A French Summer Garden Tablescape with Roses and Citrus
Designing a summer table around the colors of the garden
There is no better time to gather than midsummer, when the garden is at its fullest and the long evenings invite you to linger outside. When I set a table for a summer gathering, I love to design around the colors the season hands me. By late summer, the roses are at their most generous, and I can never resist building a table around them.
Start with a garden-gathered centerpiece
I had a gorgeous array of pink, yellow, and white roses that I knew would make an enchanting spray down the center of the table. A centerpiece like this looks most beautiful when you group the flowers in loose bundles, leaving very little space between them, abundant rather than formal, the way a garden grows. The blooms do not need to be perfect. I placed a few bundles here and there along the center, then filled the spaces between them with citrus, lemons, limes, and oranges tucked in for a surprise of color and scent. Fresh fruit layered into a centerpiece is one of the loveliest ways to bring the season right onto the table.
““Flowers always make people better, happier, and more helpful; they are sunshine, food and medicine for the soul.” ”
Keep the table soft, and let the flowers bring the color
A table set in white-on-white can be wonderfully elegant. You do not need much color if you layer dishes with different textures and patterns; the quiet contrast does the work. Layering your plates and tucking a napkin between the layers is a lovely way to introduce a single, considered note of color. My favorite trick: take one shade from your flowers and carry it onto your napkin. A blush napkin, echoing a blush rose, pulls the whole table together and makes it feel intentional rather than simply arranged.
Let the small surprises do the charming
It is so often the smallest touches that guests remember. I found these French champagne coupes, each with a tiny bee on the side, when I was served a Prosecco at a restaurant in Montecito, CT, as we dined outside and simply had to have them. I searched until I found them, ordered six, and they have been a favorite ever since. Before a summer gathering, I slip them into the freezer, so they turn frosty the moment the cold Prosecco is poured, perfect for a warm afternoon in the garden. I hope to bring them to the boutique as soon as they are available again.
Gather, and let it be imperfect
A table like this is never about perfection. It is about the pleasure of bringing the garden indoors, or carrying the table out into the garden, and gathering the people you love around it. That is the whole of it, really: beauty in service of connection.
As with everything I share here, please feel free to comment or reach me through my contact page with any questions. I welcome it always.
Design with the Heart™
À bientôt,
Mary
“May your home be a place where friends meet, family gathers, and love grows. ”
