Summer 2023 may unofficially be coming to a close in a few short weeks, it will still be going strong here in Northern California for at least a few more months! The weather doesn’t typically cool until the beginning of November, and we tend to dine outside on Thanksgiving! Like many of you, I love dining al fresco, especially under the weeping willow and crape myrtle trees in the garden, where it’s nice and cool on a warm summer (or fall) day. It’s so relaxing, beautiful, and enjoyable.
While I love the look of elaborate summer tablescapes, I also love minimalistic decor, especially when throwing an impromptu dinner party with a few friends. All you need is a beautiful table runner or a tablecloth, your favorite flatware, classic dishes (or disposable dinnerware), a gorgeous centerpiece (I love fresh flowers) and lighting if you’re eating after dark! We also can’t forget about the delicious food! That’s the most important part!
Today, I am sharing a roundup of 6 outdoor summer tablescapes you can recreate easily.
You may also like: The best garden party tablescapes // lemon tablescape //
6 Outdoor Summer Tablescapes
Italian Summer Tablescape
The Italian summer tablescape is one of my favorite themes of 2023! Like many of you, I love yellow and lemons in general, and this theme is perfect for those of us who adore lemon inspired decor. It is elegant, chic and timeless. But the best part is the table linens and decor I used to create this beautiful and easy summer tablescape is affordable!
I recently ordered a gorgeous 93” outdoor dining table in the color “Biscotti” from Pottery Barn! It complements my new Pottery Barn Westport outdoor all-weather wicker dining chairs beautifully! I can’t get enough of this pretty table and these stunning chairs! They make creating various tablescapes easy and effortless!
I recently purchased this gorgeous lemon table runner, which I accessorized with my classic white Bianca Firenze porcelain plates (I loved the loop detailing!) and round woven rattan placements (which are only $4.98 a piece). I also displayed my sustainable white cloth napkins in gorgeous lemon napkin rings. One thing is for sure, I am obsessed with these beautiful herringbone pattern glasses from Ayesha Curry’s Sweet July collaboration with Pottery Barn! They are beautiful and heavy duty.
I made Amalfi coast inspired lemon sorbet, which I placed in lemon rinds for dessert! Yellow and white are two of my favorite color combinations, and I love how this turned out!
Coastal Blue and White Tablescape For Labor Day
I love making pizza! I purchased “Half Baked Harvest’s Super Simple Cookbook” about a year ago, and make her pizza dough recipe nearly once a week. It’s perfect throughout the year, especially during the summer (since we love to dine al fresco).
For this summer tablescape, I featured my trusty Pottery Barn outdoor dining table, must have outdoor all-weather wicker dining chairs and a blue and white table runner! In fact, blue and white is one of my favorite color combinations! It is effortlessly chic and also pairs well with nearly every color. With that being said, I also featured my beloved blue and white Serena & Lily Oceana luncheon napkins in this pretty braided napkin holder!
To create this coastal inspired outdoor summer tablescape (and this beautiful table setting) just in time for Labor Day, I used my gorgeous white porcelain dinnerware and blue Godinger hobnail highball glasses. My Pottery Barn Monique Lhuillier Juliana Serving Platter was ideal for my homemade pizza. Since the weather has been so hot, we didn’t have many roses in bloom, so I placed some of my hydrangeas in my beautiful Mooney ceramic vase from Anthropologie.
I created this outdoor tablescape in the evening, so it was important to have proper lighting. I turned on my beautiful 9 foot clear glass globe bulb string lights, which I have hanging from these phenomenal metal light poles, which are 100 inches (8.3 feet) tall.
Blue and White Floral Print Tablescape
We have a few vintage and new bistro sized outdoor dining tables in the yard that are ideal for tablescapes. This size is perfect for couples or for dessert with a few friends. It also makes a great dessert table! Like many of you, I love classic table linens as they never go out of style and are always on trend! This gorgeous 60″ white tablecloth with blue roses (or peonies) is one of my favorites! It is elegant, timeless and is an absolute must for nearly every occasion.
I love using my beloved Nordic Ware aluminum baking pans every chance I can get! They are so easy to use (you have to make sure you spray them well with Baker’s Joy baking spray, and you’re good)! This gorgeous modern Nordic Ware Heritage Bundt Cake Pan is one of my favorites! I placed the freshly baked cake on this beautiful Pottery Barn Monique Lhuillier Julianna Scalloped Cake Stand (in white), and adorned it with Koko Loko garden roses!
As for napkins, I used white sustainable cloth napkins and featured my new pearl napkin rings! Pearls are my favorite gemstone, and not because it’s my birthstone ;). One thing is for sure pearls are elegant, classy, and these gorgeous napkin rings will elevate this timeless tablescape! Well, that and the table linens, the cake, the white porcelain dishes, the gold faux bamboo flatware, and the garden setting!
Pink Vintage Barbie-Inspired Outdoor Summer Tablescape
Barbie is the hottest movie of the summer! As someone who adored her Barbie 50s inspired diner growing up, I knew I had to feature a pink Barbie-Inspired tablescape! I love this stunning blush pink scalloped tablecloth, which I featured on my trusty Walker Edison Dominica Slatted Outdoor Dining Table from Amazon! And I also featured a black and white stripe table runner (on top of the tablecloth), which is reminiscent of the 60s inspired Barbie that has been popular for decades.
I bought a Barbie-inspired cookie cutter, which looks vintage. I will say the doll cookies are beautiful, but fragile. You definitely want to use a thicker dough (than the dough we used) to make the cookies for this tablescape!
Shortly before the 4th of July I purchased an old fashioned ice cream machine which I use a few times a month! I love making ice cream, especially vanilla ice cream. It’s so creamy and delicious! I used it to make root beer floats for this tablescape! I bought a set of these fabulous American Retro 50s inspired milkshake glasses that are perfect for floats or milkshakes. They also come with spoons, which is an added bonus! PS: Store-bought vanilla ice cream is great as well! Just make sure you purchase a creamy vanilla ice cream that you love!
This fabulous light pink Igloo Tag Cooler is fun and looks great with this pink vintage theme! If you follow me on Instagram, you’ll remember I featured it a few months ago in the rose garden! For this outdoor summer tablescape, I filled it with cubed ice and then added a few root beer bottles so my guests can fill their floats accordingly!
Versatile Neutral Tablescape Under A Patio Umbrella
This neutral tablecloth is one of my favorites! I bought it a few years ago and featured it on the blog with this rustic fall tablescape! It is ideal for every occasion and comes in various sizes. It is perfect over this vintage wrought iron table. I placed the table under my yellow and white stripe pagoda patio umbrella, which I absolutely adore! I can’t wait to feature it over the next few months and next year too.
For this tablescape, I made bruschetta using homegrown tomatoes from my neighbor; I chopped a white onion, added a few of my favorite spices and basil from my garden! I am obsessed with homegrown tomatoes, and I love experimenting with them every chance I can!
I placed the bruschetta on my Pottery Barn Juliana Serving Platter, which I absolutely adore (especially the ruffled edges). As for napkins, I used my white sustainable cloth napkins and woven wicker napkin rings for a laidback coastal feel!
I also made homemade strawberry lemonade with fresh lemons and strawberries! The lemonade looks great in this clear glass pitcher, which is heavy-duty and at a great price point. The clear herringbone glasses I featured are fantastic and are currently on clearance! I love accessorizing them with fun straws, like these chic lemon paper straws, which are perfect for summer!
Fiesta Tablescape For Summer
My grandparents were born in Mexico, and I was treated to the best Mexican food on the planet growing up! While I wish I could cook as well as my grandma, I try to prepare Mexican food or order it from my favorite Mexican restaurants at least once a week.
For the Cinco de Mayo I created this Fiesta tablescape! I love everything about it, especially this beautiful color palette. And I ordered street tacos and placed them in these stainless steel taco holders. I used this gorgeous serape table runner, made Margarita mocktails and placed them in these fabulous modern Margarita glasses. They look fabulous adorned with these cactus cocktail picks and Margarita salt around the rim of the glasses.
I ordered this cactus (nopal) piñata, which I placed in the middle of my trusty slatted outdoor dining table from Amazon that is only $158 with free delivery!
How amazing are these colorful floral disposable paper plates and beautiful colorful napkins? I adore them! They come in a pack of 20 and are perfect for a large party or five times for a family of four!
This tablescape is not only perfect for Cinco de Mayo 2024, it is also a must for your next fiesta, taco Tuesday or dinner with the family!
Outdoor Tablescaping Tips
Choose The Perfect Theme
Choosing a theme for your dinner party, summer soiree, or Sunday night dinner with the family can be fun! There are many trending themes to choose from. For starters the Italian summer theme, coastal inspired, garden party, a fiesta and Barbie-Inspired are just a few of the popular party themes this season.
Beautiful Table Linens
Having a gorgeous tablecloth or table runner is a must. You can accessorize it with your favorite dinnerware, a beautiful centerpiece of fresh or faux flowers (or greenery), and that’s just the beginning!
Budget-friendly retailers such as Amazon and Walmart make creating a beautiful tablescape easy and efficient. I buy most of my table linens at Amazon because they are gorgeous, well made and affordable! And I can’t even begin to tell you how many table runners and tablecloths I have in beautiful prints and trending styles. I adore them all and use them frequently.
Beautiful Floral Centerpieces
If there’s one thing I love incorporating in my tablescapes, it’s definitely fresh flowers. I feel blessed that my family grows flowers, so I’m able to incorporate them in my displays frequently during the spring, summer and fall months.
If there’s one item I collect, it’s definitely vases! They are gorgeous and can really elevate a tablescape. Walmart’s selection of Libbey glass vases is phenomenal. They are heavy duty and of great quality. The best part is most are under $6!
This beautiful 8″H clear vase is only $5.22 and looks fantastic adorned with fresh garden roses from RoseCandi flower farm. I also filled it with fresh lemons and limes.
I fell in love with this Better Homes and Gardens oval rattan caddy instantly. It is supposed to be for napkins and utensils, but I added three Libbey glass vases in the three sections, and placed a few pink hydrangeas in them. This is perfect for coastal tablescape, and looks great on this blue and white table runner! The best part is the caddy is only $9.98, and the vases are $3.18 each! I can’t wait to create a coastal Christmas tablescape with this set this winter!
Anthropologie has an amazing selection of vases as well! The only thing is they tend to sell out fairly quickly. Thankfully this beautiful bestselling white Mooney vase is still incredibly popular years later. I love filling it with garden roses, hydrangeas and dahlias throughout the summer months!
Beautiful Lighting
If you’re throwing an outdoor party this summer, you’ll want adequate light so you can see your guests, what you’re eating, and your beautiful tablescape! I bought this gorgeous set of four Pottery Barn Gray Willow Lanterns, which I love! I added faux candles, which light up pretty well.
Amazon has an amazing selection of faux tea lights that will look amazing on your tablescape! I recently ordered a a beautiful set of tea light candle holders (not pictured) and battery operated LED lights, and can’t wait to use them this summer, fall and winter as well!
My fellow NBC “Parenthood” fans will remember the beautiful opening credits where the family was seated under gorgeous lights at their outdoor dining table! It’s always inspired me, and I wanted to recreate it. While doing research I decided to buy two sets of 100 inch poles (on Amazon) to hang my globe lights. This set is amazing and affordable too! The poles are very easy to assemble and are very durable. You can place them in the ground easily and effortlessly (if the ground is a bit wet).
Patio Umbrella To Keep You Cool On A Warm Summer Day
If you’re hosting brunch or your party during the day, you’ll want a patio umbrella to keep you cool! I am obsessed with California Umbrella’s phenomenal selection of gorgeous pagoda patio umbrellas! I bought one in red and white stripes in May. And I loved it so much that I bought another in yellow and white in June! They look great with my various “summer tables”. My retro pagoda umbrellas are classy, chic and have garnered compliments from family and friends. And one was featured on LTK Home’s Instagram page on Independence Day!
