There is nothing better than the first official long weekend of summer! It’s the perfect excuse to spend some time pool side with family or host a gathering in your outdoor living room with neighbors and friends. In anticipation of both Canada Day and the Fourth of July next week, we’ve put together some tips to planning the perfect party on your patio.
Make sure you have lots of seating to accommodate all of your guests. Seat Walls are a great addition to any patio or outdoor living space because they provide extra seating when your table and lawn chairs just don’t cut it. Here are some great examples (Left: Rivercrest® Wall; Right: Brussels Dimensional Stone® with Unigranite® accent).
Although not necessary, cleaning up your gardens and landscape adds a nice touch to your outdoor space. Flowers and greenery always brighten up a winding walkway that leads to your patio or pool deck. It can also add some visual interest to your yard and serve as a great conversation piece. Here is one of our favorites: (Below Copthorne® with Brussels Block® border).
Provide an assortment of food and drinks for your guests – whether you plan to serve some barbeque classics like hamburgers or provide an assortment of appetizers and finger foods, be prepared to offer your friends and family a variety of things to eat, especially if they’re planning to spend the day or night. We’ve picked some of our favourite recipes from a variety of sources!
- Grilling our food on the barbeque is probably one of our favourite parts of summer and we love Whole Foods’ collection of grill favourites. They have everything from Sword Fish Tacos to Spinach and Ricotta Pizza! Check out the collection by clicking here.
- What’s the best side to serve with a barbeque classic like burgers or hotdogs? Potato Salad of course! We found a Fully Loaded Potato Salad recipe from Canadian Living that sounds delicious and definitely worth trying. Click here to read more.
- Whole Foods also put together a terrific recipe collection of icy desserts that will be very refreshing while lounging outdoors. Pick your favorite here.
- It’s also important to make sure the drinks are plentiful so your guests are hydrated, especially throughout the day. We love this Classic Lemonade Recipe from Canadian Living, click here to read it in detail.
For the guests who like to continue to socialize into dusk or for your party that contains a fireworks show, cozy up next to an outdoor fireplace or fire pit. Not only will it provide additional lighting and warmth for your guests, it’ll be a hit for the kids who love to roast marshmallows! For other additional lighting, consider using lanterns on your pillars (Above: Rivenstone™ patio with Copthorne and Brussels Block border, Brussels Dimensional water feature and firepit).
Happy Canada Day and Fourth of July from your friends at Unilock!
