Summer Tablescape Ideas

The Best Summer Table Decoration Ideas

It’s so easy and simple to add summer details to a table in the summer. These 9 ideas for the perfect summertime table will inspire you to create your own!

Clip blooms from your backyard or add treasures from your last beach trip to the table. Use wine bottles for candle holders or bowls of fruit for centerpieces. It’s all so fun to decorate with lots of bright colors and sweet nods to the seashore!

1. Bright Summer Florals

Starting with the champion of easy summer tablescape ideas here: Add seasonal flowers for instant elegance. Summer blooms are the most vibrant of all and will brighten up your table effortlessly.

Drop colorful flowers like sunflowers, hydrangeas, dahlias, calla lilies and zinnias into one large vase or cluster several small ones. You can do nothing more and the season will come alive on your table. Summer is so simple!

2. Tropical Citrus Splash

Even in the most traditional designs, adding a little citrus will remind everyone of the joy of summer’s arrival. You can use fresh fruits as decorative accents – like a bowl of lemons, limes, or oranges – to bring a burst of sunshine to your table.

Or you can draw inspiration from their colors or patterns to add a pop of bright orange, lemon yellow or chartreuse green in napkins, vases, napkin rings, plate chargers or colored glassware. I usually choose just one or two pops. A little goes a long way.

3. Coastal Charm

Seashells, starfish and pristine sand dollars are some of my favorite beachy treasures and I am sure I am not alone. You can incorporate them into place settings, scatter them across the table or around your centerpiece, or use them to mark place cards.

And yes, it’s OK to combine them with other summery elements like fruits and flowers for your table setting. They all co-exist in nature this time of year, so why shouldn’t your table show it? I love the color contrast and common memories they bring about the season. Your guests will love it, too.

4. Seaglass Accents

Still going with the beach theme, is there any more beautiful gem you can discover on sandy shores than sea glass? If you’re familiar with my home, you know I already have an affinity for soft blues and greens.

I love summertime when I can bring them into my tablescape this way. You can use frosted, tinted glassware, glass bottles, votive candle holders, and tinted blue canning jars to get the look.

A long time ago, I made a long DIY box with some scrap wood and filled it with mason jars full of seasonal flowers in spring. The look easily made the transition to summer. A long box or tray is perfect for holding fall and winter wares, too. That little idea has gotten some serious mileage for centerpieces.

5. Beachy, Breezy and Nautical Textiles

Lightweight, breezy linens are what we wear in the summer ­– especially here in the South. Shouldn’t your table?

Choose summery textiles in shades of white, blue and beige to feel like you are on the beach even when you aren’t. Nautical themes and traditional European accents like gingham tablecloths are signs of summer, too, especially for big summer celebrations like the Fourth of July and Labor Day.

Get the look with navy stripes in canvas or terrycloth textures and red-and-white checkered heavy cotton gingham for napkins, placemats or table runners as you see fit for the place or occasion. Napkins or a table runner in these textiles over neutrals can be just enough.

7. Summer Farm Fruits

I covered tropical citrus fruits, but don’t forget what we find fresh at our local farmer’s markets this time of year. Fresh strawberries, peaches, blueberries and blackberries say summer to me, don’t they to you? You can add big or little baskets or pretty dishes of them to your tablescape or simply pull inspiration from their colors and motifs for pops of color in your linens, dishes and glassware.

These are all rich, jewel colors, so they go best in moderation against whites and other neutrals, plus muted “neutral” blues and greens.

8. Light, Breezy Colors and Whites

I mentioned what fabrics we prefer during warm weather months, and we all know the colors, too. Dress your table like you do yourself, keeping it cool and airy on these sweltering summer days. Think of it like yourself on a sunny day in the perfect light linen or fine cotton clothes, picking the brightest, biggest peach. Simplicity and luxury at once! Do that with your table.

When we get time to slow down in the summer, that is exactly what this time is for. Keep it neutral with white dishes and neutral placemats and tablecloths. Then pick the cutest, sweetest little accents to change it up throughout the season.

9. Alfresco Ideas

As for outdoor tablescape ideas, most of these ideas translate perfectly for dining al fresco. Still, you can take it up a notch using things you may already have! Instead of bowls of unpeeled fresh fruit, combine uncut fruit with greenery and cut fruit platters for serving.

For place settings, add bundles of fresh herbs tied in a bow. They are a pretty touch and smell amazing. Hang outdoor string lights for a cozy ambiance overhead and twinkle lights on the table. Gather up your potted plants to set the scene for that special brunch, lunch or dinner.

Start with these Lemon Ricotta Pancakes and you can’t go wrong!