How to Have a Great New Years Eve Party on a Budget

There are many ways to have a great New Years Eve party that will not break your budget and will be remembered for something other than who wore the lampshade. The first thing to consider is your budget, how much you can afford to spend? Then determine what you would like to spend it on. If your budget is unlimited you don't have a problem but for most hosts this is not the case.

Food:
There are many options available for your budget in the food department. One of the easiest on you and your budget might be a carry in where each guest brings a dish, appetizer or dessert. This works well with close friends that all enjoy food preparations and are willing to work with you on what bring. You do not want four large containers of potato salad and one tray of carrots and celery.

You may consider a catering service or purchase deli trays from your local supermarket. Another option is skipping the food portion altogether by having a later starting time. If you choose this option it is still a good idea to have some snacks available, chips, dips and a vegetable tray will keep guests from getting hungry. This is also very important if you are serving alcohol.
For great New Years Eve recipe ideas check out these sites:
http://allrecipes.com/HowTo/New-Years-Celebration/Detail.aspx
http://www.tasteofhome.com/Recipes/Holiday---Celebration-Recipes/New-Year-s-Recipes

Beverages:
New Years Eve parties tend to go hand in hand with alcohol consumption but this does not have to be the case. Serving alcohol can become quite expensive and as the host you are liable for your guests and their alcohol consumption. The simplest solution to this is a B.Y.O.B. (bring your own booze/beer) event. This allows your guests to choose and provide their own alcohol although you still want to keep an eye on consumption. Plan on providing sodas, fruit punches and coffee. A nice touch would be to provide an inexpensive champagne to toast the New Year.

Decorations and party supplies:
Your decorations will depend on the theme of your party if you choose a theme. Basic decorations can be found at many stores for very reasonable prices. Closeout stores, paper good stores and big box stores will usually have a great variety to keep you within your budget. Formal paper invitations can be purchased or created on your own computer. You can choose to skip the entire formal invitation part and e-mail or call your guests to invite them. Disposable dinner wear is usually a good idea unless your party is small. There are many sources online for creating your own invitations and decorations. You might wish to try Epson creative zone:
http://www.epson.com/cgi-bin/Store/PrintLab/pl_home.jsp

Party themes:
Let your imagination run wild or enlist the help of one or more of your invited guests. You could choose to have a "dress to the nines" New Years Eve party where everyone comes in their formal best. You could also choose completely informal or anything in between. Depending on the age of your guests you might want to have a 70's theme party or make everyone stretch their imaginations and go with a roaring 20's. If you live in a northern climate try a luau party. Some great site for finding idea themes:
http://www.theholidayspot.com/newyear/party_ideas.htm
http://www.party411.com/theme28.html

The most important thing to remember about your New Years Eve party is that it must be one you enjoy. If you are not comfortable, no one else will be either. As a final note, especially if you are concerned about alcohol consumption, plan on an area where guest can "sleep over". This can take some of the stress off of you and your guests and when they awake they might even help you clean up!