How to properly receive guests
It is necessary to thoroughly prepare for the arrival of friends.
Invitation
Preparations for any holiday begin with an invitation. Depending on the celebration, guests are invited in person or by mail. Relatives and friends are invited to family celebrations verbally by phone or at a meeting.
When organizing large celebrations, it is more convenient to use invitations indicating the time and location of the event.
You should inform about the upcoming holiday in advance. People will need time to adjust their plans, choose an outfit and prepare a gift. For example, you can invite someone to a home party a week in advance, and for an anniversary - a month in advance.
Complete pair
It is not customary to invite one of the spouses. The owners call the couple. Exceptions are specific evenings - hen or stag parties.
Guests can ask permission or warn that they want to come with a boyfriend, girlfriend or child. The owners are not always aware of changes in the personal lives of friends. Knowing the number of expected visitors, it is easier to navigate the volume of food and the number of seats at the table.
Time of receipt
The choice of time for the celebration depends on the type of feast. It is customary to invite people for breakfast between 10-12 o'clock. Lunch is served from 15:00 to 19:00, and dinner is served from 19:00 to 22:00. If we are talking about tea drinking, then it is appropriate to invite friends from 17 to 19 hours.
Arrival of guests
It is unacceptable to be late for a celebration. But you shouldn’t arrive early either. If you haven't timed your visit, you can walk around the house for a while.
Guests are allowed to stay no more than 15 minutes.
If they are very late, friends must warn the hosts, who may start the feast without them.
Meeting and introduction
Guests are greeted by both spouses. The owners should be in high spirits. It’s nice to feel the festive mood and cordiality right from the door. A positive attitude helps people relax when they find themselves in unfamiliar company.
According to etiquette, guests are introduced to each other by the owners of the house, calling their names. First, men are introduced to women, and then, as new friends and colleagues arrive, they are introduced to the whole company.
Present
It is customary to give gifts on birthdays and other celebrations. The owners receive them with gratitude and a smile. Boxes are not opened in the hallway. You can view the gift in the living room.
You cannot show by appearance that you do not like the gifted item. If guests presented a gift of food or alcoholic beverages, they should be placed on the table.
Slippers
There are always problems with shoes for guests: there are not enough of them or the size of the slippers does not match. Visitors should take care of what they will wear when visiting.
For friendly gatherings, you can bring your own slippers from home. And for a special event, it is more appropriate for women to take shoes that match their outfit.
Seating at a table
An important point is to place the entire company at the table. At small home events, you can verbally suggest this or that place to guests. At large celebrations, people are given cards indicating their place.
When seating guests, you need to remember the rules:
- The hostess chooses a place to see those present. She should be able to leave the table without disturbing anyone.
- Guests of honor are seated facing the doors in the room.
- It is more appropriate to place people nearby who are interested in communicating with each other.
- In the center you can put a person whom everyone considers the soul of the party, then no one will be bored.
- Sometimes companies gather people who don't like each other. Such guests should not be placed nearby.
Serving
By the time all guests gather, the table must be set. When preparing for the celebration, you need to make sure that each person has a cloth napkin for their clothes and another one for their hands.
Dishes can be served by the hostess, the staff, or the guests themselves (if we are talking about a home feast). Each person needs to have cutlery on the table. The owners of the house begin the feast.
When preparing, carefully calculate the number of devices and chairs so that there is enough space for everyone. To play it safe, you need to anticipate the arrival of more people.
Nice atmosphere
The key to a successful holiday is a pleasant atmosphere at the table. The heroes of the occasion should propose topics for conversation that are of interest to the entire company.
If necessary, the hosts can direct the conversation, because they know all the guests and their hobbies. At the table you cannot talk about the cost of certain products, putting guests in an awkward position. The hosts set the tone for the holiday.
Moderation
Some women are too persistent in offering their friends to try certain dishes. Cultured people gather for the sake of communication. Food is a pleasant addition to conversation, but not an end in itself.
The dishes on the table should not be too fatty and filling. Otherwise, all the guests’ thoughts will be focused not on communication, but on food. The menu can include light salads, canapés, snacks, fruits, nuts, and cold cuts. Overeating kills activity and the desire to communicate.
It is necessary to avoid awkward situations at the table. It is inappropriate to find out taste preferences during a holiday. It is much more logical to ask in advance whether there are any special dietary requirements for all guests.
This does not mean that the hostess needs to adapt to her acquaintances and friends. You can simply create a menu based on the preferences of your guests. This will avoid unpleasant surprises.
Table manners
At the table, alcoholic drinks are often spilled, and sometimes dishes or glasses are broken. The owners are uncomfortable with such situations. But they shouldn't show their feelings.
You need to act as if nothing happened. Then everyone will remain in a festive mood, and the guest will not feel awkward because of the mistake.
Forbidden topics of conversation during a feast
If there is no joker or joker in the company, maintaining the conversation falls on the shoulders of the owners. They know everyone invited. In addition, guests may feel insecure and awkward among strangers.
There are a number of topics that should not be raised at the holiday table:
- problems at work;
- health status;
- issues of religion and politics;
- parenting;
- income level.
You can start a conversation by discussing cultural news, a TV show, a book, a film or a play.
Serving dishes
Drinks are poured and food is served to older women first. The owners are the last to take the food. Cold appetizers are placed on the table before guests arrive. Hot dishes are served after people have tasted the cold cuts, canapés, and salads.
The table is placed in the middle of the room, not in the corner. A mandatory holiday attribute is a tablecloth and beautiful dishes. You should not place large bouquets in the center of the table.
Behind the flowers, guests will not see each other, which is important for communication. A good and useful table decoration is a vase with various fruits.
The feast should not be overloaded with food. It is difficult to place a large number of dishes on the table. The hostess should not force delicacies on guests. Each invitee can take care of filling their own plate.
You cannot insist on drinking alcohol. The dishes are removed from the table quietly, without attracting attention to themselves. Coffee and desserts are served in the same way, and wine glasses are filled.
If the owner of the house needs to leave
Sometimes the owners need to leave for a while. There's nothing wrong with that. It is enough to apologize when getting up from the table. Guests can entertain their friend for a while on their own. But you shouldn't leave the company for a long time. When inviting friends, you must show hospitality.
Seeing off
Farewell to the guests is the final and important stage of the event. You can’t remind people that they’ve been sitting too long. You should not start cleaning by hinting at the end of the evening.
Serving dessert on the table indicates that the celebration is nearing its end. After sweet dishes, guests can linger for another half hour, and then they should get ready to go home.
Tactful owners persuade friends not to rush. But often this is done out of politeness. In everything you need to observe moderation. The celebration should not develop into gatherings until the morning.
Attentive hosts escort guests to the door, handing them clothes.
General information
To make it easier for guests to adapt to an unfamiliar venue and find out where their seats are located (for example, the event is held in several halls), it is worth inviting a doorman who will meet your guests at the entrance and accompany them to the hall, introducing them to the location of rest areas and toilet rooms , smoking areas, cloakrooms, etc.
It must be said that inviting a large number of guests to the registry office is not advisable. Most often, the parents of the newlyweds and witnesses are present at the registration. For other guests, it is better to organize a beautiful off-site registration near the banquet venue.
It is worth taking care of the seating arrangement of the guests so that there is no chaos and latecomers (if there are any) do not feel out of place at your holiday.
Hospitality rules for children
The general rules of etiquette for children are not too different from the standard ones. Every child should learn to receive guests from an early age. Adult family members are responsible for the table and organizational aspects.
But children are able to independently meet, see off and entertain their own friends. Further relationships depend on their hospitality.
The child can invite friends to look at books, interesting travel photos, or entertain them with games.
Animators are now often invited to organize children's events and offer active and interesting leisure time. But for a small home event, professional help is not necessary.
Children tend to throw toys around and create chaos while playing. The owners should not express dissatisfaction about this. When inviting guests, it is difficult to expect that the house will be clean.
At the children's table, the child can take on the role of a positive and friendly host. It is not difficult for children to find a topic for conversation, especially if they are the same age. The rules for making friends must be learned from a young age. Such skills will be useful in the future.
Second wedding day: welcoming dear guests
Traditionally, a wedding lasts two days. On the second day of the wedding, the newlyweds meet guests in a more relaxed atmosphere at home or in a restaurant, and if the weather permits, then outdoors. How can you make sure that the continuation of the holiday begins in an interesting and unforgettable way? We will give you original ideas for welcoming guests that can be included in the script for the second day of the wedding.
How fun is it to meet family and friends?
On the second day of the wedding, it is not necessary to order a host; cheerful witnesses can take the initiative. For example, a great idea would be to greet guests with a “drug doctor.” To do this you will need:
- Set up a table with various drinks and hang a sign at the entrance that says “drug-drinker.”
- Dress the witness and the witness in medical gowns, attach badges to them with the inscriptions: for the doctor, “doctor-drug specialist,” for the witness-nurse, “nurse, I’ll give you a hangover in the morning.”
- Buy doctor's instruments in a children's store and find white coats.
- Write a script where you can mark in advance fun jokes and games for welcoming guests on the second day of the wedding. For example, you can come up with competitions where guests will have to walk on a rope or do squats. After which the doctor will make a comic diagnosis and give them medicine. This way you can cheer up the guests from the first minutes and continue the celebration cheerfully.
Guest etiquette
When going to an event, you must follow some rules:
- It is inappropriate to be late or arrive before the scheduled time.
- If you are delayed, please notify the hosts.
- You cannot bring strangers to visit.
- The possibility of taking a girl or young man with you is agreed upon in advance with the owners.
- It is appropriate to come to visit with your own replacement shoes.
- .At the table you cannot say that you do not eat certain dishes. You can tactfully refuse them.
- For the sake of the company or owners, people should not drink alcohol if they are supporters of a healthy lifestyle.
- It is not tactful to ask for tea and dessert if you are still interested in hot dishes.
- It is appropriate to help the hostess clear the dishes from the table.
- You cannot ask for treats to take home from the table. This is only permissible if the hostess herself offers the treat.
- You need to get ready to go home 30 minutes after the sweet table.
- The owners are warned in advance about the need to leave early.
Greeting guests in Russian with bread and salt
This is an ancient custom when salt was worth more than gold. Bread is mercy, and salt is love. This is a decoding of two characters. By serving a loaf with a salt shaker, you show love and grace to those invited. It is believed that eating a loaf of salt together binds guests together; this is a ritual of bonding.
Nowadays, newlyweds from the registry office or foreign guests are greeted in this way. Thus, they show their mercy and joy. The loaf is presented on an embroidered towel, and a solemn speech is made. Guests break off a piece of baked goods, dip it in salt, and eat the loaf.
Welcoming Russian guests with bread and salt
Everything goes according to plan! Yes! What about the bathroom?
Hot water and pre-sprayed product did the job. All that remains is to go over the plumbing fixtures and the mirror with a dry cloth. Oh, what's there? Who was it that looked at you through the looking glass? Put your hair in a bun and run to get dressed!
A new song is playing, which means wait for the doorbell to ring, and it’s like a bell ringing from class when you haven’t finished almost half of your essay yet. Eh, school years are amazing...
Chu! Call! Telephone.
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Yes! There is extra time! You can put on a little makeup, look at the cake, and finally comb your hair. And get dressed! What to wear? Down with the robe! It is clear. Favorite trousers are like lifesavers. T-shirt. No. Better blouse. It’s so good that you have a duty blouse! Not a supernova, but still nothing. The main thing is that it is clean and does not need to be ironed! And she still looks. By the way, you look wow in it too. Stylish, but not ostentatious! How the position obliges!
