Do we need an engagement party？Popping the question is a life-changing moment that certainly calls for a celebration. While many couples commemorate this milestone by calling all of their family and friends and spending a romantic evening alone, you also have the option of throwing a more organized bash immediately or down the line. An engagement party is one of the best ways to toast to this new chapter in your relationship and kick off the wedding festivities by gathering all of your loved ones to relish the exciting news with you. Not to mention, with a successful engagement party, you’ll give your inner circle the opportunity to meet (and bond with) one another in a more casual setting prior to the wedding, according to planner of Just Joy Events.
If you’re thinking about planning a fête to celebrate your engagement, you’re probably wondering where to start and how to make it a success. To help, our engagement party planning checklist below will help you plan an engagement party to remember.
Read on for everything to know about pulling off the perfect engagement party.
What Is an Engagement Party?
An engagement party is a celebration of a recently engaged couple that brings together friends and family to toast to their happiness, likely months before they walk down the aisle. Often an engagement party is thrown as a kick-off to the wedding season, giving your loved ones the opportunity to mix, mingle and get to know each other in a more relaxed setting. It's when you pop the champagne, let your aunts ogle over the ring, and let the "Oh my gosh, this is really happening!" feelings set in.
Are Engagement Parties Traditional?
While the tradition of an engagement party may have originated in its initial and unconventional form in Greece, engagement parties have been held worldwide for thousands of years. From Scotland to India to Africa, the idea of families and friends coming together to celebrate a happy couple starting their life together is a tale as old as time.
Traditionally, engagement parties were hosted by a bride's family to announce the engagement to their community. It was a more formal event that has both evolved and become more mainstream as couples are more integrated into each other's families before the wedding. Today, you're just as likely to get an invite to a casual afternoon at a brewery as you are to a cocktail party evening hosted by parents.
Who Throws the Engagement Party?
The bride's parents have traditionally been the ones to host the engagement party. That being said, anyone close to the couple can throw the event—even the couple themselves.
Who Pays for the Engagement Party?
Whoever hosts the engagement party is usually responsible for covering the costs. Historically, it’s been the bride’s parents. However, as celebrations for engagements have evolved, we notes that often sees both parents paying a portion of the total bill. Some couples even chip in. Typically, the main funds include the venue, food and drinks, flowers and decorations, and the photographer (if applicable), according to Just Joy events.
When Does an Engagement Party Take Place?
An engagement party is typically held in the first few months after the proposal. This gives guests enough notice to keep the day free and maintain everyone’s excitement. Not many people will have seen the ring, but you’ll still be on cloud nine, and everything will have a bit of a buzz to it.
Who Gets Invited to the Engagement Party?
As with all of your pre-wedding parties, anyone who makes the guest list for your engagement party must also be invited to the wedding. This is particularly the case if you or your parents are hosting the engagement party.
Can You Have More Than One Engagement Party?
Having more than one engagement party is quite common, especially if the couple is from different places or they live far from their hometown and want to have a party with non-locals, too. If your friends or a coworker wants to plan something informal in addition, you can invite a larger group across multiple functions without worrying about an etiquette faux pas.
Can You Combine Your Engagement Party With Another Celebration?
If you got engaged over the holidays or any other special time of the year, you have the option of combining your engagement party with another celebration. Just try to avoid hosting your event during a major holiday, like Thanksgiving, Christmas, or Valentine's Day, since many invited guests will have other plans or annual family traditions that they'll want to attend.
How to Plan an Engagement Party: Nine Top Tips
From the initial decisions to the final touches, here's a step-by-step guide to planning your engagement party.
1. Pick a Host
Traditionally, the hosts would be the bride’s family, but there’s no set rule on who hosts the engagement party, especially for same-sex couples. Most commonly the couple will throw the engagement party together with their parents. Address this question with them early on so you know what budget you have for your theme.
2. Set a Date
Typically, an engagement party occurs within three months of becoming engaged, but there's no reason to put undue pressure on yourself or others when choosing your date. After all, there are many calendars to bring into sync: your host, the venue, close friends and family who might need to travel, and of course, your own availability.
Finding and booking suitable suppliers may be time-consuming and somewhat stressful, so give yourselves time to sit back and enjoy the significance of your engagement.
3. Create a Guest List
As a rule, we’d say people will assume they’re invited to your wedding if they’re invited to the engagement celebrations, so start by drawing up a preliminary guest list for your wedding. The most important thing to remember is that this is about you and your partner and who you want to celebrate with.
On the other hand, if you’re planning an intimate family wedding or have a limited guest list because of the venue or destination, invite all the guests you want to the party and make it clear that this is your way to celebrate with them, as the wedding will be a much smaller affair.
4. Choose an Auckland Venue
Your venue is going to be very dependent on guest numbers and the atmosphere you’re trying to create. For a more formal party, hire a private room in your favourite restaurant for a meal. For something more informal, book some tables at a cocktail bar or pub where people can drop in and out. If you’re trying to keep costs down, a picnic in a local park or a barbecue in your garden or parents’ garden is a great idea.
"If you're looking to save money, minimum-spend venues are a good idea," We suggest . "People are more open to paying for their own drinks at an engagement party, so usually, you can get a private room in a venue with a bar, and guests can order what they like, meaning no, or a small venue hire fee for you."
5. Plan the Theme
Because you’re unlikely to know your wedding theme yet, it’s best to stick with something easy and non-restrictive for now. You both love to travel or met abroad? Do an adventure theme. You’re foodies? A slap-up brunch. Love glamour? Great Gatsby. Seasonal is great too. Having the party in summer = Pimm's on a roof terrace; in winter = mulled wine and lots of fairy lights at a cosy pub.
If you do know the style of wedding you'll be having, we suggest hosting an engagement party that contrasts with those plans: "It's a great idea to mix up the energies. So, for example, if you're having a gorgeous countryside wedding in mid-summer, have the engagement party in deep inner Auckland city, like a basement dive bar with great music and cocktails.
"Also, if you're having a wedding planner, why not ask them to help organise your engagement party, too? It's a great way to start building a relationship and get ideas flowing as a team."
Just Joy Events provides party decoration services in the Auckland area. Just like any other party, the engagement party requires setting a theme, and we will communicate with you before the event to determine the theme of the event decoration. When setting the theme, we will consider the current trend and color scheme of party to develop a plan that is impresived by guests. We will connect the content of all party activities to make the whole party more unforgettable and joyful. Any ideal party theme is the key to the success of the entire event.
Our engagement party package is a very popular party decoration theme. If you want to learn more about these package, please contact our team members info@justjoyevents.co.nz
6. Decide on the Details and Entertainment
With your venue and theme in mind, think about what else you'll need to organise to pull off the style of celebration you want. So, engagement party decorations, whether this be simple banners and balloons or specialist lighting and flower arrangements.
If you’re serving drinks, it's a wise idea to provide food, too - nothing fancy necessarily, but something to soak up the booze. Decide if you'll be taking care of the food yourself, calling in professional caterers or having a cool engagement cake made for the occasion.
Finally, are you planning to provide entertainment? For laid-back celebrations, this could be light-hearted garden games or a solo acoustic singer. Alternatively, for a large-scale evening party, you might consider a DJ or live band.
7. Send Out Invites
Once you've decided on your party date, get the invites out as soon as possible. Paper invitations are beautiful, but you can also think about e-vites as well.
Another option is to throw a secret engagement party. Tell your family and friends (but not the close ones you should have told in person) that it’s just a Christmas party, casual summer get-together, or even a birthday party, and then drop the bombshell!
8. Find Yourself an Outfit
The thought of what to wear to an engagement party can send some couples into a spin, but your attire for this occasion doesn't need to send you into a meltdown. What matters most is that you feel good in what you pick. The formality of your outfit will likely depend on your theme and setting. So, if it's a fancy evening do you might want a glamorous engagement party dress, whereas if it's a daytime affair, a relaxed jumpsuit or skirt and top combo will better suit the occasion. Lots of brides choose to wear white for the engagement party, too, but naturally, a more low-key outfit than the final wedding day attire.
A similar approach can be taken when deciding what to wear to an engagement party as a male. Grooms-to-be may choose a suit or relaxed shirt and trousers or jeans combo, but ultimately, it won't be in quite the same league as the wedding day attire. If you’re a same-sex couple, one might want to be in black and one in white, or you might choose complementary outfits. Ultimately, dress for what feels right for the party.
9. Capture Memories
Given that it's one of the few occasions you'll have your very favourite people together all in one place, it's important to document the occasion. You don't necessarily have to hire a professional photographer if the budget doesn't stretch; instead, you could create a central point at your venue for your guests to have photos taken with the happy couple, friends and family. Alternatively, you could hire a photo booth for the occasion or, again, if the budget is more modest, create your own photo booth using a backdrop and providing some fun-filled props and a Polaroid camera.
Do:
Send out your engagement party invites as early as possible to give people plenty of time to set aside the date
Make sure the date is okay with key people. There’s nothing worse than booking a venue to then finding out your key wedding party guests are busy
Make a note of any engagement gifts you get as you open them, so you can remember who gave you what when you come to write thank you cards
Think about the music. Whether it’s a band or a Spotify playlist, make sure the songs you pick are likely to keep the dance floor packed all night. We all know that’s the true sign of a good party
Don’t:
Feel like you have to put on all the food or drinks. A little bit of money behind the bar for nibbles and your first glass is great, but from our experience, people come expecting to pay for plenty themselves
Forget to take plenty of snaps. Your engagement party is a really monumental occasion, so having those memories documented will be precious in years to come. If you’re likely to forget, get one of your wedding party or friends to be in charge of snapping away all night. Alternatively, hire a photographer for the engagement party, too - it's a great way to get to know your photographer
Expect to spend any time with your partner! The evening will go so quickly, and with so many people there, it’ll be hard to catch a minute where it’s just the two of you. If possible, try and sneak off, even if it’s only for 10 minutes, for a quick moment of quiet
All-in-all, planning an engagement party is a lot of fun for you and your partner, and will help build anticipation for your upcoming nuptials! The most important thing is to make sure you and your new partner are happy, so we hope these suggestions make the process a little simpler so you can relax and bask in that soon-to-be-wed glow.
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