Backyard Essentials For Entertaining

Robby and I love entertaining our friends and family while we are back in South Florida for the off season and now that we have our own space, let the parties begin! Creating a welcoming and functioning space in our backyard was priority for us and after looking at many different brands, we decided on Safavieh for our outdoor furniture (and indoor rugs but we will get to that later). Oh, wait what? You haven’t heard of Safavieh? Well, my friend, let me quickly change your home décor life. Safavieh is the leading manufacturer and distributor of fine rugs and home furnishings. Sounds fancy huh? The icing on top of it all is that they have created inspiring decorating solutions for consumers at everyprice and for all tastes and styles. 

Ok so, back to creating an outdoor oasis. 
What do you need to make your loved ones feel welcomed and comfortable? 
What are the little details that you shouldn’t overlook? 
What are the essential serving items? 
What about comfortable furniture pieces?  

 Lucky for you, I’ve put together a backyard entertaining checklist to take the heavy lifting off your shoulders. Here is a list of outdoor essentials: 

LOUNGE CHAIRS 

A natural wood chair crafted to make me feel like I’m laying on the beach in Ibiza? Sounds right up my ally ! HA. We chose the Solano Sun Lounger from Safavieh and they look even more gorg in person. Going for a different vibe? Here is a variety of lounge chair options. 

DINING SET

Having your furniture flow together is a must. With that being said, we chose the Bradbury Dining Set for our backyard as well. If you have a bigger space, Savefiah has larger table options. Smaller? They have you covered there also. 

UMBRELLA

For those hot summer dates, shade is must for keeping guests happy.  Umbrellas are an outdoor accessory to have fun with so, choose a color or shape that spices things up a bit! Here are some options that will be the perfect touch. 

STORAGE

Having a dedicated, organized space to store your outdoor items (towels, furniture cushions, pool items, etc) is a must. It will help to keep your area clean and inviting. 

OUTDOOR RUG

Depending on the layout of your area, an outdoor rug could be the perfect addition. Solid? Pattern? Beach House? Cottage? Endless options for approved outdoor rugs can be found here. 

OUTDOOR MAT

Dirty feet tracing through your house is not cute so, whether you go with a full blown rug or not, an outdoor mat is necessary. Whether you’re a traditional welcome mat type of gal or want to go a little outside the box both Target and Etsy have some great finds! 

TUMBLERS

Glass outside is a red light. 
Sturdy tumblers is a green light. 
These options are some of my favorites. 

ICE BUCKET

If the temperatures outside allows for an ice bucket, display it on a table for your guests to add ice at their convenience.  

DRINK DISPENSER

Every backyard needs a drink dispenser full of ice cold flavored water. The end. 

DURABLE PLATES 

A non-negotiable backyard entertaining essential is durable plates. There are so many fun colors or prints to choose from. 

 OUTDOOR SPEAKER 

If you do not have sound system installed, a portable speaker will do the trick! 

COOLER 

To cut down on having people trace in an out of your house, have a cooler set up outside for easy access to ice cold drinks. 

POOL FLOATS

If you have a pool, floats are a party must have! Plus, they make for the perfect Instagram photoshoot and that’s a priority – right? 

What are your backyard entertaining essentials? Leave a comment below and make sure to follow on Instagram for all #HomeScottHome updates. 

Come on over,
Chels 

photos by Joel Eriksson