Hi everyone, I hope you’re enjoying your Memorial Day and remembering the reason we get the day off to rest, reflect, and honor. I read a post recently by a veteran friend and it said not to wish people a happy memorial day, because the reason for the day is not actually a happy one. It’s the day to set aside to honor fallen soldiers. They said to go out and enjoy your day, but not forget the reason we have it. I’m going to try my best to honor that throughout the day today. So, in the midst of this day that brings fun and celebration and marks the beginning of summer for so many, I’ll be thinking about how grateful I am to the people who lost their lives fighting for our freedoms.

Over the weekend we did the traditional Memorial Day cookout, and now I want to share some tabletop inspiration in case you’re doing the same thing. I didn’t want the table to feel too over the top or cheesy. For this holiday I prefer a gentle hint at the theme rather than an intense version that takes red, white and blue to the extreme. So, for this table I pulled a lot of things that I already had to help point towards the theme a bit without being too on the nose. I went for navys and other blues rather than traditional royal blue. You can see it in the dip dyed place cards (remember those from a couple weeks ago!) and the bowls. I paired that with little bits of red to accent in the napkins and candles. And then I used a whole lot of white to pull it all together.

Table Setting Idea: The Details

I love doing a table setting that’s a bit more understated like this. While it may not feel like enough, I’ve found that often you can really solidify the feeling you’re going for with the food. Over the weekend we had home made fried chicken, deviled eggs, watermelon, kale salad, and strawberry shortcakes for dessert. We cooked most of it outside and then plated it up and ate inside (only because we don’t have an outdoor table yet). But, with that kind of food and the simplicity of cooking it outside and getting to enjoy the long, warm night there’s no way it could NOT feel like a special summer celebration. Add in the fact that we were spending the day with some of our favorite people and you’ve got a recipe for perfection. And that’s really the beauty of this look. You can do something like this for a major holiday like Memorial Day or 4th of July. Or you could do it for any one of those everyday moments that deserve something a little extra special. It’s a versatile set-up and as long as you combine it with the elements that make a great get-together that I talked about in this post you’ll win every time.

The Everyday Table Setting for Summer: Sources

Table cloth – homemade out of muslin.
Candle holders – old Crate and Barrel, similar here.
Dinner Plates
Blue Dish Towel – old from The Gardener, similar here and here.  
Large Blue Bowl
Latte Bowl
Napkins
Juice Glasses

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