Classy Holiday Party on a Budget + Holiday Mocktail Recipe

This post was originally sponsored by Schweppes® in 2017. It has been updated in November 2019. All thoughts and opinions are my own. 
I felt the first hint of an autumn breeze last week, so my holiday fever has officially kicked into high gear. I’ve spent the last few days researching the best Christmas cookie recipes, drafting my holiday shopping lists, and of course, planning our first holiday party in our new home. My husband and I just purchased our first home this summer, and we’ve been dying to have our entire circle of family and family and friends over to celebrate. With the holiday season just around the corner, I’m thinking a classy holiday party will be the perfect way to show our loved ones our new home and have a ton of fun in the process.

While I’m excited to plan an amazing party filled with festive decor, indulgent food, and fun entertainment, I’m also determined to not go crazy with the budget for the event. After all, the costs of a new home, new baby, quarterly taxes, and the usual holiday expenses add up quickly! Thankfully, I have a few party-planning tricks up my sleeve that I believe will help me plan an elegant event without breaking the bank. Keep reading to see my top tips for throwing a classy holiday party on a budget and my favorite holiday mocktail recipe (that’s also perfect for nursing moms) made with Schweppes® Ginger Ale.

Add A Few Festive Statement Pieces to Your Decor

While I love all holiday decorations, it’s easy to go overboard with decor. Instead of busting out every single Christmas decoration that you own, pick a theme in advance and pick up a few statement pieces that match the theme. By choosing a few “wow” pieces that match your theme, you’ll still pack plenty of cheer into your party, but you’ll avoid having an over-the-top event.

For our holiday party, I’m choosing a white, silver, and red theme, and I’m aiming to create an environment that’s classy but still cozy. My goal is to add one or two statement pieces per room to add a festive mood without going too far with the decor. For example, I updated our dining room for the holidays by adding a snow-covered centerpiece with red berry accents to the table. With this one simple statement piece, our white and silver china and basic champagne flutes are elevated to the perfect level of holiday cheer. By purchasing this one affordable statement piece, we transformed a whole room.

You can do the same thing with every room in your home. Some holiday statement pieces I’d recommend are a fabulous wreath for your door, floral arrangements for the center of each table, holiday garlands for your staircase, and fabulous ornaments if you have a Christmas tree. These small touches of holiday cheer will transform your home without costing too much money.

Choose Quality Over Quality

You don’t need to spend a lot of money in every category to host a great party. If you spend time and money perfecting a few key factors for your event, your guests won’t even notice the areas that you skimped on. As I mentioned earlier, even a few home decor statement pieces are enough to create a festive mood if you choose the right pieces. The same theme holds true for the other areas of your party.

If you’re worried about the cost of food, cut down the amount of food you plan on offering but increase the quality. Your guests will appreciate two or three stellar appetizers or desserts more than a so-so six-course dinner. Similarly, your guests will enjoy one entertaining game or performer more than an evening overloaded with hum-drum activities. No matter what you choose for your party, always opt for a quantity over quality.

Create A Signature Drink

One of the most expensive parts of any party is the costs of drinks. Instead of offering a full bar at your event, consider creating a signature drink recipe. I particularly love creating a signature drink that can be a mocktail or a cocktail depending on your guest’s preference. There’s always bound to be a few guests who choose not to drink at your event (including pregnant or breastfeeding moms like myself), so it’s nice to offer them a beverage that’s still festive and fun! At our holiday party, we’ll be serving our signature drink, a pomegranate ginger fizz, along with water, soda, and a few types of alcohol that our guests can use to turn our signature mocktail into a cocktail if they choose to do so.

In addition to simplifying your party prep, having a signature drink at your event will lower your drink costs as well. You can buy bulk quantities of the ingredients required or purposely choose ingredients that are on sale or particularly budget-friendly. If you’re looking for a drink idea for your party, consider making this delicious pomegranate ginger fizz. It’s an elegant holiday mocktail recipe that’s delicious and easy on the wallet. It’s beautiful enough for a classy holiday party, and you can find all of the ingredients required at your local Walmart. 

Delicious Cranberry Mocktail Recipe to Impress Your Guests

This holiday mocktail recipe starts with a base of one of my favorite things in the world – Schweppes Ginger Ale. The fizzy ginger soda combines perfectly with tart pomegranate juice and flavorful cranberry raspberry juice to create a holiday beverage that’s fruity and festive. To prep this drink for your party, head to the soda aisle at your local Walmart and pick up a few 2 liters of Schweppes Ginger Ale along with a few bottles of pomegranate juice and cranberry raspberry juice.

I always recommend Schweppes Ginger Ale in particular because it provides a sweet and fizzy base for our mocktail along with the perfect amount of zesty ginger flavor. Plus, I love that it’s incredibly budget-friendly at Walmart. After you purchase $10 or more on Schweppes Ginger Ale at Walmart, be sure to upload your receipt to schweppesholidayga.com from November 15th to December 22nd to receive a free festive Schweppes scarf.

Pomegranate Ginger Fizz Holiday Mocktail Recipe

1 part pomegranate juice
1 part cranberry raspberry juice
3 parts Schweppe’s Ginger Ale (or to taste)
Fresh cranberries for garnish

I like to pre-mix the pomegranate and cranberry raspberry juice in a pitcher before the party begins and leave a few 2-liter bottles of Schweppes Ginger Ale and a small bowl of fresh cranberries nearby to speed up the drink-making process once the party begins. You could definitely pre-mix all of the ingredients to expedite the process even further, but I prefer adding the Schweppes Ginger Ale as each drink is served to ensure maximum fizziness. Be sure to add a few fresh cranberries to each glass for a decorative finish.

This holiday mocktail recipe is elegant and extremely delicious, and I guarantee that your guests will be asking for refills all night long! While this beverage is tasty enough to serve out of a pitcher or drink dispenser, I love the effect of serving it in a champagne flute. I picked up an affordable set of champagne flutes at Walmart, and they make my pomegranate ginger fizz look extra fancy.

Re-Purpose Items You Already Own

Don’t feel pressured to buy all new decor for your holiday party. You probably have at least half of what you’ll need for your event hiding in the closets of your home. Once you’ve determined your party’s theme, search through your holiday decor collection to see if there are any items from previous years that could work. The snow-topped centerpiece of my dining table is actually a leftover garland that was intended to be used on our staircase. The floral centerpieces I looked at in the store were at least twice as expensive, but this garland looks just as a good for a fraction of the cost.

Similarly, while I was tempted to run out and buy holiday-themed fine china, I realized it just wasn’t a good use of our party budget. I pulled out two sets of china that I inherited from my grandmothers and created a mix-and-match white and silver place setting that I absolutely love. Before you run out and spend money, look at what you already own through a creative lens. You might be able to repurpose items for your party’s theme, and you can use the money you save to splurge on another part of the event. 

Focus On The Mood You Create

At the end of the day, your guests aren’t going to notice every detail of your party, but they will remember how they felt in your home. Above all else, focus on creating a warm and inviting mood for your party. When your guests feel welcomed and appreciated, they are much more likely to relax and have a great time at your party. And after all, the main goal of any event should be good conservation, good vibes, and happy guests!

I hope that these easy party-planning tips will help you plan a classy holiday party on a budget. Be sure to head to Walmart for all of your holiday party needs and don’t forget to pick up a bottle or two of Schweppes Ginger Ale while you’re there. Even if you don’t plan on making my pomegranate ginger fizz holiday mocktail recipe, ginger ale is always a hit at parties! Get even more ideas on creative ways to serve it by visiting http://www.schweppesholidaysips.com.

What are your holiday party plans this year? What’s your signature party drink?