How To Host A Stylish Hen Party At Home: Ideas, Schedule And Decor

A hen party at home is the easiest one to get right and the easiest one to make feel like a normal Saturday. The difference is almost always decor and pacing: one strong focal point, and a plan that moves people between rooms.

Here's how to set the space up, what to put where, and an hour-by-hour running order that works for eight to sixteen people in a standard house.

Set up one focal point, not five

• Pick the wall everyone will photograph in front of and put everything there: bunting along the top, a cluster of balloons at one side, nothing on the opposite wall.
• Bunting is the cheapest way to change a room. Run it corner to corner across the ceiling rather than along a single wall and the whole room reads as decorated.
• Balloons work in odd numbers and one or two colours. Three shades and it starts to look like a children's party.
• Clear the mantelpiece and windowsill completely before you decorate. Empty space around decorations is what makes them look deliberate.
• Lamps and candles on, big light off, from mid-afternoon. Overhead lighting ruins every photo taken after four o'clock.
• Push the sofa back a foot. A gap behind people makes a small room look twice the size in pictures.

The kitchen: where the party actually happens

• Put the drinks in the kitchen and the food in the living room, or the other way round - splitting them keeps people moving instead of clumping in one doorway.
• Clear one full worktop for glasses and leave it clear. Every kitchen party fails at the glass stage.
• Table confetti down the centre of the kitchen table takes thirty seconds and makes the whole surface look set rather than used. Shop this card
• A cake topper turns a supermarket cake into the centrepiece. Nobody has ever asked where the cake came from. Shop this card
• Label two bins - one for rubbish, one for glass. It sounds joyless and it saves the last hour of your night.

An hour-by-hour running order

• From 1pm: arrivals, one drink, name the toilet and the coat room out loud so nobody has to ask.
• 1.30pm: something to eat straight away. Hen dos that start on an empty stomach peak too early.
• 2.30pm: the first game, something seated and gentle while people are still arriving.
• 4pm: the main activity - a craft, a tasting, a cocktail-making round, a quiz. One only.
• 5.30pm: food properly, and a gap with no plan at all. The gap is where the good conversations happen.
• 7pm: cake, speeches from two people maximum, presents if there are any.
• 8pm: louder games or music, and a clear line for anyone going out afterwards.
• Give the bride a twenty-minute window with no plan in it. Every hen needs one sit-down.

Food that survives an afternoon

• Cold grazing board built at midday, covered with a tea towel, uncovered at one. No reheating, no timing.
• Two hot things at most, both oven-only - sausage rolls and something vegetarian.
• One proper pudding beyond the cake, because the cake gets cut late.
• Jugs of something soft that looks like a cocktail. There's always at least one person not drinking and it matters that it's nice.
• Bread, butter, crisps and olives on the table from the start. Nobody remembers the canapés, everyone remembers running out of snacks.

Shop party supplies

How to write it so it lands

• Decorate the night before. Doing it on the morning always costs you the shower you meant to have.
• Take the group photo at four, while everyone still looks how they want to look.
• Ask the bride her one absolute no before you buy anything.

Where to shop next

• What to put in hen party bags
• Glamping hen do ideas
• Classy hen party themes
• How to plan a hen do on a budget
• DIY afternoon tea hen party
• Hen party games at home
• Low-key hen do games
• Classy hen party games
• Hen party cottage ideas
• Hen party ideas in the UK
• How much a hen or stag do costs
• Shop party supplies
• Hen party decorations
• How to make a balloon arch
• Photo booth prop ideas
• Party bag ideas for adults
• How much helium do you need for balloons?
• Congratulations cards
• Birthday cards for kids
• Wedding cards
• Wedding cards guide
• All guides

Frequently asked questions

What do you do at a hen party at home?

Split the day into three: something seated and gentle early on, one main activity in the afternoon, then food, cake and music. Leave a deliberate gap with no plan around teatime - it's when people actually talk.

How do you decorate a living room for a hen party?

Pick one wall as the focal point and put bunting, balloons and any signage there. Clear the surfaces on the other walls completely, switch to lamps and candles by mid-afternoon, and keep to two colours.

How long should a hen party at home last?

Six to seven hours works well - one in the afternoon until eight in the evening. Any longer and the middle sags; any shorter and people who travel spend as long on the train as at the party.

How many people should you invite to a hen do at home?

Count your seats and add four. Eight to sixteen is comfortable in most houses. Beyond that you need people standing in two rooms, which changes the kind of day it is.

Do you sell hen party decorations?

Not hen-branded ones - no sashes, veils or slogan kits. We do make and post real party decor that works for a hen do: bunting and banners, balloons, table confetti, cake toppers and party bag fillers, along with wedding and engagement cards and art prints.