With Australia’s relatively mild winters, more and more people are getting into the groove of hosting and attending outdoor parties and celebrations with friends and family. Regardless of whether you’re looking to throw the perfect outdoor soiree this Winter or are making plans for the ultimate get-together once Spring rolls around, a garden party is a fantastic way to get your friends and family together for some quality time, all while enjoying the great outdoors.
If you are someone who loves hosting gatherings and are looking to throw the ultimate outdoor celebration, you’ve come to the right place. Here are the only 6 tips you’ll need for throwing the perfect garden party.
- Prioritising Your Guests’ Comfort Is Key
When it comes to throwing the perfect outdoor garden party, comfort is key. One of the most challenging aspects of a garden party is ensuring that your guests are kept safe from the weather, bugs and other outdoor factors that may have the potential to put a damper on your event. Our favourite way to keep guests safe from rain, wind or even the harsh afternoon sun is to ensure that you set your party up under some shade that will provide adequate cover for party guests and patio furniture. Canopies and gazebos are a great option, as are marquees and cantilever umbrellas. These options will ensure that you are prepared for anything the weather has in store for the day.
Now that your guests are protected from the elements, it’s time to ensure that unwanted pests don’t turn up to crash your party. To keep annoying mozzies and flies away, we highly recommend providing guests with bug spray or investing in a few fly repellent fans to set up on your outdoor tables.
- Create A Tablescape That Wows
Decorating your outdoor table just as you would for an indoor party is one of the easiest ways to truly wow your guests. As a general rule of thumb, a great tablescape is one that is thoughtfully filled with a variety of different textures and colours that set the tone for the rest of your afternoon or evening. Instead of just throwing a bunch of different things onto a table, we recommend choosing a theme and decorating accordingly. Some expert tips for creating the perfect outdoor table decor include:
- Choosing a centrepiece that really speaks to your garden party’s theme;
- Decorating with freshly cut flowers or aromatic herbs from your garden;
- Opting for regular dinnerware and cutlery over plastic options;
- Choosing a fabulous tablecloth that can be used to set the mood; and
- Decorating the table with various knick knacks or trinkets to create a cosy and rustic feel to your party.
- Plan An Outdoor Friendly Menu
I’m sure that we can all agree that food is obviously one of the most exciting parts of any garden party. When planning the perfect party menu, it is important to choose dishes that are able to withstand outdoor temperatures without spoiling. Not all dishes are ready to take on the heat and the last thing you want is for someone to suffer an upset stomach after your event. Our top picks for food when it comes to a garden party include antipasto platters, veggie sushi, oil-based pasta salads, fresh burgers off the grill and baked goods such as muffins, cookies and breads.
If you really want to serve something cold or made with potentially perishable ingredients such as dairy, eggs, mayonnaise or meat, we suggest filling a large bowl with ice cubes and placing your smaller serving bowls inside. This will ensure that your food is kept chilled at all times and won’t take up too much additional space on your table.
For more ideas on outdoor friendly recipes, be sure to head over to this handy list.
- Encourage Guests To Mingle
One of the best things about hosting a garden party is that guests are not stuck to an assigned seat that can often be the case in a more formal, indoor setting. As such, we always encourage hosts to take advantage of the flexibility of an open seating arrangement to inspire mingling amongst guests. This can easily be done by setting up various ‘stations’ or ‘zones’ in your garden for games, discussions and other outdoor activities that will allow your guests to get to know each other in a fun and creative way.
If there are children attending your party, we also recommend that you provide them with a variety of different activities that will keep them entertained and tantrum-free. Pavement chalk, scavenger hunts, bubble wands or a small ball pit are all great, safe and inexpensive diversions that are guaranteed to keep children occupied while the adults mingle amongst themselves.
- Pick The Right Music
Music is an essential at any type of party, especially one that is held outdoors. Whether it is chilled background music for an intimate outdoor dinner party or dance beats that will encourage guests to boogie well into the night, curating the perfect party playlist can create the ultimate atmosphere to give your guests an unforgettable experience.
To ensure that your music isn’t drowned out by the sounds of guests chatting and mingling, we highly suggest sourcing a quality bluetooth or wireless speaker that you (or your music-savvy guests) can connect to a smartphone or laptop with ease. Such speakers are easily positioned anywhere in the garden and are capable of enveloping your space in a perfect sound stage. We also recommend pre-planning a few different playlists on platforms such as Apple Music or Spotify that will help to ensure you never run out of amazing tunes to party to!
- Ensure Your Garden is in Tip Top Shape
Lastly, it is important to remember that your garden is the star of the show, so doing adequate preparations to ensure it is in tip top condition before your guests arrive is key! Depending on the size and type of garden you have, this may include a variety of tasks such as mowing, pulling out weeds, cutting back shrubs and laying down new mulch. If time and budget permits, we recommend heading to your local garden store or nursery to pick up a few new plants or pots to really add the finishing touches to your space.
Oh, and don’t forget that patio furniture also plays a huge role in your garden’s aesthetic, so be sure to clean and prep them well in preparation for your event! For more tips on how you can give your garden a much needed makeover, hop on over to this handy article.
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And there you have it – 6 practical yet effective tips that are guaranteed to help you host the garden party of the year. Do you have any suggestions that we haven’t included in this list? Be sure to share them in our comments section below!