10 must-have ingredients for a good-times party

Happy Monday and for some of you it's a day off-yippee! What did you do this weekend? I finished up making this year's valentines--oh and also threw a sit-down 4-course dinner party for 16. I was in denial about the party until Saturday morning when I realized I needed to get in gear and get a move on or else! It went off without a hitch due to a little pre-party planning the day-of. Here's my list of 10 tried and true must-have ingredients for a good-times dinner party:

1) Pretty place-settings. This is my favorite part! I love getting out the good silverware, picking the napkins and place cards and putting everything together ahead of time. I chose the habanero peppers for place-markers because they were the cutest, not knowing that they were the 2nd hottest peppers in the world, and that the "boys" would singularly dare each other into eating them. Ouch!

2) Candles, candles everywhere. Candles make everyone more happy. It's an unproven scientific fact.

3) A fireplace fire. If you don't have a fireplace, just use twice as many candles.

4) Cute posies all over the place. I Love 'em and I love 'em and I love 'em! I buy a few big bouquets from the grocery store then divide and conquer.

5) Proper bar placement--the bar should be as far away from the kitchen as possible. People naturally congregate in the kitchen, this will spread out the crowd a bit.

6) Champagne, and make it plenty. Have one glass before anyone arrives.

7) "Hello my name is" name tags with little conversation starters to fill out like: "My passion is..." or "If I could be a fly on the wall anywhere and at any time..."

8) Assign everyone a delicious dish or drink to bring, so you only have to make/buy one thing.

9) Fake moustaches--the more the merrier.

10) Super-duper invitees, because what good is a fake moustache without someone fun to wear it?