air; it\u2019s time to warm your new home!<\/p>\n
Here\u2019s a step-by-step guide for throwing your dream housewarming party.<\/p>\n
First step: invitations<\/p>\n
Set a date a week or more in advance, and sharpen your guest list! Whether you want a small gathering or an all-out rager, use customizable invitation apps such as Evite or Partiful for electronic summons! You can also send out hand-crafted letters to guests. On College Avenue, try a cute local stationery store such as Elmwood Stationers for colorful paper and high-quality ink. Nearby, visit Mrs. Dalloway\u2019s bookstore for fun paper and cards. And once you have your invitations out, it\u2019s time to prepare!<\/p>\n
Second step: decorations<\/p>\n
Now for the fun part! Decide on a theme for your decor. Perhaps you love reptiles and yearn for different lizard cutouts to line the space. Maybe you want autumn decor or a casual vibe perfect for a pajama party. Bring your own flair to your space \u2014 hang photographs on clips attached to lights, put up posters, add a cool lamp somewhere and craft DIY signs! Goodwill in Downtown Berkeley has fun secondhand decorations (such as unicorn mugs \u2014 I\u2019ve found multiple here) and Moe\u2019s Books has posters! You can also make your own decor at the Makerspace in Moffitt Library or at the craft store MintPress Studio on Telegraph Avenue. The possibilities are endless!<\/p>\n
Third step: outfit theme<\/p>\n
Alright, you have your guest list and your decorations. But what will guests be wearing? It\u2019s time for friends to light up your space with their own funky outfits! You can do something as simple as pajamas or as creative as dressing up as fictional characters. Other categories include dressing up as favorite authors, colors, animals and movies; get as weird as you want with this. As a bonus, invite guests to thrift with you in preparation at Out of the Closet on University Avenue or at Anastasia\u2019s and Dorothy\u2019s Closet on Telegraph Avenue. At the end of the party, take polaroids of all the outfits and have a fashion show in your now-warmed home!<\/p>\n
Fourth step: decide on activities<\/p>\n
This is my favorite part of any party. There are so many eclectic or weird or fun activities to do with your guests! Based on my own research and brainstorming, here are some ideas.<\/p>\n
Give guests an easy opportunity to customize your space. Buy a tall plant, maybe from the UC Botanical Garden, and have friends decorate the branches with hand-painted ornaments and notes. You could also create a poster and invite friends to draw themselves and their signatures! People can bring their favorite books, do a show-and-tell and write Post-it recommendations. Maybe each person can contribute a photograph to a communal corkboard \u2014 there are so many options.<\/p>\n
A craft night is a more involved way for guests to light up your room. Buy or pick flowers and have guests craft small bouquets to place around the house! You can do an origami night or maybe a painting day using vases, canvases or posters. This is a creative way to engage with guests while warming your place with friendly faces.<\/p>\n
Another idea is what we\u2019ve all seen go viral: a PowerPoint night. Invite friends to show random presentations about a topic of your choosing, or no specific topic at all. This is perfect if you have a new projector or TV you\u2019re itching to try out.<\/p>\n
You can also host a karaoke night. For both large and small groups, this is a great way to fill up the space as guests wander around and chat. Get as wild as possible with this one!<\/p>\n
Step five: prepare food and drinks<\/p>\n
After all this preparation, it\u2019s almost time for the party. Now\u2019s the chance to hone your cooking skills by making a delicious menu for your guests! Look up easy and plentiful recipes online or buy a cookbook from a local store such as Moe\u2019s Books or Pegasus Books. You can even have guests cook with you, from DIY pizzas to chocolate chip pancakes!<\/p>\n
For drinks, get an electric kettle or two from Goodwill and invite guests to bring their own mug, filling the room with the warm smell of tea. Serve instant coffee, matcha, chocolate milk, hot chocolate and more! Whether you decide to cook before the party or with guests, this can be a fun way to involve friends in the festivities.<\/p>\n
Step six: enjoy!<\/p>\n
Remember that a housewarming party is a time to celebrate a new chapter in your life with loved ones. Be proud of yourself for prepping the party, and go wherever the night or day takes you. Enjoy your time, and congratulations on throwing your dream housewarming party!<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"You trod along Sproul Plaza as trees prepare to grow scarlet and orange for autumn. At the start…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":466490,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[34],"tags":[176852,764,12494,183704,2633,46519,183700,35254,37738,183703,121905,54591,183702,143,145,144,111047,183701,28530,183705,26656,5294,176846,18549],"class_list":["post-466489","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-oakland","tag-anastasias","tag-berkeley","tag-college-avenue","tag-dorothys-closet","tag-downtown-berkeley","tag-elmwood-stationers","tag-evite","tag-goodwill","tag-makerspace","tag-mintpress-studio","tag-moes-books","tag-moffitt-library","tag-mrs-dalloways","tag-oakland","tag-oakland-headlines","tag-oakland-news","tag-out-of-the-closet","tag-partiful","tag-pegasus-books","tag-powerpoint","tag-sproul-plaza","tag-telegraph","tag-uc-botanical-garden","tag-university-avenue"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/466489","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=466489"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/466489\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/466490"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=466489"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=466489"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=466489"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}