Tips for Your Outdoor Party!

The Canada Day long weekend is coming up and the weather will be great for a BBQ party! With the temperature being up there, here are some tips on keeping your outdoor party breezy and cool!

1) Start with a friendly reminder.

Let guests know that a part of, or all of your party will be outdoors. Don’t require fancy attire. Allow people to keep clothing casual so that they can wear their favourite summer dress or pair of shorts and can put up their hair without feeling out of place.

Blue Orange Yellow Pink Umbrellas in the sky

2) Have an area to cool off.

Even though it’s better than 5 feet of snow, the summer can get uncomfortably hot some days and sweating bullets is enough to put a damper on any party. Have a shaded area where guests can cool off with items such as fans, spray bottles, cold hand towels or even a small inflatable pool (a.k.a. kiddie pool) where guests could dip their feet in can help. Gazebos, canopies or table umbrellas are great ways to bring some shade if you don’t have any natural shade. If you’re feeling adventurous, water balloons and water guns are sure to make things interesting! P.s Have sunscreen on hand as well for people who didn’t bring any or need to reapply.

3. Have enough seating.

I don’t know about you, but standing in the sun always makes me way more frustrated than sitting in the sun. Unless, of course, the chairs are made of a material that is going to burn my skin. If you do have fancy metal or wooden chairs, bring out some plush cushions or soft fabric to help save those bums.

4) Hydration is key!

Ensure that your guests’ thirst is quenched at all times! Have large bowls or dispensers serving cold summer drinks like lemonade; add frozen fruit to the mix to keep the drinks cold but not watered down. Also, home-made ice pops can be super stylish, easy to make and practical for summer parties. Also, did you know that ice pops are commonly referred to as Popsicles, but Popsicles is a brand name! :o

5) Start cold and end cold!

Appetizers and desserts can both be served cold (and less time spent working with an oven or stove is always a plus). Thanks to the internet, there are a million and one recipes for cold, refreshing salads to serve to start and probably double that for easy, chilled desserts. This combined with the cool drinks mixed throughout dinner is going to make you everyone’s favourite host. Prep cold foods and desserts that need to be refrigerated before the party starts so that they are properly cooled well before the guests arrive.

6.) Keep the bugs away

Ensure you do not have any stagnant water anywhere – that is where mosquitoes breed so you want to ensure that any stagnant water is dried up or removed before your party.

Also, keep bug spray on hand as well as bug repellent candles/gadgets surrounding the party can help repel bugs.

Have a fan near areas that have food, even on a light fan setting, it can keep weak fliers like mosquitoes and fruit flies away from the food. Food tents help as well (you can easily purchase these at the dollar store).

Hope these tips give you some good ideas for that outdoor party. Happy Canada 150! We hope you all have an awesome Canada Day long weekend!

If you have any comments, questions or blog topic requests, you can contact us at info@evented.ca!