How to Plan an Engagement Party

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Ahh! It still doesn’t feel real. We got engaged this past August, which was the sweetest, most romantic day of my life. Maybe I’m biased here, but it really was spectacular, full of adventure, and just, so us!

We got engaged in Alaska, when we came home, and Tom almost immediately left on a work trip. We knew we wanted to have an engagement party, but of course will need to wait until he gets home. Which gives me a couple months to plan an engagement party!

Pick out Your Invitations

The first step to plan an engagement party is the invitations! I had a wonderful time designing our engagement party invitations on Basic Invite. This was my first time ordering from Basic Invite and I cannot say enough good things. They turned out beautiful. I’m seriously going to frame one! I’ve used numerous other big name sites, and I’m incredibly impressed with the quality of Basic Invite. As a photography junkie, true color is a big thing for me. There is nothing more upsetting than ordering cards, full of excitement and anticipation, but then the disappointment when they arrive and the colors all wrong. Last Christmas I actually wrote an apology to our photographer because the colors on the Christmas cards I ordered were awful, and nothing like the lovely photos she took. The ones from Basic Invite are beautiful and the colors are true.

I also loved that you could really make the invitations your own. Unlike other invitation sites, you have full control over the design. Placement of the wording doesn’t really work with your picture? Move it! Yes! You can move it! Want a different font? Change it! Not sure about the wording color choice? Try a different color, including foil options! And, you see your edits instantly so you know exactly what you’re ordering. I honestly don’t think I’ll be ordering cards from anywhere else. That’s how happy I am with our cards. And, with so many wedding invitation options, I’m ordering our Save The Dates from Basic Invite as well!

Choose a Menu

We love to cook, so we are doing all our own cooking for our engagement party. But, if you have a particularly large party, or don’t love to cook, then hire it out! Life is too short to do something that causes you added stress, especially when it’s suppose to be a party! Since Tom has been rocking the keto lifestyle, we are having low carb options, as well as vegetarian, and regular options. Tom’s career in the Navy means that we don’t always have total control over our schedule. After we got engaged, a few weeks passed, and Tom left for training, and won’t be back until the holidays. So, our engagement party is during the holidays, which we know is a very busy time for people. So, we decided to do heavy appetizers, and having people come and go as their schedules allow.

Some opinions we are looking at are:
Cranberry Goat Cheese Dip (I seriously make this every holiday season, and it’s a big hit every time!)
Stuffed Mini Peppers
Prosciutto & Rosemary Baked Apples
Peach Caprese Salad
Smoked Salmon
Baked Brie

Don’t Forget the Drinks

We will be creating a hot cocoa bar. It goes with the season, since we are doing our engagement party over the holidays. We thought it would be a fun way to treat our guests, both under age and adults with some boozy additions. I love creating a make your own X bar for parties. I did a build your own mimosa bar for my sister’s bridal shower, which was a big hit! If you’re engagement party is in the summer, you could also do a fancy lemonade bar. For our hot cocoa bar I’m thinking a few types of base, classic, Mexican and dark chocolate hot cocoa. Then fun toppings, like, artisan marshmallows, peppermint bits, whipped cream, caramel sauce and sprinkles. Then of course, the good part, the boozy additions. Baileys, spiced rum, peppermint schnapps, and whiskey oh my!

Pick your Location

Since we are hosting our own engagement party, and we are balling on a budget, we will be doing the party at our abode. One of the reasons we bought our home was the open layout, which is perfect for entertaining. We both love to entertain, so this was a must on our housing list. But, if you need a different venue, be sure to book one as soon as you settle on a date. Anything goes when you plan an engagement party, so this could be at a home, restaurant, backyard, park, banquet room, whatever fits the feel and formality of your party best.

Decor and Crafts

No party would be complete without decor and crafts! Luckily for us, our engagement party is over the holidays, so the house will be decorated for the season. However, I made a fun photo booth backdrop, that we may also use at our wedding. I’ll do an entire post on how to, since it has turned out so cute, and was a very easy addition that we will definitely be creating again in the future.

And there you have it! Engagement party planned!