Whether you are planning on entertaining outdoors this spring and summer for a graduation, birthday or a simple cookout, you may want to consider taking your table setting up a notch.
I visited the Chicago Flower & Garden show this past weekend and the table setting there, mostly created by event planners and caters, were to die for. Now, whether you want to mirror these ideas yourself or hire a caterer to replicate them, you can be sure that you will have the most beautiful dining spot in the neighborhood.
#1 Victorian Garden Setting...that's what I call this one. I love the dreamy palette of blues, violets and greens. Shelving on the left could hold desserts, beverages and other accompaniments. The wicker high-backed seating is regal. Moss works as the table cloth with pink satin napkins. Seating on the long lengths of the table is provided by fancy velvet sofas.
#2 Zen Dining...An Asian motif takes this table setting of an intimate dinner party for four to the extreme of calm and peacefulness. I love the red table runner with the fushsia flower arrangements. Who would have thought they'd go so well? Yet, they really give drama to this otherwise simple setting.
#3 The Ordinary Gets Extraordinary...There is nothing difficult to replicate in this table setting yet it is definitely not ordinary. Actually, here, like in many of these table settings, the indoors came outside. Indoor dining chairs, a velvet curtain and indoor china are the hallmarks of this dining venue.
#4 Palace Seating...Okay, this one is tougher to mirror given the moss or ivy covered walls. Yet, what you can pick up from this table setting are the gold accents, which are everywhere! Also notice the mismatched gold chairs, the name tags hanging by a red ribbon over the chair backs and the elegant menus on each placesetting. The rich pinks and reds against the abundance of green make this table setting truly striking. To me, it looks like a table in the Queen's hideaway at the Palais Versailles.
#5 Romantic Hideaway...This table setting looks like something you'd find in The Secret Garden, hidden away, far from prying eyes. Nestled under an arbor is a table for two. Again, indoor seating seems to be the theme in yet another table setting. Green is the primary color seen in everything from the placements and table accents (notice the tall apothecary jar) to the votive candles. Tree trunks work as accent tables and pine cones abound.
#6 Water and Sky...Refreshing shades of turquoise, blue and green dominate this table setting, which again, if you take it piece by piece, is quite simple. A glass table is used, which is usually found in most outdoor dining tables. The mason jars, water goblets and curtain pull the color theme together and make for an intimate dining alcove. The centerpiece is very simple...just a grouping of terra cotta pots with colorful blooms.
#7 A Little Bit Country....I really love the feelings of nostalgia and cozy, down home atmosphere that this table setting evokes. Bright red plastic crates holds plants and other items. A unique planter, designed to look like a white picket fence, holds herbs and other plants. Vintage gym locker baskets hold other items on the left. The table itself is very simple. Retro chairs, (surprise! no cushions) keep it simple. Bright plates and colorful flowers make the table far from boring.
How about you? How adventurous do you get when dining outdoors? Do you keep it simple with paper plates and plasticware or do you go to the extreme once or twice for the fun of it?
