Throw a Budget-Friendly Summer Party

Outdoor entertaining for summer? Décor and Lifestyle Expert, Janette Ewen, shares tips on throwing budget-friendly DIY gatherings. California Live’s Amber Pfister gets all the details on using creativity and where to look online to find affordable party trends. See what’s hot in 2022 and level up your next soiree! **AFFORDABLE TIPS** 1: Pick a theme and run with it. For 2022 there is no hotter summer entertaining theme than “tropical” and celebrating the relaxed California lifestyle. Now that we have a theme, we can use it to guide our décor, activity, food, and beverage choices. Themes help us focus when making decisions on elements for your party. Also, when kicking off your plans, consider asking a few friends or family members to help. If a few trusted souls are handling one small task each, your “work” load will lighten, and you can focus on being a delightful host! 2: Shop what you have: Using the California color palette start by shopping “what you have”. I like to grab a few oversized shopping bags and go through each room of my home—pulling elements that fit the theme/ color palette. “Shop” your home with an open mind. Is there anything you can repurpose for your event? For example, a craft filing cart does double duty as a mini bar or refreshment station. A low coffee table partnered with your outdoor cushions becomes an ideal relaxed dining area. Mix and match serving trays, cakes stands, and colorful household trinkets can be used to create a themed presentation table for food. 3. Shop local, borrow from friends and DIY additional elements: Make a list of what you will need. You can cross off elements you have already have. Then look through the list and consider what you can thrift, DIY or borrow. 4. Design the menu: When hosting such a heavily themed party, I like to opt for semi home- made food with a splash of ready-made. Including feta, watermelon popsicle inspired skewers, mini beach bbq/ cookout favorites, DIY mini-ice cream bars with sprinkles. For drinks we created two signature cocktails. One is non-alcoholic featuring Ceders non-alcohol gin and one using Good Boy Vodka (it’s made in California using California wheat). I’ll have DIY’d mini menus up. 5. Create a welcome wall/ photo op: Guests love snapping photos for their social media so be sure to give them a stylish backdrop. We DIY’d a welcome wall that double duties as a photo area. Place a table near the area with fun summer elements like cute beach sunglasses etc. so guests can play around and dress up a little.