House Warming/Engagment Party

dc1224

Got engaged 12/24/10. Getting married 9/28/12. Closing on a house in July 2011. My family is traditional with celebrating engagement parties and house warmings, any kind of family celebration. They give gifts and like to do the family BBQ thing. His family doesn't really. What's the etiquette for Enagement & House warming parties. I was thinking of having one party for both at the same time - end of Aug or Mid Sept. Would it be wrong for us to throw the party ourselves as one party? Also by having one party for both would that mean I don't have to envite everyone to the wedding who's invited to the party? Due to the budget I can't invite some friends or coworkers to the wedding but would love to have them at this event. How many weeks prior do you send invites? Any other advise?

Allycat11

In Response to <a href="http://forums.theknot.com/Sites/theknot/Pages/Main.aspx/special-topic-wedding-boards_pre-wedding-parties_house-warmingengagment-party?plckFindPostKey=Cat:Special Topic Wedding BoardsForum:32Discussion:d841d665-763e-4cca-8adc-9b9a9fcd0fa1Post:d0990c2d-46f5-43c9-8e88-04467ea4c4d3">Re: House Warming/Engagment Party</a>:
[QUOTE]It's fine to throw your own housewarming party. Anyone can be invited to that, wedding guest or no. Hosting your own engagement party is a breach of etiquette.  That's a party in your honor, so the couple shouldn't host it. They're usually thrown by one or both sets of parents, and yes - no one who is not invited to the wedding should be invited to any prewedding function.
Posted by RetreadBride[/QUOTE]

Ditto.  I would throw a housewarming bbq this summer and invite everyone you would like to invite.  If your parents or someone else would like to host an engagement party for you, that is up to them.

salto3

We had a housewarming party that was also kind of an engagement party.  I know you're not supposed to throw your own engagement party, but our friends didn't have issues with it.  Any presents we got were either wine or little house things.  It was nothing formal - we put out a bunch of food and had punch, people brought their own beer.  It was just a usual party.