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Laid-Back Party Planner

Outdoor party

Miki DuisterhofPage 10 of 34

30 Tips for Easy Outdoor Entertaining

Set up tables in separate areas―say, drinks in one spot, dessert in another―to encourage guests to roam.

Next: Stock a bar cart with essentials: glasses, plates, ice, a cocktail shaker, and swizzle sticks. Wheel it back to the kitchen if you run low.

Skip to Daily Finds slides.

Table setting with food outdoors at sunset

Outdoor dining room with a cream canopy

Woman setting a table

Outdoor dining room with white canopy

Family eating dinner on a picnic table in the countryside

Summer outdoor dining table with all-plastic setup

Outdoor cocktail party setup

Outdoor cocktail party supplies

Blooms floating in platter

Woman laughing at barbecue

Table setting with food outdoors at sunset

Lemonade and chips on a picnic table

Starfish napkin ring with a margarita

Sunflowers in colorful beach pails

Outdoor cocktail party

Pink lanterns in an evening garden dinner

Striped candle torches

Electric red and pink woven round string lights

Backyard lit with torches and candles

Backyard lit with battery-powered lights

Backyard lit with colorful solar lighting

Backyard lit with colorful electric lighting

Outdoor chandelier

Fire pit on patio

Real Simple June/July 2003

Fire pit on an outside brick patio

Guests at an outdoor party lit by a patio fire pit

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