Outdoor Entertainment Area: A Casual Summer Gathering at Home
In this post: Looking to host a casual summer gathering at home? You’ll enjoy these ideas for setting up and decorating an outdoor entertainment area.⇒
Sometimes all you need is a little patch of grass to create a lovely, casual summer gathering.
Yep. It’s not aways necessary to have a full living room’s worth of outdoor furniture to entertain and host a small group at your home.
Don’t get me wrong. I love the outdoor lounge we’ve created on our patio and I enjoy refining it each year. It’s remarkably accommodating and versatile for the size that it is and we use it constantly.
But it’s not the only space that we have.
I’ve mentioned many times that we live in a townhouse and so the patio is technically our only private space. It’s super convenient as it’s right off our kitchen and in summer we go in and out multiple times a day.
But it’s only accessible from inside our house, as there are no stairs that lead to the yard below.
At the same time, the patio, given its finite size, is limited in the amount of sun it gets by the time of day, as well as by the time of year.
Which brings me to using the space beyond the patio.
We are fortunate in that our basement is a walkout space with proper sliding doors and windows along the back wall. We’ve decorated this cavernous indoor space with 2 conversation areas and a bar in the middle, and it lends itself well to casual get togethers.
When you exit the doors beneath our patio, you reach a grassy area that looks like any legitimate backyard. It is reasonably private as it’s backed by woods and it’s amply sized.
Of course the catch is this is not technically our property.
It’s more accurately considered common area and hence, while we’re allowed to use it, we’re not permitted to keep permanent furniture there.
I’ve considered for a few years how best to use this space to accommodate the needs our patio cannot fulfill.
Outdoor Summer Gathering
At the top of that list was being able to sunbathe at will, no matter the time of day or position of the sun. Unlike the patio, the lawn provides sun all day.
I needed chairs that were portable to set up for each use, while offering the option to stretch out and lounge beneath the sky.
Sun beds were out of the question given their weight and heft, so I opted for adjustable sling chairs in a soft buffalo check.
Since portability was the key goal, I added lightweight drum tables for extra comfort, to have a place to keep drinks and snacks or a pair of sunglasses and a book.
The tables are easily carried and I keep them under the patio at night.
I might have stopped there had it been any other year, but the quarantine changed our habits and our ability to entertain.
Suddenly, as the weather warmed, this lawn became the perfect place to see other people. It was accessible without entering our house and we could spread out and be safe distances apart.
We added a few more beach chairs and all the trappings for entertaining and this is pretty much where we’re spending our entire summer.
My formula is a pair of chairs flanking a lightweight table with pillows and throws added in for good measure. I set them 6 feet apart with a tray for serving in the center which can be expanded if we’re eating more than just snacks.
A portable speaker adds a bit of musical ambiance, but with good conversation and a beautiful summer evening, what more could you possibly need?
If you don’t have an outdoor space at your own home, you can set up a similar arrangement at a nearby park.
When the evening is over and everyone is ready to retire, we simply fold up the chairs, place them under the patio and dream sweetly of the next upcoming summer gathering.
More Summer Entertaining
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Love your “common property” lawn grouping.
Very comfy and inviting.
Interesting, you actually use glass vases and
wine glasses outside in that setting. Thought it all looked wonderful except when I saw the $$$ for each of those crystal pieces. ?
I guess that’s a good point and yes, you can certainly use outdoor dishes. There are lots of things that I save money on but I often find that the things I do splurge on are the ones I use over and over again, and in the end, they wind up costing way less per use than some of the less expensive items. If you are referring to those wine glasses, I’ve had them for years and truly have used them hundreds of times… 🙂
That said, the same effect can be gotten with outdoor stemware, which I do have and just didn’t think of using… 😉
Those sling chairs brought back memories of my childhood. My mom had sling lounge chairs back in the day. I didn’t know they were still available.
Your backyard set up is lovely. Why not use that area and enjoy the sun. And, you have the perfect lightweight pieces for easy set up.
I use crystal or glass wine glasses both outdoors on on my boat. Many have asked why not plastic so they don’t break. I can’t imagine enjoying a nice drink out of plastic and if one breaks, I have more. Live is short! Use the nice dishes and stemware.
I couldn’t agree more!! Good for you… 🙂
Such a beautiful arrangement! It’s great to have different places to gather, and even though we don’t have to be quite as careful these days, being about to move things around is a definite bonus! Here’s to another fun summer on the lawn!