My party-planning history

I planned my first party at the age of sixteen while still in high school. It was one of those boxed murder mysteries that helps you easily plan a fun, themed party. Inspired by my favorite 1980’s whodunit, I wrote invitations to my guests without disclosing who the actual host of the party would be. I even hosted the party at a friend’s country home to throw off any suspicion of who planned the murder mystery meeting.

I dressed up and acted as a cook that evening. I remember getting my mother’s recipe for lasagna and it was sloppy when I served it. I had absolutely no experience cooking for a dinner party! For some reason, this didn’t deter me from planning more parties. Once again, I chose to host at a friend’s house, so on the day of the party, I headed out to the grocery store to pick up what I needed. Food planning was not my strong suit in those early days.

Despite my challenges with a menu, I experienced boosted confidence in my party planning abilities and continued to plan parties. I had a creative mind reeling with more party ideas, so I moved on to my first out-of-the-box theme party, a Hawaiian luau. Classic! I have brought that theme back several times throughout my party planning years.

By the time I purchased my first house, I was in my twenties. I took the opportunity to host a literal out-of-the-box housewarming party, as a way to invite people over to see my new house, but also to warn them I wasn’t quite settled in yet. I even decorated with empty cardboard boxes so guests would have extra places to set plates of food and drink. Without room to host a sit-down dinner, I shifted towards buffet-style foods that were grab-and-go and involved less preparation. However, I had learned by this point to plan ahead and do the prep work early.

The housewarming party turned into an annual event with a new theme each year, including a luau, retro happy hour, and Hollywood stars party. In my thirties, I moved to a new town after accepting a position with a radio station. I continued to host parties in my home, resurrecting the luau again, a chili cookoff, taste of Italy, and a Kentucky Derby party!

While working for the radio stations, I was able to coordinate events, from planning to day-of execution. We hosted a wedding vendor event, several motorcycle giveaways, karaoke contest parties, an administrative professionals’ appreciation party, and a fireworks festival complete with live music, vendors, and food for thousands of people. I also coordinated small corporate board meetings and training events while working with this radio station group.

Utilizing my marketing skills in the hospitality industry, I also found opportunities to flex my party planning muscles. I helped to coordinate New Year’s Eve events, entertainment events, a film screening, couples’ activities for a Valentine’s weekend, Easter brunch activities for kids, and themed kids’ weekends.

But it was actually back in my first home that I started planning intimate dinner parties. Because I had previously struggled so much with food preparations, I planned out every detail a week in advance so I knew I would have time to get everything ready so the event would be stress free. I even put together music playlists to give me clues throughout the night, like playing “Amazing Grace” about the time we should be sitting down to dinner.

It was at this time, I had a vision to create a multimedia party plan that would help people easily plan fun, themed parties at home. My idea was to sell a music CD that included the plan for the accompanying party. I even looked into music rights and that is where I quickly shelved the idea for being too cost-prohibitive. Keep in mind that during the first decade of the twenty-first century, social media was just beginning to spread and there definitely weren’t apps on our phones yet.  

Fast forward to 2022, I began researching self-publishing to bring my grandmother’s memoir to print and a lightbulb went off. With the advancements of technology and social media, I could publish a party planning ebook and utilize links to other sites to help party planners get more information about music, food, décor, and tutorials. And so Lisa Kay’s Party Plans was officially born and planning began for my very first party theme a Derby Party!