How to Host a Memorial Day Bash
One of the most enjoyable ways to celebrate Memorial Day is to throw an outdoor party at home with family and friends. If you need some fun party ideas, check out the suggestions below to make yours the best one ever.
Go red, white, and blue
Memorial Day is a time to celebrate freedom, so festoon your backyard with American flags, banners, and other patriotic decor, such as balloons, flower arrangements, plates, and cups. If you’re feeling creative, you could spray-paint stars on the grass in your yard (just use a light touch to avoid killing the grass), tie-dye cloth napkins red, white, and blue, or make festive paper medallions to hang from tree branches or use as centerpieces for your tables.
Keep it bug-free
Unfortunately, not all your party guests will be welcome ones. Luckily, there are several effective tactics you can employ to keep those pesky bugs away. Cover dishes with netted food tents, and give guests pretty cupcake liners to place over their cups when they’re not sipping their drinks. You can also put a few fans out to literally blow bugs away. For an aromatic option, you could place DIY citronella insect torches or potted lavender on your deck or patio—both scents are a turnoff to bugs. Of course, some may get through anyway, so put out bottles of bug spray for your guests to help them avoid getting bitten.
Fire up the grill
Hamburgers and hot dogs are classic Memorial Day fare, so, depending on your crowd, be prepared to grill up a good amount of them during your party. Be sure to offer standard fixings like ketchup, mustard, sauerkraut, and pickles, but don’t be afraid to try fun options like pickled onions, kimchi, and grilled pineapple. For guests who’d prefer a lighter menu, you could also grill eggplant, portabella mushrooms, or veggie dogs and burgers or even make some delicious char-grilled fruit.
Mix it up
Your guests will appreciate a cool beverage to pair with their food, especially if it’s warm outside. Play up the red, white, and blue theme by serving glasses of patriotic-hued ice-cream soda or lemonade loaded with fresh strawberries and blueberries. For a vintage American feel, serve your drinks in Mason jars filled with ice to keep them cool all day long.
American-style desserts
Blueberries, strawberries, and fresh cream can be combined to make all sorts of delicious treats in colorful renditions of the stars and stripes. For instance, topping cakes with these berries and cream is a simple way to make them patriotic. Other ways to inject American spirit into your desserts include creating red, white, and blue mini cupcakes, baking a berry American flag pie, or dipping pretzels into melted candy melts for colorful patriotic pretzel rods.
Seat your guests
If you’re hosting a bigger bash, you might find it tricky to provide enough chairs for everyone. You could always ask your guests to bring their own seating or rent some folding chairs, or you could embrace the outdoor setting by spreading out a few picnic blankets—the kids might love sitting on them.
Let them play
Summertime is a perfect opportunity to enjoy some light competition, so be sure to have games to play for your party. Fun options include a patriotic-themed bingo or trivia game, a water-balloon toss, and cornhole—you could use red, white, and blue balloons and beanbags at these games, respectively. If you don’t have a pool, give your guests a chance to cool off by providing sprinklers, water games, and mini blowup pools they can splash in.
Light it up
To continue the fun after dark, hang string lights in the backyard and scatter lanterns filled with real candles or battery-operated ones. While you’re at it, you could also light your firepit, if you have one, for extra ambience and roasting marshmallows. You could even dye your marshmallows using food coloring, creating stripes by dipping one end of each marshmallow in blue and the other in red. To wind up your party, pass out colorful glow lights for everyone to wear and enjoy as you watch the stars come out together.