Midsummer is the perfect season for garden parties. It is the ideal opportunity to celebrate with family and friends in the fresh air, and you can invite more people than you would be able to invite to an indoor party. Here are some tips to help you organize yours!
1) Inform Your Guests
If you’re planning a surprise garden party, don’t forget that your guests can only enjoy themselves when they feel comfortable. Therefore, when inviting guests, make it clear that it is an outdoor party to not lose their comfort by wearing high heels or tight mini dresses. If the party lasts a long time, tell your guests to bring warm clothes and swimsuits if they plan to be near water.
2) Arrange For An Appropriate Party Venue
Whether you are planning a garden party on a hot summer day or evening, make sure you have the appropriate location. You may want to have blankets and scarves available in case the weather changes.
It is also vital to ensure that all guests have a place to sit. Not everyone will want to lay on the grass, so you may choose to relax on a hammock, chair, or large cushion. When setting up the awnings and chairs, make sure that your guests do not have to stay near the barbecue for long periods. This will indeed protect your guests from food smells, smoke, and food stains.
If there will be children at the party, it is essential to limit their access to potentially dangerous areas in the vicinity. For example, a pond, a beehive, or a shed with garden tools. It is good to create a separate area where children can spend time together, with toys and games to keep them from venturing out into the wide open.
3) Simple But Delicious Dishes
Nuts, flowers, fruits, and anything else that adds color to a garden party will attract insects, especially wasps. If you find that your garden is often swarming with predatory insects, choose pots with mesh lids to keep them away from your food. Drinks should be served in cups rather than bottles or cans so that you can quickly spot wasps in your drinks.
One of the basic rules of catering a garden party is that food should be simple enough to be eaten with a fork and a plate. When choosing tableware, make sure it is impact-resistant. It is best to select those that are specially designed for outdoor use.
If you are celebrating in hot weather, meat dishes should be cooked thoroughly. It is advisable to eat the prepared food immediately and not leave it on the table for more than two hours. If the main course of the party is a grilled dish, you may want to prepare some snacks to ease the initial hunger of the guests.
4) Plan Fun Activities
One of the main purposes of a party is to meet close people and chat for a long time, but sometimes that is not enough to make a party memorable. This is especially true if you are trying to gather a group of people who don’t know each other in one place. Try planning some simple games or entertainment to bring your guests closer together and facilitate communication. If children are attending the party, make sure you have some exciting games for them to enjoy the garden space. Balloons, bubble blowers, and face paint are party accessories that are always useful for kids.
Theme parties are still in vogue. Even if you don’t have time to think about entertaining your guests, they will love it. Here are a few examples of popular theme parties:
Cross-cultural parties: An American party with country music, plaid flannel, jeans and skirts, and American food such as hamburgers and barbecue.
Favorite movie-themed party: If the party turns out to be a long one (and movie-themed parties must be long), what better way to end a summer evening than to watch your favorite movie on a screen set up on the wall of your house or among the gorse in the garden!
Was your garden party a success or not? Let us know in the comments below!