This past weekend I made the trip out to the Ace Hotel in Palm Springs to check out the Hitched event. And even though this isn't a wedding related blog, the organizers did such a great job throwing a party and offering up great info for others looking to throw a great party that I had to share them here with you.

• Good Invites. There's no better way to hype a party than with great invitations. Hitched was rife with great letterpress and invites. Our go-to source, Urbanic was one of the event's organizers and had a great display of custom and read-to-go invitations. We love that they're now carrying the Mae Mae Paperie Line.

• Good Music. The Flashdance was in full effect at the party and the great music highlighted how important a very good play list is for getting people to dance and/or loosen up. Salt n Peppa's "Push It" should be included on any playlist, generally speaking.

• Plants. Plants were everywhere at Hitched: in terrarium centerpieces from Bash, Please, a beautiful table from Tend Living, an incredible succulent table runner, air plants from the air plant supply company were dangling and beautiful flowers were corralled into mismatched vintage bottles and jars.

• Place Settings. For a dinner party, we love the idea of formal place settings and loved the graphic ones from Mae Mae.

• Good Lighting. the lights were low, there was a fire pit that cast a warm glow on everyone nearby and basically everyone looked good. Twinkling lights and all the indoor lights being on dimmers were key.

• Drag Inside Furniture Out. The party had great seating zones made up of indoor furniture being brought outside. It made it comfy and cozy to escape the music and relax outside before going back in for more. If you have an outdoor space then don't be afraid to drag some indoor furniture outside to expand the party parameters.

• Drinks (served with irony). This sort of goes without saying but alcohol can really contribute a lot to a party. Drinks were flowing. They were serving ironic cans of PBR wrapped in brown bags, Sofia champagne in the little picnic cans and blackberry Manhattans.

• Shiny. A little shiny goes a long way and we loved that ban.do girls and all their shiny shiny.

• Photos. There were more cameras at this event than I have ever seen before. I was proud to be holding one of them. Not only were there a bunch of people documenting the event but there was also Smile Booth which has been at the last 3 events I've gone to. It's a great modern take on the photo booth and it makes people laugh. They design a different backdrop for each event and it comes with a remote, so you can just walk up and hit the button to shoot a bunch of images with your friends.

• Entertainment. Before the night got dull or people started to sip away, the event organizers were smart and built in a scheduled bit of entertainment. Obviously this isn't a practical tip, but just a note to say that the Aqua Lillies and their synchronized swim routines were the highlight of the event. They were great. They made us ooh and ahh and they did a fabulous job. They revived the party at a moment when it could have felt late or you would have been tempted to leave. So consider a scheduled bit of entertainment to get people energized, give them something to talk about and inspire.

Read more about Hitched and all of the participating vendors at Hitched Event.

Images: Laure Joliet