nothing says summer lovin’ like outdoor entertaining and nothing says outdoor entertaining like a galvanized bucket. whether you are at the lake, by the sea or in the backyard, just add ice and some of your favorite bottled beverages and you’ve got an instant party that feels timeless and classic. a peek over at pottery barn will reveal several galvanized items for your hosting needs: from trays, to tiered stands, to bottle caddies, but you can find varieties all over the place. did you see the recent collection by privet house at target? i’ve resisted loading up on those cuties, but now they seem to be on sale, so maybe i’ll indulge…just in time for the 4th! coupled with the new mason jars…hmmmm!

by the way, the galvanizing, a process in which zinc is added to other metals to make them rust resistant, really does make these items timeless and therefore a good investment. you should be able to enjoy them for years and years: practical, nostalgic and charming. in case you were wondering, the results of this process can actually be matte or shiny, and if you’re kinda nerdy like me, you can click here to learn the difference

speaking of buckets. my friend, karen, recently sent me the link to a post from her photographer’s blog {jen+chris} titled “our summer bucket list.” charmed, hubby, kids and i decided to create our own:

1. take a helicopter ride 2. do a service project 3. learn how to do a fish braid 4. host a backyard movie night 5. turn 3 pinterest pins to reality 6. nail art day 7. spa day (with mud) 8. make a 4 course meal 9. jet ski 10. visit the metropolitan museum of art 11. attend a broadway show 12. go beach-house hunting 13. visit a farmer’s market 14. go to a flea market 15. white water rafting center 16. start a family book club 17. ride 4 wheelers 18. swim with dolphins 19. visit niagara falls 20. collect seashells for our 2012 jar 21. ride a bike with a basket of flowers 22. develop a great first serve (tennis) 23. get stronger in ballet 24. hit a hole-in-one 25. play flashlight tag *26. run through a rainstorm *27. learn to ride the subway *28. go on a sunset sail *29. visit nantucket *30. visit an alpaca farm *31. attend an MLB game *32. co-pilot a puddle jumper airplane  *33. cheer on team USA in olympics  *34. learn to ride the subway (*just added–because rather than focusing on what we didn’t do, i’m highlighting things that were unexpected, yet still very special!)

just to name a few…we even borrowed one from the hunts. if you know us personally, you can probably figure out who contributed which items to our list. we didn’t make a cute craft project like our inspiration, but at least we’ve written down our ideas. as you can see, we tried to include some free things, some splurge things and everything in between. we also tried to only include things that we could actually accomplish… otherwise this list could have included some very outrageous things (like going to china!). want to make your own? here are a few more links to bucket lists to get you going:

http://daringtolivefully.com/summer-bucket-list-ideas

http://www.creativefamilyfun.net/2012/05/200-fun-ideas-for-your-summer-bucket.html

http://www.onwravens.net/ravendaily/2012/05/22/50-summer-bucket-list-ideas/

http://gonewiththesummer.wordpress.com/the-bucket-list/

oh! and want to host a fabulous summer soiree, which may or may not feature a galvanized bucket or two? click here to visit pottery barn’s design center for loads of entertaining ideas.

counting down to the one year anniversary of sepia charm. do you have a favorite old post? as always, i’d love to hear from you.

images from pottery barn and country living via here.