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Lifestyle

Outdoor entertaining essentials

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 I’ll paint the picture for you if you like. It’s summertime and you’re sitting in the lounge room on a warm afternoon. You might even be watching some old episodes of Grey’s Anatomy, who knows? All of a sudden you get this huge, undeniable urge to make a huge batch of margaritas and to invite all of your friends around to help you drink them.

So you jump on the phone (and Facebook, and Whatsapp) and before you know it, you’ve got ten likely chums who think that a big ol’ jug of margaritas in your backyard is a totally splendid idea. Oh, and they’ll be there at your house in two hours. You grab your phone, throw on your wireless speakers and hit the kitchen to start blending.

The thing is though, when you get the urge to party, do you have all of the bits and pieces that you’re going to need in order to host this soiree to end all soirees? Do you even have the blender? Probably not. Not many people do – but the people that are party ready always have a great time in their backyard. You’ve probably been to some parties like that and thought, damn, I really need to get my act together.

Well, never fear. I’m really good at parties, and to help you out, I’ve curated a list of some of my all-time favourite things that I always have on hand (because I’m a huge fan of outdoor parties) in the hopes that you too will be able to emulate moi, and be able to host impromptu margarita parties on a Saturday evening. Whoop whoop!

Outdoor Essential 1: A big table and chair set

If you have lots of mates, they’re not going to be super pleased to be sitting on the floor. Well, not that you’d make them sit on the floor, but you know what I mean. Make your mates comfortable when they’re chilling at your pad with a big ol’ outdoor entertaining setting. You can find some excellent offerings from hardware stores or even from your local classifieds ads.

Outdoor Essential 2: Sweet, sweet music

What is a party without some amazing music? Make sure your party is one to remember with the addition of some classic tunes. You’ll need some wireless speakers for this one to ensure that the music can go wherever you do.

Outdoor essential 3: Drinks and thangs

No party is complete without a nice and tasty range of drinks to keep thirst at bay, and then you’ll also need a nice range of snacks to keep the hunger from creeping up. A nice range of food will also help to ensure that no one gets too smashed too early on – ensuring that you won’t be cleaning up broken glass (and who knows, worse) at night’s end. 

Outdoor essential 4: Heaters and mosquito coils

There is nothing that’s more of a party killer than being cold, and being bitten by mosquitos. If you’re going to be responsible for the wellbeing of your guests, make sure you have plenty of mosquito repellent on hand, and also light some citronella candles or some incense that keeps the critters at bay. Also, make sure you have some blankets or throws, and an outdoor heater or fire drum handy to light up once the sun goes down. Your guests will love you, and the fire or heater really contributes to the ambience of the party.

Well, good luck party people – I hope you can go forth and party like crazy with these little tips about throwing the all-time parties I know you’re capable of. (Image credit - Videopro Facebook).