Nine tips for a Jubilee Party fit for a Queen

We find ourselves back in ‘unprecedented’ times, but on this occasion, it’s a cause for celebration! Our Queen, Elizabeth, is celebrating an impressive 70 years on the throne on Sunday 5th June, making her one of the longest-ruling monarchs in world history. In fact, she's just two years behind France’s Louis XIV, so if we ever needed an excuse to get together with friends and family, this is it.

The weather is warming up and we have a lovely long weekend ahead, furnishing us Brits with the perfect set up for garden party celebrations.

The Strive for Design team have put together nine top tips to help you throw the ultimate royal-themed garden party that will be remembered for years to come.

1 Get patriotic
Decide what your theme will be. Are you going to go for the traditional, fun Union Jack, red, white & blue, or why not add a touch of class, with a royal purple (pantone 3515C) and platinum, embracing this unprecedented milestone? As you can probably imagine, stores are awash with Union Jack themed paper plates, cups and napkins but we particularly like Amazon’s sustainable and biodegradable Queen's Platinum Jubilee printed plates, cups and napkins in a rich, regal purple. And no garden party would be complete without bunting so we particularly love this cotton, washable and re-useable, purple Jubilee-themed bunting by Etsy. And if you're looking for Union Jack bunting and flags, give Mamelok a try.

2 Bring the garden to your table
Just because you're outside, that doesn’t mean you shouldn’t give your table that extra je ne sais quoi with a nice flower arrangement. Think about red, white and blue flowers or pretty Ranunculus in glass jars to keep them looking fresh all day long.

3 Party through the night
When you're putting this much effort into your event, why not party on once the sun goes down? Think about the adjustments you will need to make from day partying to night partying. Provide blankets or ask guests to bring their own (this is Blighty after all). Don’t let the lights go down on your celebrations by entwining fairy lights amongst the bunting and round fencing. Hang tealights, with glass holders, from trees, or position them all around the garden for a safe but truly special ambience.

4 Spread the word
First of all, you need to decide how many people you're going to invite and the age range of your guests. Don’t forget to invite your neighbours (or at least give them fore-warning), especially if noise and parking are going to be an issue.

5 Put bums on seats
As if we didn’t learn at Christmas, make sure you have enough seating for your guests or ask them to bring some chairs with them. If you're going to invest in some new folding chairs, there's nothing more quintessentially English than the good old deck chair. For a touch of luxury, we love these vintage-style folding chairs by Piccy. You can really embrace the royal theme and nominate yourself King/Queen (I mean, why not, right??) for the day with these gorgeous Queen of Love outdoor armchairs.

6 Delegate to accumulate
Save time and money by asking your guests to bring some food/drink as a contribution; that way if the guest numbers fluctuate, the catering levels will remain appropriate. In order to make sure you don’t end up with only sausages to eat and only fizz to drink, think about offering your guests a Food & Drink List (like a wedding gift list) so they can select what they want to bring or provide suggestions (like BBQ food, wine, gin, desserts), et voilà, you have a royal banquet.

7 Unleash your inner mixologist
Get creative and invent your own cocktails and give them royally-themed names. With gin, widely reported as the Queen’s favourite tipple, a gin-based cocktail is the perfect curtsey to Her Royal Highness on her special day. A quick search online will bring up plenty of gin-based cocktail ideas or visit BBC Good Food's 10 easy gin cocktails guide for tried and tested recipes.

8 Fun for everyone
There's no party without some tunes. Put together a playlist ahead of time and make sure it's long enough to last the party! Music providers such as Spotify usually put playlists together for exactly such events, which you can pinch or use their lists for inspiration when making a playlist of your own. Think about the age range and personalities of the guests and provide suitable entertainment. There's a great selection of lawn games available online or splash out and hire in some fun like a rodeo bull, sumo suits or a bouncy house that will keep all ages entertained for hours.

9 Don’t forget the corgi!
The Queen loves her dogs, just as we do, so don’t exclude your canine companions from the celebrations. Set them up with water bowls, provide shelter from the sun and bake them some yummy dog-friendly treats to include them in the celebrations. Keep both your pooch and your guests entertained with a home dog agility set and dog pool and you might even get away with missing walkies for the day!

For more advice on how to transform your outdoor space, take a look at our Ultimate Outdoor Living Blog or get in touch with our friendly team at Strive For Design.

Leigh Hall from Strive for Design is an interior designer in Cambridge, so if you're planning to refresh your home, please contact us.