Midsummer is a time of year that fascinates people in all sorts of ways. Shakespeare saw it as a time of magic and dreams, inspiring the production of one of his greatest comedies. For thousands of years people have gathered around stone circles like Stonehenge to mark the solstice, while in Scandinavia the ‘midnight’ sun can be enjoyed as those north of the Arctic Circle enjoy endless day.
Even if none of this is of interest, it is a wonderful time to have a party in your garden, something owners of wooden conservatories can do particularly well by using the facility as a centrepiece of the event, a place for food or gathering alongside everything happening out on the lawn.
There are a couple of different ways you could do this. One of them would be to have a genuine summer theme. That probably doesn’t mean putting a few stones in a circle and dancing around them while drinking mead – although it could if you wanted. However, a more popular alternative might be to have a Swedish style Midsummer Party.
With parts of the Scandinavian countries north of the Arctic Circle, many will be enjoying 24 hours of sun. But even where they do not, this is a big time of year, often celebrated with big public bonfires. However, in Sweden it is also a time for a traditional party.
This has a number of common themes, which include foods like pickled herring, which some might want to give a miss, and strawberry cake, which you probably won’t. Garlands in hair and maypoles are other common features of this party, always held on the solstice itself or the nearest Friday.
Of course, your party does not actually have to be on the evening of June 21st itself, much as the theme may be great. The fact is that for most of Britain the sunset takes place after 21:00 from May to late July or even – in the northern half of the country at least – into August. That ensures there should be lots of light, warm evenings, so you can rearrange things if late June brings rainy weather.
The great thing about the middle of summer is not just that the sun sets late, but it also only goes so far below the horizon before rising again. This means there is plenty of twilight to enjoy with an almost mystical quality. This creates a great atmosphere and is wonderful if there is a group of you gathered in the garden or in the conservatory looking out late at night – or rather twilight.
If you plan such gatherings, you can also look to decorate your garden for the occasion. Not necessarily with monolithic slabs of bluestone hewn from the Preseli Mountains of Wales in prehistory, of course, but certainly with items like candles and night lights.
This could apply to the garden and the conservatory alike, adding a little extra atmosphere, sparkle, colour and illumination to what may be a Midsummer to truly dream about.