Tablescapes, Summer Centerpiece Fun!

the Painted Apron

11 years ago

Don’t you love a wow factor, something totally unexpected on the table? For anything from a simple meal to a special party, it’s fun to surprise and delight your family or guests. My favorite place for inspiration is the grocery store. Although flowers are my passion, I often turn to other natural elements for my table tops and centerpieces. I would love to share some with you today to get your creative juices flowing for summer…

Fresh vegetables are my hands down favorite any time of year, but I love to make bountiful displays in the summer with eggplants, corn, brussels sprouts and lots of red tomatoes

This vegetable tree was created for a party last summer. It is built on stacked tiers, you can see the white edges peaking out, and the topper is a fresh basil plant. Tip: you have to do this right before the party starts because the veggies will wilt after a few hours. Give them a spritz with a little water to make them sparkle.

I did a “practice tree” at home so I could assemble the tree quickly at the party. Artichokes, peppers, garlic, radishes and beans, parsley and cabbage, it’s all in there somewhere!

And don’t forget fruit!

I call this centerpiece, “Raiding the Pantry”, there’s a little bit of anything I could find on hand here!

Use a large tray or dish and pile it in! I set this on some open weave mats that I overlapped so they look more like netting, and used some smaller bowls within the large one to help keep the arrangement from all running together. The Corona beer and the coconut brings this centerpiece to the beach, whether you are there or not… along with the star fish and blue bottles, you can celebrate the summer sea anywhere

This centerpiece is called “Shipwrecked.” An old wooden skiff has washed up full of colored bottles and shells, along with driftwood and sea glass

If you want to do flowers, try something unexpected~

DD and I created this for her deck table and it is actually a gray flower pot, turned upside down and set in a matching saucer. Another gray saucer sits on top. We found the pot and the saucers at Lowe’s for a total of about $15. Both saucers are deep enough to hold enough water to keep the hydrangea blooms happy. A lot of bang with a handful of blooms...

A birdhouse perched on a tray or tier on your patio table gets a boost from a wreath of delicate blooms, faux or real. To see the complete table click here

This is a chip and dip server and instead of dip filling the center bowl, it holds a hurricane and a candle. Shells and glass trinkets fill the surrounding troughs