Simple Outdoor Entertaining Ideas

Creative and Simple Food Ideas

• Make cucumber and chicken salad or turkey sandwiches for your party. Use different cookie cutters to press the sandwiches into fun shapes. You can find all sorts of cookie cutters to match just about any occasion. Look for teddy bears and hearts for a kid-themed party or find basic stars and circles for a general family event. Place a large bowl of fruit in the middle of the table with miniature bowls of fruit around the larger one. You might also want to place fruit on wooden fruit sticks and place these in a row on a tray. Cook different types of meat on the grill to satisfy various taste buds. Some people might enjoy a vegetarian burger or portabella mushroom in place of beef or buffalo.

Simple and Sweet Beverages

• Make sweet and simple beverages for your guests to enjoy such as strawberry lemonade or sweet tea. Add tiny pieces of strawberries into a pitcher of pink lemonade or blend handfuls of strawberries in a blender and mix this with lemonade. You can also buy lemon lime soda and place this in a pitcher full of ice with a few lemon wedges on top. Pure water with cucumber slices also works well for outdoor parties.

Table Decor

• The table decor can also add to the enjoyment of everyone at the party. Colorful pastel plates and tablecloths work well for spring or summer parties. Country white and red checkered tablecloths with white china look good at just about any outdoor event. Place a bouquet of flowers in a vase in the center of the table and choose decorative placemats for each guest. Homemade crafts, candles, pumpkins and small sculptures also add more appeal to any table. You might also like a stars-and-stripes flag tablecloth and star-shaped plates for a 4th of July party.

Music

• Music adds an entertaining element to any outdoor party without costing extra money or taking too much time to set up. Simply use a small CD player from the house, open a window sill and place it on the window sill. Play music that matches that theme of your party. Patriotic music works well for a 4th of July barbecue, but you might want to play a nature sounds CD for a simple spring get-together. Nature sounds music features waterfalls, birds, ocean waves and other sounds from the wilderness.