are house parties a thing of the past?

[sweetgirl]

i went to a house party this evening in catford. i had a fantastic night.......

nice music, nice food & most of all i felt safe!

do house parties still exist? at least do they exist in dulwich?

i think they're the best, they just don't happen often enough!

[indiepanda]

Everyone likes going to a house party.... not everyone likes hosting.

If I think about inviting a large group of friends over for a party rather than a smaller group over for dinner, I then start to picture red wine spilt on my nice light coloured sofas. Or on the landlord's carpet. Or having rows with the neighbours about noise....

wimpish I know!

[ratty]

Last time we had a house party it ended up in my neighbours house! How cool is that? yes, we of abbotswood have a great neighbourly spirit!

[jollybaby]

They certainly do still happen in ED. Our neighbour had one last night. Quite a grand one with lights and sound system in the garden. Must admit I haven't hosted one for a while apart from the impromptu post pub/dinner get together.

[Pickle]

There was a house party going on last night in the vicinity of Upland/Underhill/Dunstans - sounded like fun!

[RosieH]

I have been to two excellent house parties in the past month - one of which was in ED. Inevitable result is a few spillages, nothing that can't be fixed with a potion from Farmers. But I think we're generally safe from the worst excesses of vandalism as long as we don't announce our shindig on facebook / myspace.

That said, I can only fit about 10 people tops in my flat, so find the back room of the Joiners in Camberwell to be an excellent alternative

[Peckhamgatecrasher]

Has the lingo changed so much when I wasn't looking?

Surely a houseparty is when one goes to someone's house (usually in the country) for a weekend or longer?

Otherwise a party is a party. In which case the party is truly alive, I attended one on Friday night.

[RosieH]

PGC, you're far too posh for the likes of us. I can't go to houseparties since I hocked mummy's pearls: I just wouldn't have a thing to wear, especially with Bunty not talking to me since I spooned with his pa

I want to go to an old school house party...

[*Bob*]

Proper houseparties (which require an open door policy, broken furnishings, specially painted walls, a visit from the Police and at least 25% of the attendants to be completely unknown by the hosts) are best left to those in shared accommodation, Australians, or preferably both.

[jollybaby]

My best house party was when I was about 15. A group of sixth formers turned up, parked on my parents' front lawn and threw bottles over the wall smashing the next door neighbour's greenhouse. I was meant to be having a girls' only sleepover and was grounded for weeks!

[MadWorld74]

house parties are great......as long as they're not nextdoor to my house. ;-)

[ChavWivaLawDegree]

I the first proper party in the 18 months I've been in ED for my 16 yr old a couple of weeks back with a dj and all her sullen mates walking around trying not to look interested in all the sullen youts she's invited.

We used to have about 4 a year in my old flat but anyway this party was nice and tame with us grownups getting leggless in the kitchen and the kids taking ages to start dancing, but even tho we'd warned the neighbours we had the police called on us after a near-punch up with a neighbour who demanded we lock it off. We'd turned it down already after they'd complained so were glad when the police said it wasn't too loud and left us to it.

Maybe that's why people round here don't have many house parties - too many moany kill joys.

[????]

When I was young house parties were a regular (every saturday) feature of life in London as

1) Everyone was skint

2) Clubs closed at 2am

3) Although I like house/dance music - it kind of made a tape recorder with the Smiths on it in your front room a bit lightweight

4) Whole swathes of areas like Camberwell were squats with associated parties

[will dex]

I had a few neighbours slamming their windows at 12am a few weeks back when we felt playing "now youre gone - Basshunter" was a good idea (it so was..)

Our neighbours seem to have carribean parties in the garden from time to time and it looks wicked!

[Strawbs]

I absolutely love love a good house party - at someone else's house... I love to host and organise events but honestly when it comes to a house party it all gets a little hectic for my liking.. worrying about the neighbours, worrying about the neighbours complaining to the landlord, red wine always somehow managing to be spilt on the carpet, cig burns from the crazy smokers hanging their heads out the window blah blah the list goes on and on..

So in short if you are having one we would love to come but when its my turn to organise one it will be down the Bishop! >:D<

[Keef]

*Bob* Wrote:

-------------------------------------------------------

> Proper houseparties (which require an open door

> policy, broken furnishings, specially painted

> walls, a visit from the Police and at least 25% of

> the attendants to be completely unknown by the

> hosts) are best left to those in shared

> accommodation, Australians, or preferably both.

Exactly right! When I lived in a flat on Barry Road (4 or 5 years ago now) with 2 flatmates (one of whom was Australian), we had many parties that fit *bob*'s description. It was great fun, except for the poor couple that lived upstairs! No way I'd have a party like that at my place now though!

[Strawbs]

Keef Wrote:

-------------------------------------------------------

> *Bob* Wrote:

> --------------------------------------------------

> -----

> > Proper houseparties (which require an open door

> > policy, broken furnishings, specially painted

> > walls, a visit from the Police and at least 25%

> of

> > the attendants to be completely unknown by the

> > hosts) are best left to those in shared

> > accommodation, Australians, or preferably both.

>

>

> Exactly right! When I lived in a flat on Barry

> Road (4 or 5 years ago now) with 2 flatmates (one

> of whom was Australian), we had many parties that

> fit *bob*'s description. It was great fun, except

> for the poor couple that lived upstairs! No way

> I'd have a party like that at my place now though!

Ahem *clears throat*.. Not aaaaalllll Australians are crazy! *wink* Well I think possibly we all go through that phase when we get over here of throwing wicked house parties and then there seems to be a divide - the working holiday visa Aussie and then stayers.. Stayers dont tend to trash where they live because by then generally youve thrown your backpack and you have furniture so no chance of a quick getaway!!

[Pickle]

@Strawbs... your post made me laugh! Same applies to kiwis - when I first moved to the UK we always threw mad house parties in our (rented) flat full of the landlord's furniture. Thought nothing of it. Generally didn't know half the people that turned up and sometimes it took weeks to get rid of guests who decided to invite themselves to stay while trying to find work/accomodation etc. Things are different these days, and yep, I've thrown my backpack! Having moved to the UK 8 years ago with one backpack and no ties I now have a house full of stuff and 2 kids in tow. How things have changed.

[Clazza]

Still alive & kicking, I was at a cool party on Shoreditch on Saturday & hosted one myself a few weeks ago - a garden seems to help & picking a weekend both neighbours were away!

[ivansxtc]

Hi

House parties are ok but nothing worst is when the party starts at 8 pm why not have it after the pub. Sometimes feel trapped when at a house party. ivan

[Muttley]

I wonder if the decline in parties in East Dulwich is correlated with the growth in the number of young children in these parts. House parties may be fun for everyone at 9pm, but when they are still going at 4am, with throbbing music and 'guests' throwing up in the street, and when you have spent the previous few nights trying to get your infants to sleep, they are hell.

I fear the day when those young children turn into teenagers, and locals can't afford to move out to Kent.

That Grinch bloke had a point.

[Pugwash]

Went to a party in Brockley the other week - a colleague put on a fund raising event in her house and garden, over 60 people there from babes in arms to OAP. Jazz group in the lounge till about midnight then on came the stero for dancing.

She had catered for 100, so went around the next day and invited all the neighbours back for dinner and collected more money. She is aiming to have another do in August - no complaints from neighbours re noise. perhaps idea is to have plenty of young children around and a good mix of ages. A few people were merry but not overtly so. Was talk of the office for a few days.

[AcedOut]

Well I'm planning on having a massive one for my 30th, but at my girlfriend's place in ED, not mine! She's the one with the big garden.

So, if you hear a lot of noise on 16th August, I'll probably be me!!!!

[will dex]

Why dont you reschedule for sat the 30th (geddit?)

[Strawbs]

I am thinking about having a little drink for my 30th too but dont think it will be a house party, dont think my new landlords of two weeks would take to that too kindly...

(td)