Entertaining for a Small Space

With the economy in the wonderful state that it’s in, why spend your hard earned money at overcrowded bars serving overpriced drinks?

With the these simple tricks you can turn your apartment into the new trendy hot spot and create an atmosphere that your friends will enjoy, all while spending half the price it would cost for a night on the town!

1•BYOB
As the host, tell guests on your e-vite that you’ll supply the appetizers, mixers, and beer, but ask everyone to bring a bottle of their favorite wine or liquor to share. Faster than you can say “kiddie cocktail” you’ll have your own stocked bar for guests to raid.

2•Pass Yourself off as a Top Chef with Passed Apps
Look like the next Wolfgang Puck even if the most complicated dish you’ve ever made is cereal. Visit www.fixmyrecipe.com to find hundreds of videos of Chef Billy Parise preparing quick & easy dishes step-by-step. Just bring your laptop into the kitchen and take a crack at it; you will surprise yourself and your guests with your culinary expertise!

3•Serving Ware for Standing Room Only
Ever find yourself juggling your drink in one hand while trying to eat in the other, hoping not to spill everywhere? Pottery Barn has a nifty solution, Mingling Plates. With a slot on the side to fit any size stemware you can sample all of the appetizers without putting your precious drink down. Never go back to the circus balancing act again!

4•Music is a Must
Whether your style is bass-booming concert level, or soft, seductive background tunes, you don’t need a mix-filled iPod to set the mood; www.pandora.com will change any music lovers’ life. Plug in a genre, favorite artist or song and it will provide a “station” with songs of similar attributes. Just create a few great stations, plug some speakers into your laptop and you have your very own in house DJ… for free!

5•Extra Furniture
Bedrooms are typically used as a coat and purse collection center, so why not rearrange some furniture to create more useful space and seating elsewhere in the house? Pull out your end tables and chairs from the bedroom and place them throughout your apartment. Just a couple extra places for people to sit and put their drinks will make a big difference.