Top Tips for Organising a Party

It's easy to get overwhelmed with organising a get together so we've put together some top tips for organising a party...

1. Mix and match

Don't be scared to mix and match crockery, cutlery and decor. Eclectic is in so may as well make the most of it and throw together whatever you have in your home to create a unique dinner party/party. Sometimes trying to get it perfect doesn't quite work. What things can you mix and match?

- old and new (vintage and modern)

- still and busy patterns (plain and floral materials for napkins or table cloths)

- transparent and non-transparent (cups or glasses)

- rustic and smooth (think hessian and chiffon table lays)

2. Make lists!

Making lists makes organising a party so much easier. You can't host a party without making lists! Here's a list of lists you should make..

- Each dish you want to prepare along with what ingredients you need for each dish (include how long it will take you to make each dish)

- Drinks you need to buy

- What decor you need to buy/get ready

- What order you'll prepare everything for the party! Whether it be on the day or the night before.

3. Kids area

If you're hosting a get together for guests who have kids make sure you set up a 'child friendly' entertainment/task area where the kids can keep themselves occupied. A table with colouring in sheets and crayons, a laptop with movies or toys and healthy snacks are just some good items to have in the kids area!

4. Paper plates

Don't be scared to use paper plates! You can buy some really fancy ones if you're not comfortable with plain white and these will cut down your washing up time! You can also get recylable napkins!

 

5. Get a music station sorted

No party, dinner party or get together is complete without music. Get a music playlist ready the night before, selecting music appropriate for the event. We reccomend hiding the music player so guests can't hi-jack the playlist (unless you're open to that of course!)

6. Set up a bar

Setting aside an area, even something as simple as a table, with glasses/cups and drinks in a cooler is a good way to get organised and to allow your guests to easily top up their drinks as they wish.

Vertical Garden DIY

Looking for something different to get your outdoor (or indoor) area green? Vertical gardens or green walls have excelled in popularity and we can see why - simple or intricate, these walls make for a unique feature and act as an environmental cooler too. They're also great if you don't have enough space for a horizontal garden! Here are 4 DIY vertical gardens you can try at home...

Pallet Garden Wall

Wooden pallets are super multi purposed and can be used to build many things including a pallet garden wall! You'll need some weather resistant crews, roofing nails or staple gun, drill, level, weed cloth (aka landscape fabric), thin plywood cut to size to cover back of pallet, potting soil, plants. In 3 easy steps:

1. Nail some plywood to the back of the clean and water proofed pallet

2. Staple gun the weed cloth to the back and sides of the pallet

3. Add soil and plants!

For a more detailed version of the instructions you can go here

Hanging Flower Box

A little more complicated to put together but a really beautiful feature to have on your wall! Detailed instructions on how to build this can be found here

Bucket Wall

Nail some concrete reinforcement mesh to your outside wall and hang large or small buckets on it. Fill them with soil and pop some plants in there. A super easy way to get your vertical wall up!

Vertical Drawer Garden

Not quite a wall but most certainly vertical! Find yourself a vintage drawer and fill it with pot plants. Something different and pretty easy to put together.

Cricket Match Food

Do you like entertaining? Are you a foodie who also enjoys cricket? Then this blog is just for you! We thought we'd put together some inspirational meals or eats to accompany test versus a one dayer cricket match...

Test match 

For those readers who may not know, a test match lasts a maximum of five days (eight hours each including breaks) With this in mind you might consider some slow cooked recipes. With the weather still slightly chilly you can definitely get away with preparing a beef and vegetable curry or slow cooked beef ragu. Why not try some of these marinade recipes for a barbie. If you've never marinated meat before check out this marinating 101

Test match menu

Starter

An easy, eight ingredient 45 minute preparation time starter that can be made in bulk and frozen for later use. A rich and creamy pumpkin soup with a dash of chilli to give it a bit of a kick.

Pumpkin soup with a dash of chilli

Main

A beautiful tender chicken piece, slow cooked for four hours with easy preparation instructions. Served with steamed carrots and broccoli.

Slow-cooker chicken with pesto butter

Dessert

A warm dessert with an hour and a half cook time and ten minutes prep. Served well with cream or ice cream. 

Slow-cooker poached raspberry pears

One dayer

Barbecues and lots of snacks are perfect for one dayers! Here are some of our favourite snack recipes that are really easy to make AND look impressive.

Caramelised onion pastries

• Recipe for caramelised onion
• 2 sheets of puff pastry
• Camembert
• Cherry tomatoes

Caramelise onion. Slide pastry into squares (as big or small as you like) Bake pastry sheets as per packet instruction. Top pastries with onion and finish with a dollop of camembert and a halved cherry tomato.

Baby quiches

It's easy to make a variety of options with quiches. Bacon and feta, spinach and feta, salmon - the list goes on. Here's a super easy recipe for baby quiches

Dreamy Cheese Platter

The most important thing for the perfect cheese platter is what you pair it with. Having some good South Australian local wines and craft beers go down amazingly well with the right cheeses but also choosing the right food items to go with the cheese. Here's some examples of foods that pair well with cheese:

• Gherkins
• Nuts
• Chutney
• Ham
• Crackers
• Olives

Things that don't pair well include

• Anything spicy
• Vegetables
• Acidic fruits

Latest Kitchen Trends

We're always interested to hear our client's ideas and thoughts and they often want to know ours. What's trending, fads, what's in and what's not. Here are our latest five top kitchen trends...

1. Metal

Whether it's a pressed metal splash back for practicality or metal artwork for aesthetics metal is a great material to have in a kitchen! It's not only a strong and durable material but lends itself to loads of design possibilities and adds real character to a kitchen.

2. Polished Concrete flooring and benchtops

Polished concrete is the fastest growing flooring solution in the Australian commercial sector. The lifespan of concrete flooring is just one of the appeals. The fact that it doesn't scratch or dent is a huge plus for a kitchen floor. Functionality aside polished concrete is a sleek material that looks great for flooring and benchtops!

3. Vintage Style

Vintage style is a fast growing kitchen trend indoors and outdoors. Although you might not be able to do as much decor outdoors you can definitely get away with some vintage style crockery or semi-permanent decor.

4. Eclectic Mixes

Mixing and matching items in your home is a huge trend but you've gotta get it right! The coffee table below is a good example of a successful blend of two materials. Mixing the right colours, textures and materials in your home can give it a wonderfully eclectic feel. Don't be scared to break some design rules!

5. Timber

Timber is a beautiful material that gives a house a real homey feel! Adding touches of timber throughout your home or building timber cabinets in your kitchen is a great way to give your home a natural and modern look.

Outdoor Kitchen Fridges

With temperatures reaching as high as the forties in summer and chances of chilly winters it's important to find an outdoor fridge that can handle drastic temperatures (as well as frequent use during all your summer barbies!) We thought we'd take a look at some outdoor kitchen fridges and give some tips on how to go about choosing one...

What makes an outdoor kitchen fridge different to an indoor one?

Outdoor kitchen fridges need to maintain their temperature in various weather conditions. Because of this, a fridge usually requires a lot more insulation and requires more power than an indoor fridge. It needs to be resistant to all types of weather and waterproofed too.

Size

Obviously outdoor kitchen fridges are a lot smaller than indoor fridges as they are mostly used for stocking beer as opposed to large amounts of food. Typically a bar fridge is around 60 cm wide and 86 cm tall. Obviously the fridge you get will need to fit the space you have! Think about the kinds of things you would want to store in your outdoor fridge before committing to buy one. You might want to consider a fridge with a wine cooler too!

Built-in or free standing

We advise having your fridge built-in. Not only does it look better but built-in fridges have the vent in the front which means you don't need to account for extra space on the sides or above the fridge for ventilation.

Materials

We've already mentioned that your outdoor kitchen fridge needs to be weather resistant so it goes without saying that it needs to be rust resistant too! Stainless steel and glass are the most commonly used materials for outdoor fridges. Make sure you check the grading of the steel to ensure it is corrosion resistant!

Cost to run

sa.gov.au has a page where you can check estimated costs of running your house hold appliances. Make sure you check the Energy rating to ensure the fridge is energy efficient.

Beverage Cooler Ideas

With Spring upon us and the weather slowly warming up we thought we'd post some awesome beverage cooler ideas so you can get yourself ready for the sunny season!

Cowboy Cooler

This beverage cooler idea is amazing! The creator has taken an old piece of furniture and turned it into an outdoor glass holder and beverage cooler. If you're into up-cycling and feel like taking on a project, why not try this.

 Custom Table with Beverage Coolers

We love these custom made tables with beverage cooler bottoms. Great for garden parties and small get-togethers. If you're planning a bigger party, a bigger cooling area would probably be required.

Picnic Table with a Gutter

Another really cool table meets beverage cooler idea. A DIY picnic table with a 'gutter' to cool drinks. The middle panel is remove and replaced with a steel 'gutter' to be filled with ice and chill your drinks! A genius beverage cooler idea perfect for any outdoor party or occasion.

Reclaimed Wine Barrel

Not only is a re-purposed wine barrel big enough to hold loads of drinks, but it looks really good. We've all seen bright coloured eskies laying around an outdoor area. This beverage cooler idea gives a rustic alternative that will serve a purpose and look good in your outdoor area.

Small Wine Barrel Cooler

For something a little less cumbersome you can opt for a smaller barrel and put some legs on it to make it waist height.

 Stay tuned for next week's blog on outdoor kitchen/bar fridges!

Fire Pit Building Materials

Picking up from last week, let's check out some fire pit building materials. Remember for all these options to contact your local utility provider to ensure there are no utility lines in the area you want to dig out for your pit!

Traditional Brick

Brick as a fire pit building material is not the prettiest but it works! Building a brick fire place is moderately complex as you'll require some brick laying skills to get it built. You're looking at anything up to AUD500*depending on how large you want the pit. Firebrick is preferred as clay brick can crack under high temperatures.

*this is only an estimation and this price should not be quoted

Stone

Although the core of the fire pit is usually built with brick, finishing it off with stone makes for a more homely fire pit. It's a little more work but is much easier on the eyes!  We recommend spraying the inside  with black stove paint.

Metal

These fire pit building material is great for that rustic look. There are loads of portable metal fire pits on the market - some simple and some lasered with beautiful designs. Metal can be a bit of a safety hazard as it gets exceedingly hot but this material does weather well and is very strong and relatively inexpensive in comparison with other fire pit building materials.

Stainless Steel

Stainless steel fire pits can be more aesthetically appealing than a metal one. It's low maintenance and will only require occasional cleaning. It's also light in weight so can be moved around if need be.

We really love outdoor fire pits. Who wouldn't love these? But there are pros and cons to having a fire pit in your outdoor area...

Pros

• Attractive touch to your outdoor area
• Great for atmosphere (think wine and marshmallow roasting)

Cons

• Can be a fire hazard!
• If you have a gas fire pit you need to make sure you are stocked up with gas. (Warning: you'd need to call up your local council for gas fire pit approval)

Outdoor Fire Pits

Outdoor fire pits are trending across Australia right now and you can see why! Fire pits are a great feature for outdoor areas and create an intimate and nostalgic ambiance that your guests will love. These versatile 'center pieces' of warmth come in all shapes and sizes, designs and styles. Interested? Read on to learn more...

Timber versus Gas

Traditionally fire pits would run off of timber. With growing concern that this may be a hazard you can now get gas, ethanol and gel-fueled pits. The upside of this is that it also doesn't let off as much smoke.  Of course if you're looking for something a bit more traditional, open fire pits are still very much an option!

WARNING: If you're interested in a gas fire pit you may need to get this approved my your local council!

Fire Pit Shapes and Styles

Round 

Round fire pits come across as a little more intimate. Gathering around a circular fire pit just makes it feel that way!

Square

If you're looking for a more modern fire pit to match any clear cut design lines you have in your outdoor area a square shape is the way to go!

Rectangular

A much more progressive shape for an outdoor fire pit. These are often doubled up as a table and will need a protective fire screen for safety reasons. A sleek and modern option is perfect for a decking area.

Sunken 

Some home owners opt for a sunken fire pit for something less invasive. For a more low profile look the sunken fire pit is a great option.

Stay tuned for next week's blog where we'll look at the pros and cons of fire pits and also the different materials you can use for your pit...