10 Things Every 20-Something Should Have Before Throwing A Holiday Party

    No one at your party ever tells you when the roll of toilet paper runs out, and it always does. WTF is that about.

    Emily Fleischaker
    by Emily Fleischaker

    BuzzFeed Staff

    THE HOLIDAYS RULE!

    Pictured top left, clockwise: Imperial Punch Royale from Bon Appetit, Christmas Lights via WeHeartIt, Apricot Glazed Ham via A Table For Two, Christmas Cookie via Sweetopia.

    But throwing a holiday party can be some work. The key to making it easy and fun is to stock up on a few hosting essentials.

    You'll use them again and again anyway! The product recommendations below come from The Sweethome, an awesome website whose editors research and test household gear. They just published a huge guide to what to buy before you host a party and agreed to let BuzzFeed feature the essentials.

    1. Something nice to put cheese and crackers on.

    For their "best cheese board" category, Sweethome decided that cheese boards are stupid, and instead recommends a versatile cutting board.

    GET THIS ONE: John Boos Chop-N-Slice, $48. (Get more cheese board tips here.)

    2. Booze that isn't too expensive but isn't too cheap.

    Sweethome spoke to respected bartenders like Dale DeGroff to get the best budget-friendly bottles. So helpful. And they are...

    BEST BUYS: Absolut vodka, Tanqueray gin, Wild Turkey bourbon, and several others.

    3. ICE SERVICE. (And definitely call it that.)

    Shutterstock

    FIRST OF ALL, you need a bunch of ice to throw a good party, so figure your ice situation out in advance.

    FOR A SMALL PARTY: If you like to drink cocktails, get a couple of Tavolo King Cube Ice Trays. An ice bucket is nice too because guests can serve themselves (always a stress reliever), and for that Sweethome chose the Oggi Lustre Stainless Steel Ice Bucket, $30.

    FOR A BIG PARTY: Buy 2-3 bags of ice. Dump two of them in a cooler to keep beer and wine in, and attach a bottle opener to the cooler with a string. Sweethome picks Coleman 70-Quart Xtreme cooler, $46. Then take the third and put it in an ice bucket and set some tongs or a cup in there so that no one touches the ice with their hands.

    BEST ICE TRAY: Tavolo King Cube Ice Trays.

    BEST ICE BUCKET: Oggi Lustre Stainless Steel Ice Bucket, $30.

    BEST COOLER: Coleman 70-Quart Xtreme cooler, $46.

    4. Cups for adults.

    Solo cups make even the nicest drink taste sad and gross. So get some clear plastic cups if you are going to use disposable.

    BEST PLASTIC CUPS: Chinet Cut Crystal Tumblers (Pack of 108).

    BEST GLASSES: You can find Sweethome's full picks for glassware here, the most versatile and necessary of which is a rocks glass. So get these: Reed & Barton Crystal Old Fashions (Set of 4), $60.

    5. Meat Accessories

    If you want to serve this...

    chow.com
    bonappetit.com

    You're gonna need these.

    6. A punch bowl that maybe isn't just an ugly mixing bowl.

    anchorhocking.com
    anchorhocking.com

    A punch bowl that is also a cake stand is the best thing ever.

    GET THIS: Anchor Hocking Cake Stand/Punch Bowl, $16.

    7. An easy way to let people drink coffee.

    Make the coffee before the guests come and keep it hot in a thermos!

    BEST SMALL PARTY THERMOS: Thermos Nissan Stainless Steel Carafe, $45.

    BEST BIG PARTY THERMOS: Bunn Lever-Action Airpot ($56).

    8. A way to clean up messes.

    Sweet home's favorite trash bags are these Husky Contractor Clean-Up Bags (32 pack). They like Bounty paper towels and for stains, a Tide to Go pen.

    9. Extra TP.

    For some reason, no one at your party ever tells you when you run out of toilet paper, and it's embarrassing. So just buy a lot and set out a bunch.

    BEST TOILET PAPER: White Cloud 3-Ply Ultra Bathroom Tissue

    10. MUSIC!

    BEST BLUETOOTH SPEAKERS: Sony BTX-500, $250.