Throw the Ultimate Beach Party – at Home
Come the end of year and it seems as though everyone's planning their trips to far flung beaches around the world and talking non stop about all the fun they're going have dancing in the sand. For anyone who doesn't have a beach trip planned, it's torture. Of course, no one said you had to be at the beach to enjoy the best parts of a beach party. Here's how to throw your own beach party at home when the coast is a little out of reach.
Bring the beach to you
The best part of a beach party is walking barefoot in the sand. So when you're at home, bring the sand to you. Search for event companies in your area that will deliver beach sand to your home (there are more than you think!) and lay it out in the garden. If you're not quite sold on the idea of covering your whole lawn in sand, get in a few plastic sand pits and fill them with spades and buckets, especially great for kids parties. Alternatively, get wooden palates from paint stores and lay them on the ground as a makeshift beach deck in your garden. Put out loungers next to the sand and scatter around some blown up beach balls and lilos.
Get out the mason jars
While beach parties used to be kitted out with red plastic cups, these days you can't respectably throw a cool beach party without serving colourful drinks in mason jars, this year's most popular drink trend. The best mason jars are see-through so you can decorate drinks with slices of orange or grapefruit, sprigs of mint or pieces of cucumber. Pop in a cute straw and you're done. Tip: ditch the glass for crazy plastic mason jars with straws. No one wants broken shards hidden underneath the sand!
Try the Ombre Grapefruit: ½ cup of chilled grapefruit juice, 1 can of chilled lemonade, 2 tablespoons of simple syrup, pomegranate syrup, ice, grapefruit slices and mint leaves for garnish.
Serve snacks in buckets
A great way to keep the beach theme going through every element is to serve snacks and drinks out of plastic buckets, such as the 1 litre Crazy Plastics party buckets. Fill them with chips, biltong, nuts or sweets and tuck in a small spade for serving. Or fill them with ice and give one to each guest to keep their drinks cold next to their lounger. Hey, if they can do it in Thailand, we can do it at home!
Include beachy special touches
Fill vases with sand and beach shells which will make for great table decor. Instead of a tablecloth, cover the table in a fishing net complete with fake seaweed intertwined. Make a few beach house inspired signs (think "salt in our hair, sand in our toes" or "flip flops are mandatory") and hang them up outside. And of course, create a classic summer inspired playlist complete with Bob Marley, The Beach Boys and Fleetwood Mack.
Don't forget the water
It's going to be hot out there, so keep people hydrated but don't just serve tap water. Try infusing water with interesting combinations of fruits, veggies and herbs. Soft fruits like citrus and strawberries can be sliced thick, thin, halved or quartered before being added to water as they release flavor quickly. Harder fruits like apples should be cut in thin slices because they take longer to release flavors. Pop your fruits into the water and leave it at room temperature for no more than two hours before putting it in the fridge to cool down before serving. Make it in a stylish portable drink dispenser like a beehive dispenser and let people serve themselves. Try apple, cinnamon and ginger (leave to infuse overnight), mint and rosemary, or lime, ginger and basil.