Party etiquette

[gilana]

I'm terrible about remembering to bring something to parties. I never seem to think of it until the last minute, and often there just isn't anyplace reasonable to stop on the way there. But then, I'm always vaguely surprised when people bring donations to parties I host, too. So I'm curious.

A) Would you rather skip a party than arrive empty-handed? Do you only bring something if it's convenient? Do you just assume the host has everything covered? Share!

B) How do you feel when you're the host? Do you notice who brings what? Are you offended if someone doesn't bring anything? Would you prefer people *not* to bring things? Share on that, too!

Comments

[desireearmfeldt]

My default assumption, both as host and guest, is that guests are not expected to bring stuff unless it's a potluck, and usually don't. However, I recognize that some people have the convention that guests do bring something, and that's OK, though it sometimes surprises me.

I'd almost rather people didn't ask me "can I bring anything?" because then I feel obliged to give them an assignment, when I hadn't planned to have there be something missing from my hostly provisions. (It's not a big deal, though.)

I will occasionally bring a pre-existing thing to a party, but this is a bit more like re-gifting. (e.g. "we have this unopened bag of chips from some previous event, if we take them to a place with lots of people snacking, they'll get eaten.") Or, when we bake at the holidays, it's often with the assumption that we'll take some of the baked goods to holiday parties.