How to Have a Great Summer Party in Your Tulsa Outdoor Living Space

Tulsa residents will have fun firing up the grill in their outdoor kitchen this summer and entertaining friends and relatives as they celebrate goodtimes. But planning a party can get stressful, so we’ve got some great tips to getting your Tulsa outdoor living space all ready for the event.

Here are some tips from Real Simple on outdoor entertaining:


Outdoor lighting is a must. A little ambient lighting is enough to keep your guests safe out the dark. Globe string lights that are elegant and give off a warm glow, the article reported, are great for outdoor dinner parties as well as hurricane lanterns and tealights along with string lights.  The landscape lighting experts at Oklahoma Landscape can also install the right accent and pathway lighting to complement your home and landscape during anytime of the year.

Make sure there are enough seats. If you anticipate running low on seating, you might think about using some of your indoor furniture or even renting folding chairs. Another option the magazine mentioned could be to spread out quilts on the ground for picnic-style seating, if it’s a very casual party.

Repel flying pests. If you don’t have a mosquito misting system already in place, you might try adding some fans to your outdoor living space. “Mosquitos are weak flyers, so even if a fan is set on low, it can create enough airflow to keep them away,” Laura Harrington, an associate professor of entomology at Cornell University told Real Simple. This works best in small areas like a deck, she said. Also she recommended emptying anything with standing water in it, and giving guests bug wipes that contain repellent picaridin in place of DEET, which could damage clothing.

Keep the kids entertained. Many Tulsa homeowners have a custom swimming pool area where kids can have fun during the party. But some other kid diversions, Real Simple suggested were blowing bubbles, a Slip ‘n Slide or sprinkler, and even some inexpensive disposable cameras to let them capture the event, “say cheese”.

Make the music memorable, not just loud. Don’t make guests have to cover their ears with blaring music. “If you’re using a boom box or an iPod dock, place it above ear level so it’s not blasting directly at guests’ heads,” Michael Antonia, owner of the Flashdance, a Los Angles production company said. “And turn it toward the side of the house – you can make it a little louder and the sound will spread out better.” For the best music setup, the article noted that using four or more speakers, spread out and set at a lower volume work best.

Remember these outdoor entertaining tips to have a fun and be safe! For more ideas on designing and building the perfect outdoor living space, contact the Tulsa landscape contractors at Oklahoma Landscape.