Someone grab the hummus and party hats! You’ve just moved into your new home, with your new fabulous flatmates, and life’s looking pretty sweet. IT’S TIME TO CELEBRATE.
Holding a house warming is one of the first rites of passage for a new tenancy. Get it right, and you’ll be a legend – and your house will really feel like your home. Get it wrong, and you’ll end up with annoyed neighbours, red wine stains on the carpet (farewell deposit), and a big sense of regret.
Here are some starter tips.
1. DON'T advertise your party on Facebook
...unless you want everyone at your end of the District Line showing up. It’s probably not new info that social media isn’t as private as you’d like to think, so if you start bragging about your shindig online there’s a high chance the word will spread and unwanted guests will start rocking up.
If you’re in a flatshare, we’re guessing you won’t have too much space either – so keep the guest list select. Encouraging each flatmate to invite five (carefully-chosen) friends will ensure things are select, and will bring a nice blend of new people to the mix. And for goodness’ sake – just invite them all via text message/private Whatsapp group.
2. Tell your neighbours
You’re all very sensible, so we’re sure you’re not planning on this becoming a full force rave that goes on until 6am. However, even if we’re talking a few drinks, nibbles and some gentle tunes, you should probs still tell your neighbours. Especially if you’re in an upstairs flat, and there’s a chance that people will turn up wearing heels…
Better yet, why not invite your neighbours to pop in for a drink? This will be a good way to break the ice and means you can chill out a bit more about the volume level you've got the speakers on.
3. Snacks are king
Who doesn’t love snacks?! A strong crisp selection can be the thing that makes or breaks your party, trust us. Pair this with a couple of those throw-in-the-oven packs from Sainsbury’s (fully recommend both the tempura prawns & mozzarella stars) and a wheel of dips, and you’re golden. It’ll stop people from getting too wasted, and make you seem all adulty and organised.
And while you’re at it, don’t forget to stock up on soft drinks. Nobody wants to deal with an emergency tonic situation when they’re halfway through the night.
------
4. Playlist in advance
We’ve all been in that stressful situation – you’ve put on the latest Drake (read: Taylor Swift) album, it's played right through and things have come to an abrupt, and painfully silent end. People scrabble and shout to offer their assistance: “What about Miley Cyrus?” says one of the guests. You start to sweat.
Sorry to be brutal, but it’s ALL YOUR FAULT. If only you could rewind time and create a playlist in advance, right? It’s not like you can do that for free or anything on Spotify. Or not like you can even use one of their pre-made playlists, right?!
...you know what to do.
5. Have a Plan B
This refers to that point of the night where things have trundled along very smoothly, but suddenly someone’s peaked and wants a wild one. Some members of the group may well be reluctant, or may even want everyone out so they can get in their onesie, have a hoover about, and go to sleep.
This is where a Plan B is VITAL. Have a couple of nearby locations in mind that you can head to if you want to carry the night on. This avoids arguments between flatmates, pissing your neighbours off even more, and depriving one of your mates of the crazy night out they’ve been craving all week. Everyone’s a winner.
And the last thing? BIN BAGS. For the love of god, just make sure you have enough.
Now we have your attention… we’d like to say a little thank you for reading this article and following SpareRoom.
We also say a BIG thank you every month to one lucky user – with our Live Rent Free competition, where we pay one winner’s monthly rent, every single month. Fancy it? It’s FREE to enter, and you can enter every single month. What are you waiting for? Click here and cross everything…