Whenever I use pot on the balcony it jazzes things up too
..

Nothing beats the look of terra cotta.
The downside is they can split in winter or spall.
The evaporation issue can be dealt with by warming the pots and melting
parafin (canning wax)
Most bagged potting mixes are awful and could benefit by the addition
of an equal amount of sharp sand or if you want to keep the weight
down, pearlite.
Keep the soil an inch below the rim so you can water in a hurry and
make sure you don't leave the pots sitting in water.