Last week, in the midst of one of this summer's many heatwaves, I hosted eight of my friends in my garden as part of my hen do celebrations. I say 'host' loosely, as my job was simply to prepare the outdoor furniture and supply the hosting/kitchen essentials while my friends acted as chef, bar staff and waiters.
I thought I had everything covered to get my small garden ready to host. I'd invested in a £35 folding table from B&Q and some metal folding chairs from Habitat so everyone had a seat (but I could fold them away afterwards). I also pulled out my Shark FlexBreeze HydroGo Misting Fan, £129.99 at Shark, to help keep everyone cool, and used my Roberts Revival Petite 2 Radio, £99 at John Lewis, as a speaker for music.
However, I quickly realised I'd neglected several small details that would have made all the difference when hosting people outdoors in this current heat. Here are the buys I'll be picking up before my next garden party.
1. Drinks cooler
My garden is tiny, and I figured I'd have no need for an outdoor cooler as my fridge is right next to the back door, barely 20 paces from the table. How wrong I was.
Whether you're drinking beer, cocktails or fizz, keeping guests' drinks topped up is a full job. Even with my fridge so close, it felt like a chore to tear yourself away from the conversations to grab a top-up of bubbly, and it was too hot to leave more than one bottle out at a time.
Next party, I'm planning to invest in either a chic metal cooler that I can fill with ice to keep bottles chilled or a full cool box instead of an outdoor fridge. I'm currently eyeing up the Argos Campos 25L Cool Box in green, which is £18 and would blend in beautifully with my mini outdoor kitchen.
Affordable and aesthetic, this is the cool box I'd choose for stowing away extra drinks and heat-sensitive snacks that can't sit out for more than 15 minutes.
This metal tub can hold a couple of bottles of fizz or 25 bottles of beer. It's ideal if you want to create your own mini outdoor bar.
2. Ice maker
Even though I'd purposely gone out to buy a new bag of ice on the morning of the party, we still blasted through it in topping up the soft drink pitcher alone. Next time I'm investing in an ice maker like this £99 from John Lewis. It produces 12kg of ice in 24 hours; for comparison, the average bag you can buy at the supermarket typically weighs around 2kg.
While I'm calling it a hosting essential, the rate I've been getting through ice this summer and the strain it's put on my ice tray, an ice maker would pay for itself in no time.
This ice cube maker can make 12kg of ice in 24 hours. It's about the size of a small breadmaker, and reviews say it's easy to use and relatively quiet. However, it doesn't keep the ice frozen, so it needs to be transferred into a freezer when made.
This Amazon alternative has a daily output of 12kg. You can customise the size of the ice cubes, and reviews say the ice should stay frozen in the maker for a short while.
3. Fly fans
When eating outside flies are always a pain, but this year (along with wasps) they've been next level. Once the food was out on the table, especially when it came to the cakes or sweet treats, we were dive-bombed by every flying insect and bug around.
I'd been relying on citronella candles to try and keep the flies away, but next time I'm investing in fly fans to protect the food. You'll often see them used abroad in holiday resorts or at food markets in summer.
This set of two fly fans can be charged via USB or AA battery. They stand around 22.3cm tall from a table and have a wing space on 8.2 cm.
Alongside the fans, I'm considering investing in a pretty food cover to keep any treats fly-safe when eating outdoors.
4. Parasol or gazebo
This is going to sound like a no-brainer, but I made the crucial mistake of not buying a parasol or shade structure back in late spring when there were plenty of budget versions available. I live in a north-facing garden, and so figured I could get away with the natural shade my fence and house provided. I should have known better.
While the day of the actual event wasn't as hot as it had been, I still managed to get sunburnt, and we had to keep a close eye on the clotted cream and any iced cakes on the table, which swiftly turned into little puddles.
I'm currently saving up for this parasol. I love the on-trend scallop trim for adding a bit of flair to an outdoor space, and it also has a tilt function. It comes in a fig leaf green and licorice black.
If you need to cover a dining table or BBQ area against sun and rain, then this pop-up gazebo is a smart investment to weatherproof your outdoor entertaining plans.
5. Seat pads
I own two seat pads already, but shamefully it didn't occur to me to invest in some extra sets for the additional folding chairs and garden chairs I put out in the garden. It took my friends deciding who was wearing the most suitable outfit to risk sitting on the (baking hot) metal chairs for me to realise my mistake.
I always think seat pads are a lovely addition to personalise a bistro set, but I'm investing in a couple of back-up pads ahead of my next event to use on my metal folding seats and to make my mismatched indoor and outdoor seating combination look a little more uniform.
I can never resist a stripe, or a well place ruffle for that matter. This set of 2 seat pads comes in three colours including this gorgeous red, green and yellow.
For a luxe look on a budget, I love these striped outdoor seat pads that are currently reduced to £15. They're water-resistant so can be left out in a shower.
If you're hosting a couple of summer gatherings and realise, like me, you're missing one of these hosting essentials, I'd recommend buying fast. Outdoor furniture stock at the best places to buy garden furniture are dwindling fast, as are other outdoor hosting essentials, so my advice is to buy now or regret later.
