Top Tips for Hosting a Garden Party

It’s summertime! And if you have a garden, hosting a garden party is the perfect way to gather with friends and family. It sets such a special scene for connecting, sharing stories, and laughing together. 

Recently, my bestie, Callie, turned 40 and had the vision of a garden gathering to celebrate. I was instantly on board. In fact, I had so much fun planning it! We created an intimate night right in my backyard. 

If you don’t have a garden, this might be your year to start one! I never felt like I had a green thumb, rather the persistence to keep trying. Every single year I learn a little bit more and experience lots of failures. It’s, honestly, part of the fun! 

If you don’t have a garden but would love to throw a garden party, consider using a friend's or research areas in your town that might be available to rent. 

Here’s an inside look into our magical night together! 

Gather Inspiration

When it comes to something so visual, you know I always start with my beloved Pinterest boards. You can find my inspiration board and all the photos from the night right here.

My Inspiration Board

Simplified Menu

I wanted to create a simple, seasonal, interactive menu for the night. And of course, kicked things off with Callie’s favorite drink, The Paloma.

We had:

• Spring garden salad with snap peas, roasted carrots, farro grain and green goddess dressing. 
• Smoke salmon dip with floral crackers
• Vegan pimento cheese dip by Dare (my favorite!)

Then, we had a make-your-own pizza station with a small pizza oven in the garden. I made 20 8” pizza rounds the day before, and everyone took turns building their pizza and popping it in the oven (it only takes about 60 seconds to bake!). 

We finished the night with mini Jeni Ice Creams and a vegan vanilla cake I made. I wanted to create a golden flower cake and had SO MUCH fun playing with creating palette knife flowers. This was my first attempt, so I have a long way to go in improving, but I fell in love with the process. It’s like mixing paint and working on a canvas! 

Delightful Details

One of my favorite parts of the night was having our ducklings curiously walking about. They were, of course, invited to the party as well! A few detailed highlights during this garden party were:

• Allowing our baby (not so little anymore) ducks and chicks to run around 
• Pulled flowers and ferns from around the garden to fill in table settings and cocktail-making table
• Hung additional lemons, limes, and champagne bottles on the garden fence
• Mixed different glassware
• Real candles ready to light as the sun went down

Hilarious Details

Of course, you can’t throw a garden party without a few glitches. The main hitch in my giddy-up was the weather. The forecast showed a 60% chance of rain, but that’s nearly every day in the south during summer. It typically means a quick shower. Not this day. It meant rain came and settled in for the day. The forecast PROMISED it would be gone by 6:00, but the party started at 6:30. We decided to postpone the start until 7:00 and hope for the best. 

The only problem was that I needed to set the stage for the entire night! The garden is about 200 yards from my house, so I loaded up my car and took trips in the rain, piling everything we needed for the night into the dry greenhouse. At 6:07, the rain stopped, and I sprinted down to the garden to set up for the entire night. AH! Luckily, the birthday girl arrived early and insisted on helping. We knocked it out in no time. 

Around 8:00, I went to sit by a dear friend at the linen-covered picnic table. As soon as I sat down, I heard a creeeeaaaaaaKKKKK and down to the ground we fell. HA! I suppose that after the aged picnic table had soaked up water all day, it just couldn’t bear any more weight. It made for one of the biggest laughs of the evening. 

In the end, the weather parted, and it ended up being a beautiful evening that we’ll never forget. Happy birthday, Callie! You are SO LOVED. 

*All photos taken by Callie, or at least by her camera and whoever grabbed it at the moment! :)