Summertime presents great opportunities for outdoor gatherings with family and friends. If you have a patio, you already have a place to host them. As the party host, you bear responsibility for making sure that everybody has a good time, which can be a little intimidating. Here are some tips to make your summer patio party as comfortable and fun for your guests as possible.
1. Choose a Theme
Can you throw a party without a theme? Sure you can, but having a unifying concept for your party can make organizing it a lot easier. Themes can also make the party more fun for your guests as it gives them the opportunity to take a step out of their regular routines.
Here are some examples of fun themes for summer patio parties:
• Country-style barbecue
• Beach party
• Hawaiian-themed party
2. Pick Other Elements Based on the Theme
The reason that choosing a theme makes planning your party easier is that it provides a concept for you to base other elements on, such as your decorations, food, and how you want your guests to dress.
For example, for a Hawaiian-themed party, you would choose flower decorations, serve foods such as pineapple, pork, and coconut desserts, and choose patio furniture in vibrant colors. For a country-style barbecue, you would have your guests dress in denim, cover the tables in gingham, and choose rustic-looking wood or synthetic wood furniture. For a beach-style bash, you would decorate using seashells and palm trees and use breezy wicker furniture in shades of beige, to represent the sand, or blue, to symbolize the water.
3. Organize Your Patio Into Small Seating Areas
Once you have the patio furniture that corresponds to your party theme, set it up in small groupings to create conversation zones. This helps your guests move freely throughout the space if you’re having a large gathering. If it’s a small party, one or two groupings of furniture are probably sufficient.
4. Protect Seating From the Weather
This is a good idea before the party as well as during. Pay attention to the weather forecast prior to the party, and if it looks like rain, cover the furniture or bring it inside. Nothing spoils a nice party like having to sit in a puddle of cold water from last night’s rain. It’s also a good idea to have a shade or a canopy of some sort up during the party in case of rain but also to protect your guests from harsh UV rays.
5. Offer a Beverage Cart
A rolling cart for beverages makes it easy to make sure that everyone has something to drink. It can also carry tools for marking whom each glass belongs to, avoiding confusion later. If you have to move the party indoors due to a sudden change in the weather, a wheeled cart is easy to move indoors quickly.
Outdoor furniture is one of the things you’ll need for a patio party. Make sure to visit Patio Pros to find the perfect outdoor furniture that fits your party theme. Contact us online or call (919) 789-8444 to find the perfect set up for your summer patio parties!