How to Host a Cosy Outdoor Winter Party

Even though winter is less than a month away, we have been experiencing beautiful warm and sunny days throughout the Canberra autumn. Many weekends have been spent walking around the lake, having a picnic in the park and hiking up the local mountains. Just because the cold days are only a month away, doesn’t mean we need to hibernate inside every weekend binging on Netflix in our Ugg boots. Below we outline the best ways to host a cosy outdoor winter party, day or night!
Create a toasty fire
Set the atmosphere with an outdoor fire. There is something magical about a fire. Sitting around one with good food, good drinks and good friends makes for the perfect winter outdoor party. There are many ways to do this, but the most popular is using an outdoor fire pit. You can toast marshmallows easily and it has a great camp fire feel. Or if you host a party the weekend before or the weekend following the Queen’s birthday public holiday, you can legally have a bonfire on a residential lease within the ACT- all you need to do is notify the local fire brigade. 
Create a hot food & hot drink station
Get creative with your food and think about creating a station of yummy hearty food and drinks. Look at serving a range of soups and stews in a thermos. Guests can help themselves at any time by easily pouring their meal into a bowl and because the food is stored in the thermos, it is guaranteed to be warm and comforting. Add to this a hot drink bar serving mulled wine, hot chocolate or a hot apple cider.  
Light up the night
If you host your party in the evening, consider your outdoor lighting. Light pathways with candles in mason jars and look at hanging small jars in trees with tea light candles to create atmosphere. Fairy lights and lanterns are also a great idea as they remind everyone of a white Christmas and therefore add to the ambiance. 
Keep your guests warm with wool
Providing guests with blankets is a must when entertaining outdoors. But there are also other ways to incorporate wool into your party. When your guests enter the backyard, have a box of woollen accessories for them to use such as beanies, scarves and gloves. Another fun and very warm idea is putting sheep skins on chairs. Guests will happily settle in for the night toasting their marshmallows on the fire while being kept cosy by a gorgeous sheep skin on their chair.  
Winter party entertainment
If you host your party during day light, consider keeping your guests warm by organising a treasure hunt in the backyard. Pick a theme, plan your clues and get your guests working in teams to actively mingle and have fun at the same time. Another option for night time is creating an outdoor cinema. With everyone settled around the fire with their hot drinks, blankets and marshmallows, it is the perfect opportunity to watch a great movie.
Canberra is truly a seasonal city. We hope you enjoy the winter months to come and still see this time as a great way to enjoy the city and get together with friends and family.