Tailgating Tips and Tricks

Disclosure: This post is sponsored by Procter & Gamble.

It’s officially fall and officially tailgating season! And for many of you, you’ve been at it for a month already. But we still have plenty of time left to get those games in and parties going. Football is a BIG deal in our family and it’s always fun to go to a game in person and get the whole experience in. From popping up the tailgate, hanging out with friends and cheering on your favorite team.

Today, I’m sharing a few Tailgating Tips and Tricks on how to make your social gathering easy, fun, and a little extra cuteness. I took a little shopping trip to Big Lots to grab TONS of goodies to help style our tailgate! I can’t believe how affordable their prices are, you can honestly build out an entire tailgate with all new pieces for super inexpensive!

Prepare Your Food At Home!

Cut down on the supplies to you need to pack and leave more time for socializing by preparing all your food at home! These glass food containers are perfect for holding sliced meats and cheeses for my charcuterie board!

Instead of bringing bags of chips, popcorn and cookies and having them open and spread out all over, pick up a few of these glass food jars with lids and fill them ahead of time! You can always bring a few bags in the car for refills, but these hold a couple of bags in itself and you can seal them up! They won’t spill in the car during transport and they will keep the food fresh for the whole tailgate and even when you bring them home.

Build Your Own Charcuterie Board

Once you prepare your food at home, all you have to do is get your cutting board out and build your own charcuterie board. These are SO easy to put together and look beautiful. Plus your guests will love having something to pick at.

When putting together my boards, I start with one item (in this case sausage) and then place a few clumps on the board. Then I slowly start to fill it in with other items…

Until it’s completely filled and there is a balance of item around the board. Yum!

Keep Your Drinks Cold!

I think this is a pretty obvious one, but those drinks need to be COLD! You can’t have a tailgate with warm drinks! So grab a cooler and fill it with some ice so your guests won’t be disappointed. I have a mini cooler set up with bottles of beverages and then a water dispenser, because water is also essential!

Bankets Aren’t Just For Staying Warm

I like to cozy up with a blanket almost any time of year, but I also like to use them for decor too! The back of a car or truck can feel super sterile (or dirty in my case), so lay down those blankets to create a cozy and cute look for guests. I stacked a bunch of crates underneath my blankets to give a tiered look for the food display, and it was nice to have a blanket on top to act as a table cloth and add a pop of patter.

Flowers Make Everything Brighter

I couldn’t pass up this cute white vase at Big Lots for just $10! Adding a bunch of grocery store flowers to this tailgate was enough to give it a fun pop of color and make it feel a little brighter.

Bring Enough Seating

Standing around playing football and corn hole can be fun, but we all need to rest those feet every once in a while! Plus, I don’t mind looking at this guy one bit. :)

Big Lots has these fold out chairs for just $19! Such a good deal and they come in a lot of different colors too.

Lastly, Prepare For Spills!

We all know spills happen, even with adults! Big Lots carries tons of Procter and Gamble products to keep your space and clothes in tip top shape. Look for products like Tide, Downy and Bounce at your local Big Lots!

For more information and to find a local Big Lots near you, check out www.Biglots.com.

Hope you enjoyed some of these tips and display ideas!

About Taryn Whiteaker

Taryn Whiteaker is the voice of style behind TarynWhiteaker.com (formerly Design, Dining and Diapers) ! Taryn is a previous PR/Marketing professional who got back to her creative roots after becoming a mom and now shares her passion for home decor and design for the world to see. Taryn lives in the greater Seattle area with her husband and three kids and loves coffee, the outdoors, and exploring with her family.