New Year’s ….

If your budget is tight, you may not be going out to eat or celebrating New Year’s Eve this year.

You can still get festive and welcome 2010 on the cheap, but it does involve planning.

One way is hosting a dinner party and make it pot luck. Here’s where the organizing comes in, especially if your friends and family are not used to pot luck.

Each year, our extended Clark family gets together before Christmas. The head count is 40 plus, so the food bill could be expensive. Each family shows up with a dish large enough to feed their family. The host calls each party-goer asking what he or she is bringing, ensuring there’s a good assortment of food. At our gathering, typically one family brings a turkey, another a ham or pork dish, several others bring casseroles, salads, bread, desserts or beverages.

Last spring, Tightwad Gazette author Amy Dacyczyn of Leeds and her family held a pot luck reception for her daughter’s wedding. Instead of bringing presents, guests brought food. The food was amazing. There was no big food bill. Dacyczyn said pot luck is a nice way to build community among friends.

If alcohol is part of the party, be sure there’s a designated driver to bring people home, or have taxi companies’ phone numbers handy, recommends the American Heart Association. And be sure there are nonalcoholic beverages.

To decorate without spending a lot, use simple objects tied in with a color theme. Cheap and beautiful center pieces can be pine cones teamed with glass tree ornaments, or glass ornaments in a glass vase. Choose a color scheme of two or three colors, blue, green and silver, or red and gold. Stick to those colors decorating throughout the house.

Get inexpensive party hats and 2010 decorations at discount stores, or make them.

The heart association also recommends using unusual serving pieces — a sleek mirror or wooden cutting board — as platters. Vary the height of the buffet by stacking books under the tablecloth, giving it a professional caterer’s touch.

Before the midnight ball drops, inexpensive entertainment for adults and children can include asking everyone to offer their resolutions, what they’re grateful for, creative toasts. Games can include Charades, Bingo, cards or WWii. 

If you’re not up for a house party, get outside to say goodbye to 2009. Bundle up, or grab your umbrella, and take a walk looking at beautiful Christmas lights. Splurge for fancy coffee or tea and maybe a dessert.

If you’re a dog owner, you could organize a group dog walk with other friendly dogs and owners. Group walks are a good way to mingle. Don’t forget flashlights and bags to clean up.