Bang Goes Another Year | Top Tips for Fireworks at Home

The twilight of another year is almost upon us, but with Christmas at the forefront of everyone’s minds, New Year’s celebrations are often a last minute thought. With that in mind, we’ve prepared a simple hit list to ensure you start your New Year with a bang.

Start your New Year with a bang

Fireworks at home have a become big business. Once no more than a few mini rockets and sparklers, some displays now give official events a run for their money. If you’ve got the space (our research boffins recommend a minimum safe distance of 25 feet from the firework action), here’s how you can have some firework fun without blowing up your wallet:

The best parties start with a good invite

First impressions count, even if it is your Blue Peter best! The more organised the party sounds the more likely people will respond. Apart from stating a clear time of when your “doors open”, and what time you’re starting the fireworks we’ve got a couple of suggestions:

Become a party popper, not a party pooper!

• Bring a “banger”. Although it’s pretty standard to turn up with your favourite tipple, asking your friends to bring along a firework as well will go a long way to getting a big display out of a small budget.
• Hold a competition. It adds an air of excitement and will encourage people to join in. The guest with the brightest or noisiest firework could win some cinema vouchers, or a bottle of bubbly.
• Cater for everyone. Not everyone loves the bright lights and noise of fireworks, so let your guests know that you’ve got a games room for their enjoyment (personally, we go for a bit of karoake).
• Invite your neighbours. Give them prior notice of the party so even if they can’t or don’t want to attend, it will give them pre-warning to batten down the hatches and make sure that any pets are safe and sound indoors.

Home Sweet Home (and how to keep it that way!)

A house full of indoor guests is one thing, but bringing the outdoors in could mean muddy boots and wet overcoats, making things rather messy. Follow these simple tips to get your house ship-shape for the party of the year!

Avoid muddy feet and 'mishaps' - put some cupboard down!

• Hide your breakables. You and your party guests will likely be wrapped up in warm jackets and wooly scarfs, and we seem to have this funny habit of not knowing how much room we take up. Avoid “brushing past” and knocking over any breakables by placing them upstairs in a safe place (the valuables that is, not the guests).
• Protect your carpets. The cheapest way is to use some cardboard. It may not look attractive, but it will save your floor from muddy footprints and a dreaded “mulled wine incident”.
• Get covered. If you don’t have a marquee, see if one of your friends has one that you can put outside. It’s a great way to keep people dry whilst allowing you to cater outside. Alternatively, go down your local B&Q or Homebase and grab some transparent tarpaulin to fashion a make do shelter. That way people can still look up through the roof and watch the fireworks.
• Cater near the garden or outside. It keeps things simple, and this is where most of the action is. Weather permitting you won’t need a canopy, but if you opt to cater outside and there is a chance of rain see “get covered” above.
• Spud-u-like and Cheenz! Jacket potatoes with beans and cheese is a simple and cheap yet satisfying way to cater for the masses. Be adventurous and cook a spicy chilli to warm your guests palette.
• Hot chocolate, Mulled wine, Tea and Coffee. If you have more than 10 guests it may be worth hiring a large volume hot drinks dispenser – the perfect way to serve your hot drinks in an instant.

How to set up your garden for fireworks

If you are lucky enough to have the space to hold a fireworks display, some basic planning and precautions should be taken to minimize the risk of damage and, more importantly, injury.

A few precautions will go a long way for your fireworks party

• Wear goggles or safety glasses. There’s every chance a “dud” firework could suddenly re-ignite at any point. Eyes are vulnerable, so it’s important to make sure that they’re well-protected. You’re unlikely to win any fashion awards, but it’s a small price to pay.
• Have some buckets of water ready. Strategically place them around the garden. Not all fireworks fully detonate; don’t take it for granted that they have. Make sure that every firework that appears to be dormant is dropped into a bucket or large container of water and left there to soak.
• Get some wet towels on standby. Hopefully these won’t be needed, but if someone is unfortunate enough to be hit by a spark or stray firework, having these ready can save valuable seconds and help prevent serious injury.
• Tie a Safety Line across the width of the garden as a tangible barrier to seperate the safe area and the danger zone. This is a good way to prevent a crowd of people moving too far forward to get a better view of ground-based fireworks.
• Grab a hose pipe. A good way to prevent any stray sparks from causing a fire in the first place is to give everything a good soaking before the display starts.
• Basic First Aid is a good idea, do some quick reading up on how to treat minor burns. If anything does happen, some good on-the-spot first aid can reduce the severity of a burn, giving it a better chance to heal quickly.

Happy New Year!

No matter what you decide or where you land up this New Years Eve, the important thing is to be close to those that mean the most to you, have fun and dream of all the possibilities that the New Year could bring. So from the gosimply.com team, have a very happy Christmas and a safe and memorable Happy New Year.