Last evening, my boyfriend and I put on what we both agreed may have been our best dinner party yet. (Okay, it was our first dinner party – we usually BBQ for our Napa lunches but let’s face it: entertaining multiple people for a meal is an undertaking no matter what time of day it is, especially if it’s a sit-down gathering!)

We hosted nine guests and I will say the smartest choice we made was to hire a chef which enabled both of us to enjoy the entire evening without jumping up from the table every five minutes (worth every single penny!). I did make the dessert which was a hit so I was satisfied knowing I contributed to the menu. But because there always seem to be those things that you forget despite attempting to dot every “i” (ice!) and cross every “t” (toilet paper!), I decided to make a list of the must-do’s that I can reference for the next soiree.

I now present my Ten Commandments when attempting a flawless dinner party:

1. Thou shalt buy ice.
(Take it from me, you can never have too much and it’s better to have more than you need than not enough!)

2. Thou shalt buy more flowers than you think you’ll need.
(I always try to pinch a penny here and am then regretful when I don’t have a nosegay for the powder room or for any areas OTHER than the dinner table.)

3. Thou shalt put votive candles EVERYWHERE.

(These are one small thing that make a BIG difference. Put one on as many surface areas as you can to create a warm environment including bathrooms, bedrooms, offices and any room a guest might see.)

4. Thou shalt think of your music selection in advance.
(I always love to create fun playlists depending on the occasion whether it’s songs with the word “baby” in them for a shower or ’60s swing for a cocktail party.)

5.Thou shalt prepare a fun trivia game or story-telling suggestion for guests once everyone is seated.
(For our recent dinner party honoring our friends who are pregnant, I placed baby spoons by everyone’s table setting and had the chef serve each guest a jar of baby food as the “amuse bouche.” I had previously removed the labels so that each person had to “Guess the Gerber” which is a truly hilarious game to play when celebrating pregnancies. I also love a game I once played called “Salad Bow” where everyone writes the name of someone or something famous on a piece of paper, fold it, and place it in a bowl. Each person then draws a paper and has to describe said written item in one-word teasers to his/her partner seated next to him/her.)

6. Thou shalt ask all guests in advance about any dietary restrictions.
(Suzie eats fowl but only if it’s naturally fallen and Sally’s allergic to dairy, gluten, and anything containing carbs. Riiiiiight.)

7. Thou shalt never seat exes anywhere close to one another.
(Think about your guest placement carefully. It can make or break a great energy.)

8. Thou shalt buy cocktail napkins.
(You always think you have them and then can’t find them. And you can monogram them for next to nothing – a lovely touch!)

9. Thou shalt get oneself dressed and ready early and then finish last-minute touches, not vice versa.
(It never fails that I wait until the last second to get ready and am then not available to greet my guests upon arrival.)

10. Thou shalt make sure you have an extra roll of T.P. in the powder room and a plunger close by.
(Just in case a guest disappears to the growler for an inexplicable amount of time. See movie “Along Came Polly” and you’ll know exactly what I’m talking about here.)

I’m always one for a little potty humor but not the literal kind.