We know, we know - it's not even Christmas yet, so how can anyone be expected to start thinking about New Year's?
Don't worry, though, because that's the whole point: we know that you're neck-deep in wrapping paper and Quality Street right now, and so we're here to think about the New Year so that you don't have to.
If you're hosting the party...
Hosting the New Year's Eve party is a big responsibility, and not just because of all the tidying you'll have to do (probably hungover) on New Year's Day. When the party is being held at your house, the onus is on you to give everyone a night to remember. Here are some of the things you'll need:
Parties need music, but how best to provide it? If you use your stereo, you'll have to change the CD every 45 minutes; if you play Spotify off your phone or laptop, well, it'll sound like it's being played off a phone or laptop. What you need is this ingenious Touch Speaker - simply place your phone on top for instant amplification! There are no cables or pairing required, which makes this speaker ideal for parties - if someone wants to put their own music on, they simply have to take off the current phone and put theirs on instead!
Paper cups are surprisingly hard to come by at the last minute - by the afternoon of December 31, every shop in your area will most likely have sold out. So why not order some Solo cups now and save yourself the panic on the day? These top-quality cups are just like the ones you've seen in countless American teen movies, and those parties are always awesome, right?
Of course, Solo cups aren't the only option, and if you're planning to serve up a few Jagerbombs at your NYE bash, these specially-moulded Bomber cups may well be a better choice. Fill the middle section with alcohol, fill the rest of the cup with energy drink, and get ready to drop one last bomb before the big countdown!
You can rest assured that people will bring plenty of booze to your party, but all of those bottles will be useless if you've no means of getting into them. You'll need a
bottle opener at the very least, but if you want to turn things up to 11, we heartily recommend our 'Manly Bar Tool' set (featuring, among other things: a hammer-shaped bottle opener, a screwdriver corkscrew, and a saw for slicing lemons).
No party is complete without a bit of beer pong! This American-style kit contains 14 cups, 2 balls, and a pair of mats on which to place the cups; if you
really want to impress your guests, you might consider purchasing a
Professional Beer Pong Table too!
If you're going to somebody else's party...
Just because you're not the host doesn't mean that you can't make an effort. Here are a few fun items that you might consider bringing along - each one is sure to kick the party into a higher gear!
Challenge your friends and find out who the best drinker in your group is! As the name suggests, this absurdly large vessel holds and entire YARD of ale (or lager, or whatever). Furthermore, it's marked with ratings (ranging from 'Wimp' to 'Solid Legend') that will let you know exactly how a big a drinker you are.
Of course, if drinking is your game then there's no beating a good old-fashioned beer bong. We've got a huge variety of bongs to choose from, ranging from the classic 2ft design to
double bongs,
balcony bongs,
six-person bongs and more besides!
Nothing whiles away the hours 'til midnight like a couple of drinking games. Our personal favourite is Drinking Jenga (pictured above) - pulling those blocks out becomes even harder when you're already a bit tiddly!
There's loads more like this in our
Party Essentials section. No matter what you're doing this New Year's Eve, we hope you have a great time - try not to get
too drunk!
