Before the Kids Arrive . . .

The secret to hosting a successful cookie-decorating party is all in the prep work. Here, six essential tips:

1. Bake all the cookies the day before the party, making at least seven per child. Click here for our cookie recipes. When choosing cookie cutters, remember: Bigger cookies are easier for little hands to decorate.

Note: If you'll want to use some of the kids' creations as tree ornaments, remember to make a small hole at the top of those cookies before baking. After the icing on the cookies has dried, use braided gold cord or covered wire (both available at craft stores), thin ribbon, or even pipe cleaners to create hanging loops.

2. Prepare for a mess. Part of the fun is letting kids decorate with abandon, and the result is usually a little (or a lot of) icing on the floor. That said, the best way to control the mess is to have the children seated around one table, which has been protected with a large sheet of butcher paper or a plastic tablecloth (you can use another one for the floor). Keep a few rolls of paper towels handy for on-the-spot cleanups.

3. Spoon different colors of icing into small resealable plastic bags and cut a tiny hole in the tip of each for easy piping. Click here for our Ornamental Icing recipe. Even better (and less messy): Buy tubes of precolored icing at the supermarket.

4. Avoid arguments by giving each child her own small bowls of candy decorations (this also prevents everything from getting mixed up together).

5. Place small decorations, such as sprinkles and colored sugar, in jars with shaker lids.

6. Then stand back and let the kids decorate their cookies any way they want. Who cares if Santa has a purple beard, as long as everyone has fun?

PHOTO: © Mark Thomas