HAPPY NEW YEAR 2021! A Fun and Romantic New Year’s Eve at Home

Yay!! We can finally kick 2020 to the curb and welcome in a new year, one filled with hope and promise, joy, health and prosperity for everyone!! I am so ready to celebrate that! At our house, we’re ringing in the New Year at home with a romantic, private party for two. (And it’ll be a surprise, since SLF doesn’t know the details!)

Here’s the Party Plan:

Time:

9:00 pm to after Midnight!!

Dress Code:

Dressy!! I have a gorgeous green sequin skirt purchased months ago for a now-postponed wedding stashed in the back of my closet, waiting for its big reveal. (Ok, with my Covid-19 (pounds) I may have to pour myself into Spanx to wear it, but no matter). High heels, sparkly earrings, perfume, and I’m all set. I’ll leave it up to my man to decide on his outfit, but I know he’ll look great—he loves to dress up, too!

Music:

It’s got to be Frank (Sinatra), right?

Classy, romantic, retro…. Perfect for New Year’s Eve with cocktails and close dancing!

Entertainment:

Cocktails, Hors d’oeuvres, Dancing, Homemade Photo Booth

Game Tournament or Movie

Cocktails:

Cranberry Martinis!!

Menu:

Sophisticated Grazing

Midnight:

Champagne Toast and Giant Confetti Party Poppers while Watching the Midnight Ball Drop

Dessert: Cream Puffs with Chocolate Sauce and Decorated with 2021 Sparkle Wands

Party Details:

-Decide on your cocktails and grazing menu, then shop. If you have time and the inclination, you can do some elaborate appies. I’m worn out from Christmas cooking, so I want to do this “quick and dirty”! I’ll just put together a nice charcuterie board with a couple meats and cheeses, crackers, olives, salted Marcona almonds, fig jam, and grapes or sliced pears. Then I’ll spiff it up with one or two fancier items, like gougères (https://www.asweetsavorylife.com/post/goug%C3%A8res-served-with-champagne-a-perfectly-glamorous-hors-d-oeuvre), bacon-wrapped water chestnuts, or deviled eggs with caviar. (We don’t need a ton of food because it’s only just us two, and we’ll be eating a light dinner around 5:00 pm.)

Here’s some other ideas: oysters with mignonette sauce, marinated olives, stuffed mushrooms, bacon-wrapped scallops, caprese salad kabobs, blini with caviar. For recipes check out this website: https://saltandwind.com/slideshows/111-20-appetizers-recipe-cocktail-party.

I’m using Ina Garten’s Cranberry Martini recipe. This is pretty, delicious and strong! If you want to make it, plan ahead, because you steep the cranberry mixture in vodka for a couple days. Before serving, strain, shake with ice in a cocktail shaker, and serve in martini glasses! Oh, I love it! https://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/ina-garten/cranberry-martinis-9564294

-Plan your entertainment: We’ll be enjoying our cocktails, hors d’oeuvres and dancing to the sound of Frank Sinatra. I’ve put together a playlist on my phone, blue-toothed to our home speakers.

One of my favorite things at a party is a photo booth! I’m setting one up using my iPhone and a tripod. I made some silly props like cardboard sunglasses, funny word bubbles, hats, lips and mustaches by downloading free online templates. Just print, then glue them onto heavy cardstock, cut out, add sticks and decorate with glitter. (There are tons of templates on Pinterest). I also made a big cardboard “photo frame”. You can make a balloon or wrapping paper background. Look around your house for props: giant sunglasses, beads, hats, feather boas--or if you’re short of time, just buy some props at your local party store! (I did that, too.)

If there’s only two of you (and for a romantic evening there should be only two!!), you’re a bit limited on games. We’re having a game tournament, playing Rummy 500, Yahzee and Bananagrams. Naturally, for the tournament winner there will be a great prize: like a 45-minute backrub or breakfast in bed.

There are lots of fun movies to watch on New Year’s Eve. Here’s a list of Oprah’s suggestions, which includes “When Harry Met Sally”, “A Lot Like Love” and “While You Were Sleeping” and “Bridget Jones’ Diary”. https://www.oprahmag.com/entertainment/tv-movies/g30143120/best-new-years-eve-movies/. If you decide on a movie, be sure to leave enough time to finish it before midnight!

-Get ready for Midnight: Purchase some party poppers or make your own giant ones. Here’s a cool website to show you how. (https://sugarandcloth.com/simple-jumbo-diy-confetti-poppers/).

Make sure you have a well-chilled bottle of bubbly and decide how you’ll watch the Ball Drop! There’s lot of options for that:

Dick Clark's New Year's Rockin' Eve with Ryan Seacrest 2021: (ABC at 8 pm, EY, or on ABC Live); Lucy Hale, Billy Porter and Ciara co-host with various musical performances.

New Year's Eve Live with Anderson Cooper and Andy Cohen: (CNN at 8 pm ET, or CNNgo); Christina Aguilera, 50 Cent, Shania Twain and Keith Urban perform.

NBC's New Year's Eve 2021: (NBC from 10-11 pm. 11:30pm-12:30 am ET on NBC and the NBC app); Carson Daly is hosting.

New Year's Eve with Steve Harvey: (8-10 pm and 11 pm – 12:30 am on FOX and FOX Now); Hosted by Steve Harvey

Hello 2021: Americas: (10:30 pm ET, YouTube): hosted by Juanpa Zurita and Storm Reid, with Dua Lipa, J Balvin, YG, Karol G and Kane Brown performing; other guests include Matthew McConaughey, Demi Lovato, RuPaul, Emma Chamberlain.

TBS “Go-Big Show” Presents Snoop Dogg’s Virtual New Year’s Eve: (11 pm ET on TBS); Snoop Dogg hosts with music by DJ Cassidy, DJ Battlecat and Fredwreck; other guests include Bert Kreischer, Rosario Dawson, Jennifer Nettles, wrestler Cody Rhodes.

-Toast the New Year!!

Finish the evening off with a decadent dessert decorated with fun 2021 sparkle wands. I’m making cream puffs, but you can do something super simple and delicious like affogato (hot coffee or espresso poured over ice-cream and topped with shaved chocolate and nuts—here’s a recipe from The Food Network: https://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/food-network-kitchen/affogato-recipe-2106285).

Day of the Party Prep:

-Set up for your party. Decorate your dining table with a festive tablecloth and sparkly centerpiece; set out martini glasses and cocktail napkins. Chill the champagne in the refrigerator; put out the champagne bucket and glasses. Batch the cocktails and assemble your hors d’oeuvres. Set up the photo booth and games or television.

Pre-Game: No, I don’t mean with alcohol, just yet! Instead, start with an early, light dinner—maybe soup and salad, to leave room for the luxurious goodies to come later in the evening.

-Get dressed up! You can go all out here—high heels, over-the-top earrings, false eyelashes and perfume! It won’t be a waste since you’ll be documenting your efforts in the photo booth! LOL!

-Start the Party: My date will be picking me up at our house; we’ll drive around the block a couple times until we arrive at our party venue (home)!

Notes:

-Add captions or text right onto your photo booth pictures using your Mac. This link shows you how simple it is to do! (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IbN03q7sAFw)

-Here’s some other cocktail ideas:

https://www.delish.com/holiday-recipes/new-years/g2571/new-years-eve-drinks-recipes/?slide=10