The sun is out, you’ve spent a day or two in the garden mowing the lawn and watering the plants and then it happens… the smell of next door’s barbecue drifts over the fence and you’ve gone to barbecue heaven. All of a sudden you’re wondering what you have in the fridge and freezer, how much drink you have and whether your friends are busy that afternoon.
Summer barbecues are what get us through the winter, looking out of the window at the cold, grey, damp conditions and counting down the days until you can get outside again. When it happens you don’t want your dream to be ruined by money even though it is a serious consideration. Organising a party in your garden can be expensive, especially if you have to go out and buy a brand new barbecue and you’re going to provide all of the food and drink for your guests, but there are ways that you can get people over to have fun in the sun without it costing the Earth.
As mentioned, you might need to go out and buy a new barbecue. There are plenty to choose from ranging from disposable to gas or electric models which all have their own benefits and drawbacks, it just determines how much you have to spend and how much you’re likely to be using it and cooking on it. You don’t have to spend hundreds on a top-of-the-range model just because it looks shiny and new, you just need to be realistic with your choice and stick to your budget.
You might then discover that your existing furniture hasn’t come through the cold winter months how you might have hoped and you’ve got to invest in some more. There are plenty of garden and DIY stores online that will give you plenty of options from wooden to plastic models like this which you can buy individually or as a set.
Again, you need to consider how much you have to spend as this may determine where you buy from and which material; but you should also consider how often you’re likely to use them and how many you need. A family of four will obviously need four chairs plus your guests, but if you’re not likely to have many people over too often, you could always get away with your spare household furniture and any camping chairs you have in the shed rather than spending on furniture you “might” use.
One of the best ways to keep costs down, of course, is with the food and drink. Some hosts feel obliged to provide the barbecue food and all of the soft and alcoholic drinks, but this doesn’t have to be the case. Many people often prefer to bring their own food and drink to either feel as though they’ve contributed to the party or so that they can eat the kind of foods that they like without forcing the host to go out and cater to their particular tastes or ‘fussy’ choices. By asking each guest to bring a part of the meal, such as the salad, the bread rolls, the sauces, or the sausages you can keep the costs down and have a highly successful party.
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