Planning Your Thanksgiving Party on a Budget

Are you hosting a Thanksgiving party this year?  If so, how much do you intend to spend on your party?  Unfortunately, a large number of party hosts do not have as much money to spend on their party as they wish they had.  While this may make you want to change your mind, about hosting a Thanksgiving party, it doesn’t have to. There are a number of different ways that you can go about planning a memorable Thanksgiving party while on a budget.

One of the best ways to plan a Thanksgiving party on a budget is to develop a plan for everything. You will want to plan what types of foods you would like to serve at your party, how many guests you would like to invite, and what forms of entertainment you would like to have on hand.  Making a detailed list of everything mentioned above is the best way to determine how much money you could expect to pay for everything that you want.  Now, it is important to remember that what you could expect to pay might not necessarily be what you could afford to pay; that is where the budgeting comes in.  

After you have created a list of what you need to purchase, including food and other party supplies, you will need to determine exactly how much money you have to spend on your Thanksgiving party.  If you notice a difference between what you want to spend and what you have to spend, you may find that you need to cut a few corners.  While it is nice to have the Thanksgiving party of your dreams, you will not want to go broke while doing so. If you eliminate a certain type of food or a number of guests, to cut down your costs, you may easily be able to add them back on, depending on how much money you save when shopping for all of your needed Thanksgiving party supplies.

If you want to save money, when purchasing the supplies needed for your Thanksgiving party, as you likely do, there are number of different steps that you can take to make that happen.  Perhaps, the most important step to take is buying your food whenever you see it on sale, especially if you need to have a large amount of food.  Whether your party includes snacks or a full fledge Thanksgiving dinner, you can save yourself a fairly large amount of money by purchasing your food or drinks while they are on sale.  Typically, in the weeks leading up to Thanksgiving, you will find that many grocery stores lower the prices on their most popular Thanksgiving foods and cooking supplies.  This may be the best time to get your shopping done.

Since a party really isn’t complete without decorations, you may wish to purchase party decorations for your home.  For the largest selection of Thanksgiving decorations, it is advised that you purchase your decorations as soon as they hit the store shelves.  Unfortunately, it seems as if many retail stores skip Thanksgiving and jump right to Christmas.  This means that many retail stores are limited on the number of Thanksgiving decorations they carry and when they are gone, they are often gone.  For the most affordable Thanksgiving decorations, you are advised to shop at discount stores, dollar stores, and department stores.  However, since there is a good chance that thousands of other shoppers are looking to get the same deals as you, it is important that you act fast, while you still have the chance.
Along the lines of Thanksgiving party decorations is party seating.  Whether you are hosting a formal Thanksgiving party, complete with a sit-down dinner, or just a casual party, there is a good chance that you may need extra chairs and tables. Your first impulse may be to buy them yourself, but you can save money by renting extra furniture from one of your local rental stores, particularly a party rental store.  You can also get extra tables and chairs, for free, by asking those that you know if they have any seating arrangements that you could borrow.  

The tips mentioned above are just a few of the many ways that you can plan a Thanksgiving party on a budget.  With the right amount of planning, it may be a well-kept secret that your party was not only easy to plan, but easy to afford.

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