5 Last-minute Details for the Perfect New Year’s Celebration

Whether you’ve planned an elaborate event or a casual get-together for New Year’s Eve or New Year’s Day, there are always a few added touches that could make your gathering as perfect as possible. Here are five simple yet important preparations you can incorporate into your home event without busting a sweat.

Create a Sober-Station

Set up a station on a small table near your entryway or exiting doors for guests who need to sober up before leaving your home. You will need a carafe of fresh, hot coffee, a carafe of hot water for tea or hot chocolate, hot chocolate packets, and tea bags. You can keep packets of creamer, sugar and sugar substitute in a small container on the station as well as stirrers. A plate of cookies and brownies will help absorb some of the alcohol in their system. Another great thing about the sober-station is that guests can also use the hot liquid to warm up before going out into the cold air. You can also add a few bottles of water for the road. The total cost is entirely up to you, but most items – including to-go cups for hot drinks – can be found at your local Target or party supplies store.

Load up Your Uber or Lyft Credits

Load up your Uber or Lyft credits to offer rides home for guests who have had too much to drink. This is a great option even if you are at someone else’s home. Promote drinking responsibly and safety, especially if there is no designated driver. One other option is to share your Free Ride code with guests who have never used Uber or Lyft, one or both offers discounts and other perks that are returned to you as a free ride later.

Provide Snow or Rain Accessories

Pull together as many umbrellas as you can find, and put them near the door for guests who are leaving while it is raining. (You can also offer to escort them to their cars while holding an umbrella over their heads. Your golf umbrella is perfect for this courtesy.) If it is snowing or has begun to snow during your party, keep an extra snow brush, small shovel and a pair of warm gloves nearby to assist in wiping off car windshields and windows. You can also keep your de-icer for locks nearby too. One last thing: Keep the number of a 24-hour tow or auto assistance company nearby.

Arrange Seating and Standing Areas

This could be a bit tricky, but you want to make sure you have areas where people can stand and congregate and areas where people can sit for more intimate and quiet conversations. The standing areas can be close to a waist-high counter to set drinks and plates on. They should not interfere with the flow of people traffic. Sitting areas should be on the edges of a room or even in another room like the kitchen or den.

A Wise Clean Sweep

Here are a few things to do for the sake of wisdom:

1. Lock your valuables away. Put them in your home safe. Remove them from plain sight and that would include purses and wallets. Keep your identification within reach.

2. Remove prescription medications from your bathroom cabinets, kitchen cabinets and counters. Tell a trustworthy person where they are in the event of a health crisis, but remove them.

3. Keep unopened boxes of over-the-counter meds for headaches and pain in plain sight.

4. Keep a first aid kit within reach.

5. Move your daily foods to the back of refrigerator shelves and place your party foods to the front for quick access.

Short of having to shop for anything listed above, these activities should take no longer than an hour to accomplish.

One final thing: Prepare a toast to your guests to be spoken at midnight or before beginning festivities on January 1.

Now, you are ready to bring in 2020.

“May you live as long as you want and never want as long as you live!”

Happy New Year!

Written by Anthony Rodell