Budget for Your Next Dinner Party

Whenever I am planning a Dinner Party, after I have made a plan , I like to put together my budget. This is really useful for several reasons;

1. The budget helps to keep control over your spending for the party
2. It helps with organization of tasks and vendors
3. Gives a clear picture of what to expect so that there aren’t any surprises

In the coming months we will be into the holidays and planning and budgeting for special occasions is going to be crucial to creating that perfect Dinner Party experience. It’s never to early to start.

Budget Categories for A Dinner Party

I like to break my budget up into categories and then itemize the pieces in each category. For example;

• Table Decor
  • tablecloths
  • napkins
  • centerpieces
• Menu/food costs
  • appetizer
  • main course
  • dessert
  • wine
• Rentals

Of course depending on what kind of dinner party you are having wether it be for Thanksgiving, Christmas, or another special occasion, you can always add-on the appropriate line items.

Set An Overall Budget

Start by setting an overall budget. This will help you to control costs. Once we have set the budget we can go through the different line items and figure out how we are going to split the funds between the items in our budget. Setting an overall budget right off the bat, is the best thing to do (especially if you are a baller on a budget like me!) because it will force you to set parameters and decide what things are worth spending the majority of the budgeted monies on.

Itemize the Budget

Go back to the Dinner Party plan, and use it to create a list of items for each category. This will assist with creating a shopping list. Break your list down and be as specific as you can, to be sure you don’t forget anything. You want to be sure not only to record the item you need but also the quantity of what you will need. Now I have an extremely bad habit of buying extra of everything “Just incase” , so if you are the cautious type and think that you could probably do with a little bit more of this or that, now is the time to add it!

Shop Around

Once you have itemized your lists, you can start collecting prices for all the items you will need. I like to shop around for the best prices and deals. During the lead up to the holidays there are always a ton of deals and special prices on home decor and groceries as well. Pay attention to all of your social networks and local stores for items that will go on sale or on special, that are none perishable and start ticking things off of the list.

Stick to the Budget!!!

There is absolutely no point in creating a budget if you have no intention of sticking to it. No Point!  Here are some tips for sticking to the budget that I find really useful;

1. Start early – rushing around and doing things last-minute is the fastest way to lose sight of the budget.
2. Take your list with you when you shop – if you leave it home you will forget something or buy something that is not on the list causing you to go over your budget.
3. If the plan changes so must the budget – if for some reason you decide on a different menu or adding a couple more people to the party these things have be accounted for in the budget.

If you can stick to these simple tips,  sticking to the budget will be a breeze!!

FREE PRINTABLE!!!

Here is a downloadable  spreadsheet I created and use to organize my dinner party budgets. Feel free to use it to organize yours. You can manipulate the headings and items in each category to suit your needs. The formulas are already in. Let’s get started!