5 Steps for Throwing a Killer Birthday Party on the Cheap

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I recently had my milestone 40^th birthday! My wife loves to throw a party, so she was asking me for weeks how I wanted to celebrate.

I’m not usually one for making a big deal out of birthdays, but this one felt like it deserved some recognition. I wanted to have a great time, but I didn’t want the costs to get out of hand. In my mind, the most important thing was to get my closest friends and family together to share in my milestone.

My wife and I worked up the following plan to maximize our fun — but minimize our costs.

1. Take advantage of used decorations

I’d purchased some specialty decorations for my wife’s 40^th birthday party last summer. After the party, I carefully tucked them away to use again for my party. We purchased a few additional decorations, but the cost was very minimal. Once my party was over, we again carefully packed away the decorations; we’ll offer them to some of our friends that will hit the same milestone in 2014.

2. Buy some generic birthday decorations

Retailers jack up the price of any decoration that relates to a specific birthday. Some of our decorations specifically mentioned that it was for a 40^th birthday, and some just generically said “Happy Birthday.” The latter were much cheaper.

3. Start the party later

I love to cook, grill, and smoke meats, so I’m always tempted to invite people over for a full meal and make something awesome for my guests to eat. When you’re talking about 30-40 guests, however, the cost becomes way too high. We planned a start time of 7 pm so that we could provide light hors d’oeuvres and keep the food costs down.

4. Host a semi-BYOB

I know what most of my friends like to drink, but adding up the costs of getting the cocktail basics for a large group of people is expensive.

I couldn’t quite go completely BYOB for my 40^th birthday, so we indicated in the invitation that we would supply some beer, wine, and soft drinks — followed by a gentle statement that they were more than welcome to bring their favorite beverage if they were so inclined.

5. Use games for entertainment

It’s great to catch up and visit with my favorite people, but to me, the best parties have some sort of game play for entertainment. At my party, we played a few rounds of Catch Phrase, followed by Cards Against Humanity.

I had an out-of-this-world time at my birthday party. I caught up with old friends, shared laughs with everyone, and made memories that’ll last the rest of my life. I woke up the next morning ready to start the next decade of my life — and thanks to these five steps, neither my wallet nor I had a hangover.

Have you hosted an inexpensive party lately? What are your best tips?

This article originally appeared on MoneyNing.com. Let us know what you think (or read what others thought) here.

Related posts:

1. 6 Tips for Throwing a Holiday Party for Less


2. 4 Affordable (And Awesome) Gifts for Kids’ Birthday Parties


3. 5 Tips for Holding a Frugal Barbecue

For more info: 5 Steps for Throwing a Killer Birthday Party on the Cheap

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5 Steps for Throwing a Killer Birthday Party on the Cheap

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Friday FishwrapThe Right Way To Make Wine-—No Thanks

Friday FishwrapThe Right Way To Make Wine-—No Thanks

Friday FishwrapThe Right Way To Make Wine-—No ThanksNov 17th, 2013 · 0 CommentFriday FishwrapThe Right Way To Make Wine-—No Thanks via Connoisseurs’ Guide to California Wine:Tags:californian wineShare this post:Related Posts The Wine Organizing Principle: First Varietal, Then Terroir 11/6/2013 · 0 Comment Wednesday WarblingsDo The Many Personalities of Syrah Confuse The Issue? 10/31/2013 · 0 Comment Thursday ThornsThere Was A Time When We Drank Wine Because We Liked It 10/14/2013 · 0 Comment

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Friday FishwrapThe Right Way To Make Wine-—No Thanks

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Zoetic Wines by Kim Vance

Zoetic Wines by Kim Vance via Traveling Wine Chick:Zoetic WinesAfter I had been working in the financial industry in Houston, Texas for over 15 years, I realized something was missing. My husband and I had traveled to California’s wine country countless times and we fell in love with the beautiful rolling vineyards, glorious wineries, and fantastic wines, as many people do. But during one trip in January 2008, while meeting with a winemaker and tasting through his wines, I had expressed how excited I was to learn more about the process. He made a suggestion that I try to find a position on a harvest crew to really experience winemaking. Thinking this would never be possible, I dismissed the comment but started pondering the possibilities before we even …

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Zoetic Wines by Kim Vance

via Traveling Wine Chick:

Zoetic Wines

After I had been working in the financial industry in Houston, Texas for over 15 years, I realized something was missing. My husband and I had traveled to California’s wine country countless times and we fell in love with the beautiful rolling vineyards, glorious wineries, and fantastic wines, as many people do. But during one trip in January 2008, while meeting with a winemaker and tasting through his wines, I had expressed how excited I was to learn more about the process. He made a suggestion that I try to find a position on a harvest crew to really experience winemaking. Thinking this would never be possible, I dismissed the comment but started pondering the possibilities before we even left the parking lot! Upon returning home to Houston, I started making phone calls. (Mind you it was January and most winemakers are just getting over the long days and stressful months of the previous harvest and do not really want to think about the next harvest just yet.) Regardless, I was diligent in my pursuit to find an intern position and it didn’t take long for that far-off suggestion to become reality. Fewer than eight months later, I was back in California working as a harvest intern for a boutique winery in San Francisco.

Kim Vance processing grapes

The night before my first day on the job, I was asked to ride along on a trip from San Francisco up to the Russian River Valley to pick up our first fruit of the season. I arrived at the winery at 4:30 a.m. and we arrived at the vineyard just as the pick had ended. We loaded up the bins of fruit and returned to the winery to begin processing it. The work was hard and dirty, much different than my desk job back in Houston, but I loved every minute of it! I didn’t return to my home-away-from-home until almost midnight after that first day on the job. I was completely covered with sticky grape juice from head to toe. I remember thinking at that very moment, as I began to clean up so I could crawl into bed, that this was an amazing day and something I wanted to do again and again!

Kim and David Vance

I was enamored by the entire process of that first harvest internship and returned to work as a harvest intern in both 2009 and 2010 in the Russian River and Napa Valleys to work under different winemakers to increase my knowledge and experience. Between harvests, I continued to increase my knowledge by attending night school and assisting in wine tastings and educational classes. Just days after the 2010 harvest, my husband David and I packed up our belongings and made the move from Texas to California to allow me to pursue the dream of producing my own wine, Zoetic Wines, whose name means of or relating to life: living, vital. The last few years have been some of the hardest and most challenging, but I cherish the opportunity to pursue this dream and make it a reality. It has always been my hope that the wine I produce brings joy to people’s lives just as it has brought to mine.

Editor’s Note: Kim and David are producing their wines at Dogpatch WineWorks in San Francisco, California. They currently offer a 2012 Russian River Pinot Noir. For more information about Zoetic Wines, please visit their website, their Facebook page, and their Twitter profile.

For more info: Zoetic Wines by Kim Vance

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Zoetic Wines by Kim Vance

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