Create a Dreamy Summer Tablescape with These Expert Tips

If you’re anything like Katie, then you love entertaining and gathering all your friends together for a night full of food and fun. While you can most certainly have everyone gather around your living room coffee table, there’s something extra special about taking the time to decorate beforehand or come up with a beautiful tablescape for everyone to enjoy. 

That being said, setting the table in a way that feels unique to you, manageable, and pretty can be quite the task — even thinking about setting places for all of our friends for a backyard dinner is making our heads spin. It’s easier than it looks, though. Katie has hosted a backyard shindig or two and she turns to her friend Darcy Miller, celebrations expert, illustrator, and author of Celebrate Everything!: Fun Ideas to Bring Your Party to Life, for tablescaping inspo. So, we turned to the expert for tips on making a summer celebration beautiful, memorable, and most importantly, functional. 

From deciding on a theme to DIY-ing your own decorations, we got the low-down on how to make the most of your summer soirees, even if you’re only hosting a few people in your backyard or dining room. After all, the most important thing is that both you and your guests enjoy the evening together — building the perfect tablescape is only a small part of that. 

What is a tablescape?

You’ve probably surmised this much already, but a tablescape is essentially the scene you (literally) set at your table. Whether you’re celebrating an anniversary, graduation, or holiday, chances are you want to decorate in a way that alludes to the occasion. 

For holidays like the Fourth of July, for example, adding red, white, and blue elements to your table is an obvious idea. However, if you’re just having a few friends and loved ones over to enjoy the warm weather on any summer day, maybe you just want to put fresh fruit and florals on the table to celebrate what’s in season. 

How to start a tablescape

Starting any project is the hardest part, but when it comes to tablescaping, all you have to do to begin is imagine what you want your scene to look like. “Think about the feeling you want the table to have,” Miller says. “Do you want something that feels more formal or do you want something that you can use over and over?” 

For bigger dinners like Thanksgiving, you may want to start decorating your table a couple of days in advance, just so you don’t feel rushed. Setting out your dinnerware and serving vessels also means you aren’t digging around for things to put food in come the day of your event. 

But, if you’re having a casual gathering with friends, sometimes less is more when it comes to decorating and setting out things on a table. Keep in mind functionality, no matter what kind of celebration you’re having. A casual cocktail hour at home won’t require full place settings, so there’s no point in setting the table. Think about having snacks and finger foods on your table instead. 

“People are always really into graze boards,” Miller says. “They also can become the décor. I did a baby shower once and the main table was just two big graze boards — then I didn’t have to put flowers on it!” Plus, cleaning up afterward is easy. If your guests eat your snacks, all you have to do is wash your platters or charcuterie boards.

“The next thing is to think about when it comes to color and season, is thinking about what’s fresh and local,” she says. “That’s always the most affordable and looks the best.” For a summer tablescape, consider what flowers you can easily find at a farmers market or what fruits would look pretty in a large glass bowl on the table. Local touches won’t only save you some money, but they will create a personal feeling, too. 

What to have for a summer tablescape — including Katie’s go-to table-topper 

The best part about creating any tablescape? You probably already have most of the items you’ll want to use to serve and decorate. 

“I always like to collect things when I travel,” Miller says. “If there are things you love that you use on your table, whether it’s candlesticks or dishes or an ashtray, that makes it feel like you and it also makes it easier.” Having basics on hand like candles and vases not only saves you money, but it makes tablescaping easier. 

Using items you love means you can more easily imagine how you want to set up a table to entertain. Katie loves using small bud vases to put single flowers in, not only because it gives the flowers the spotlight, but because the arrangements don’t block the view of the person across from you. 

Things like seashells that you may have collected on vacation or glass cylinders you put candles in are great additions to a summer tablescape, too. “I intersperse small bud vases with conch shells and battery-operated candles,” Katie says. “It’s beautiful at night, and also looks so charming during the day.”

Keep in mind whether you plan to be entertaining indoors or outdoors, too. Outdoor settings require decorations with a little more heft, just so they don’t blow away with a gust of wind. That doesn’t mean you can’t use things you would normally have indoors, like candle holders or regular dishes, though.

We know this advice is just a starting point, but that’s the beauty of creating your own tablescape: It’s all based on what you love and how you want your guests to feel. If you’re planning on hosting friends and family this summer, here are some décor ideas to get you started — but remember to raid your own collection before adding anything new to your cart. 

Summer Tablescaping Ideas and Essentials