Events at Your Home

May 23

So You Decided to Host an Event at Your House... Bless Your Heart

It all starts so innocently.

"Let’s just host it at our place!" you say with the confidence of someone who clearly forgot what their baseboards look like up close. Suddenly, your charming little get-together has snowballed into a full-blown episode of HGTV: Event Edition, featuring a cast of panicked homeowners.

Before doing anything, ask yourself:

How large is the family home and backyard? Will it fit the amount of guests I’m inviting?

For a wedding, will the ceremony and reception be at the same location?
Will the house accommodate required guest seating?
Who will be preparing the house before the event?
Will we be renting tables and chairs?
Will we need to get any permission from the local homeowners association for the music or noise levels?
Where will the food be served?

Let’s walk through the journey together, shall we?

1. The Illusion of Simplicity

It begins with the idea: "It’ll be cheaper!"
And technically yes, it could be...but probably not. Consider these:

Renting 50 chairs that look exactly like the Pinterest photo
Buying a cooler the size of a Subaru
Hiring an emergency landscaping crew because your backyard currently looks like a tumbleweed graveyard

2. The Panic Renovation Phase

There’s something about inviting people over that triggers a primal need to completely remodel your home.

You will find yourself:

Painting walls that no one will even see
Power-washing the sidewalk like the Queen of England is attending
Staring at your guest bathroom at 2 a.m. whispering, “You’re not good enough.”

Congratulations, your event now has a renovation budget larger than the actual wedding.

3. The "Where Will Everyone Park?" Crisis

Your street holds approximately three cars and a toddler’s tricycle. You now have 50 guests and only one neighbor who likes you.

4. The Weather Betrayal

You checked the forecast. You triple-checked the forecast.
Now it’s raining sideways and your “intimate backyard dinner” has turned into a game of musical chairs and soggy sliders.

There’s a pop-up tent in the lawn that looks like it was installed by a team of raccoons, and someone’s Aunt Linda is now aggressively drying folding chairs with paper towels. Godspeed.

5. The Event Actually Happens

Miraculously, people show up. They laugh. They mingle. Your dog only steals two appetizers.
For a moment, it’s perfect. You’re sipping something bubbly out of a mason jar and thinking, “We pulled it off!”

And then a child drops a meatball into the AC vent.

6. The Aftermath

People leave. You finally sit down.
Your feet are throbbing. Your trash cans are now sentient. Someone left behind a crockpot, a single sock, and—somehow—a hula hoop.

Would you do it again?

Of course not.

…

Unless it’s really special.

(And you finally replace that guest bathroom sink.)

You Think You Don’t Need These, but I Promise You Do:

If your event is outdoors, you need a [bigger than you think] tent.
Is it an outdoor summer event? You probably need fans and bug spray
Portable toilets, I promise you don’t want 50+ guests clogging up yours.
Generators. The odds of something blowing a fuse is HIGH high. Don’t stop the party.
Umbrellas on hand, just in case.
More water bottles or a water station. Like so much more than you already bought.
A wait staff, your guests shouldn’t be bussing tables.
BIG trash cans
Depending on the size of your event, a bartender, drinks get messy.

Moral of the Story:
Hosting an event at your home is like baking your own wedding cake. Technically possible. Emotionally reckless.
But at the end of the day, there’s something magical about welcoming people into your space—even if they do put a ring of queso on your coffee table.

Want help planning your next adorable-yet-chaotic home event? Call me. I’ve got spreadsheets, a backup wine stash, and a cousin with a bounce house. Let’s party.

Paula Ford