What do you do when you want to host a party, but have under 1,000 square feet to do it? Bigos wants to make sure your apartment is your home, which means hosting friends and family for holidays, sporting events, and ‘just because’ parties. Here are some tips to help you best utilize your small space to throw a party people will remember.
Living in a small space, you are probably not going to want to toss up an open invite on your Facebook page and say “bring your friends!” Make sure you invite only the number of people that you know you could manage in your space. Keep in mind, it’s likely you will not have 100% of your guests attending, so inviting more people is not a guarantee of how many will attend, or show up at the same time. Encouraging your guests to RSVP with the number in their party is going to alleviate a lot of stress you may have while planning your gathering.
You don’t have to limit your kitchen and coffee table to the only useable surfaces. Side tables, TV stands, sturdy shelves, dressers, you name it! With limited surface space, you should utilize everything in your apartment for snacks, drinks, decor. Use table runners or serving trays to protect the surfaces of your tv stand or dresser, but that can open up space for people to set drinks, grab snacks, basically have anything within arms reach no matter where they are! Maybe DON’T use the bathroom counter for anything but lotion and soap. 🙂
Make your bedrooms and hallways places to hang out besides just the kitchen and living room! Your bed itself can seat multiple people to sit and chat in there, as long as you don’t mind. It’s always fun to give a tour to your guests, but going a step further and opening up all the spaces for party room could help fan out the party and make your place not seem so full!
When you can’t go wider, go higher! You can get pretty affordable tiered serving trays at places like Target, or your local dollar store. Stacking snacks, and even pre-poured drinks can add 3x the space you have for serving! There’s no need to take up half the table with your small bites when you can get three levels of deliciousness in one small area. You don’t even have to be as fancy as a chocolate or champagne tower, but if you do, stack at your own risk!
If you want to have party decorations, but lack the counter space, go ahead and get some that hang! That can clear up a lot of room on surfaces you should leave open for snack trays and coasters for drinks. Hanging up a string of lights can not only set a cool mood for the party but without overhead lights on it can keep your apartment cool with all those bodies. If you’re celebrating someone’s birthday, hang pictures of them on the walls as a funny decoration, or from the ceiling if you can reach!
Hang a string of lights, and play some nice soft music. Setting the mood for your party can hint at guests what kind of mood you want to have. Loud music and bright lights are maybe going to edge guests to be rowdier. Setting mood lighting, and playing chill music can set a chill mood across the party and keep things tame and fun.
In line with setting the proper mood for your party, make sure you follow noise ordinances, which is usually around 10:30 pm in an apartment building. Make sure you play music in rooms that don’t echo loudly. Set Bluetooth speakers in your hallways or bedrooms at low volume, to create a soft surround sound effect, without having to crank it loud from one room. Everyone will already be talking at once, and that can get loud quickly. Spreading out the party with the tips we’ve shared can help everyone hear each other, have meaningful conversations and have a great time.
Bigos Apartments in St. Paul wishes you a safe, fun, and happy summer. We want you to share your Bigos apartment with your friends, family, all your loved ones! Contact us anytime for tips, tricks, and apartment availability at info@tbigos.com. Cheers!
