I have been to both wedding and baby showers held in rented halls.
That’s the norm here. In the last year, three of four showers I attended were in rented halls.
I am completely baffled by the concept of having a housewarming party somewhere other than the new home.
Me too. Never got an answer on this…
I’ve definitely been to wedding and baby showers in halls, but never a housewarming. The big thing about a housewarming is to see the new house.
Learn something new every day.
We are planning to do this in July for our 20th wedding anniversary. We had a VERY small wedding, and most of our friends and family were left out. So we’d like to throw a VERY belated party!
We’re just going to send out invitations and let the chips fall where they may. The party will be a simple picnic-type thing held at our local town hall – large enough to accommodate everyone in case of bad weather, but there are picnic tables and lots of shade outside too. I’ll tell my mom that if anyone asks about gifts, we don’t want any; people should just come and have a good time, and we’ll be glad to see them.
Never mind - me either!
I’m in the UK and definitely surprised by the notion that there’s something wrong with throwing my own birthday party. I was single for years and have no family living nearby if I hadn’t thrown my own parties I would never have got one as it isn’t normal here for anyone but family or partners to arrange someone’s party.
I would LOVE to attend a party like this!
I’m with you. My parties, and my friends’ parties, are exactly like that.
There’s no need for any protocol about ‘if you throw the party for yourself, don’t require people to bring gifts’ because it doesn’t matter who’s throwing the party - unless it’s a wedding reception, there’s never any requirement to bring gifts. I mean, I’m pleased when people give me birthday gifts, but it’s not expected.
Hell, a lot of the wedding receptions I’ve been to in the past few years have also specified that we don’t need to bring gifts or requested charity donations in lieu of gifts, because traditional wedding presents are toasters and tea towels and such, and everyone already has a million of them.
Yeah. Or even having the housewarming party at the new home but having it hosted by someone who doesn’t live there. Kinda seems at odds with the whole idea of a housewarming party.
But then, a few months ago I finally got a new sofa after literally years of searching. So I threw a sofa-warming party. My kitchen recently got remodelled and the remodelling was hellish, but now it looks a lot nicer: soon I will be throwing a kitchen-warming party.
So perhaps I am not typical in party-throwing reasons. 
Gifts will, of course, not be expected; not sure what gifts people would give at a sofa warming party anyway. We already have cushions.
Change and lint for the cushions. It’s not a sofa unless something is lost in it…
I have and would throw parties for myself, although it’s not a “give me presents” vein, but a celebratory vein. I’ve had birthdays where I organized a dinner or made fondue at my house for friends.
Usually, though, for birthdays and such, I like to keep it low-key. I don’t want to have a big party (that I’ll just have to clean up after) just to get wasted or anything. My in-laws usually take us out to dinner on our birthdays (our= my husband and me), then some cake at either our house or their house, then we call it a night.
When it comes time for a baby shower, I’m not sure who would host it. I don’t really have any non-related friends. At all. I have some coworkers who I’m nice to, but no one close enough that would throw me a party. All my “friends” are my husband’s cousins and aunts, my sister, etc. Those are the people I would want to celebrate with for my baby shower.
Ha! We’re currently remodeling a bathroom that would be turned down by every “Bad Bathroom” program for being too bad. When it’s done, maybe we’ll have a bathroom-warming party!
“Hey, that’s not the punch bowl!” :eek:
Last year I wanted to have a murder mystery dinner for my birthday. Since it was a lot of work, I hosted it. I didn’t expect anyone to bring gifts - and we had a friend come in and act as the chef. I just wanted a bunch of my friends to come dressed up and ready to solve someone’s death. Y’know - birth and death come hand in hand.
And I’ll do it again! Muahahah.
That being said - I’m moving in to my own place in 2 weeks and my SO (who doesn’t live with me) is ‘hosting’ a housewarming/birthday party for me about a month later. It’s at my place - but he’s helping with the arrangements. It was his idea - I just had to provide him with the guest list.
I said “no,” not because I think it’s rude, but because I suck at it. I cannot plan any sort of outing or event to save my life. Folks will ask me what I’m doing for my birthday the day before or even the day of, and I’ll be all “y’know, I have absolutely no idea.”
I don’t have a problem throwing a party for just about any reason. I do believe that unless it’s a pot-luck, (and besides BYOB), the host should pay. My sister, to this day, calls me cheap because every year she “threw” a party for her husband at some place; mini-golf, whirly-ball, etc, but you always had to pay your own way.
The year it was at whirly-ball, she informed me that it was 52.50 per couple! So between me, my spouse and my two kids, it was over $100! (Plus bring your own food and drink.) I complained, hence the “cheap” label. :smack: