My Mom does a lot around here, and in order to “pay it forward” a bit, my siblings and I had a night while Mom was off getting a massage, that we set the table and made a nice summer dinner on a really hot afternoon. We’ll feature some of our “cool down” dinner recipes later this week, but for now…let’s set our table for this great 4th of July feast!
When planning an All-American tablescape for our outdoor Summer dinner, I was inspired by APPLES! So I grabbed some apples from the crisper, set them on the counter and built everything around my theme: As American As Apple…Pie. (Even though we didn’t eat pie, LOL)
Nothing says USA, and SUMMER like a red, white, blue, and a little sparking silver. The 3P key…is to always use what you have on hand, pair them with a few 3P event basics to make it pop…and you’re good to go! I grabbed our red gingham tablecloth, an red apple shaped basket, a blue gingham napkin for contrast, a few silver and red candle holders for height, mason jars for that “All American” country feel, and YES…perfectly themed paper napkins and plates! (I LOVE not having dishes or laundry to do!)
I filled the apple basket with the blue gingham napkin, then layered on some leftover red Christmas candles, and surrounded them with my apples. Once we had the table cloth down, I added my basket, and carefully placed our red and silver candle holders. They added great sparkle and dimension to the table.
Next, I went to our “July 4th and Summer” Box…grabbed two cute pails full of red, white, and blue lei’s and added two small flags to bring everything together.
Then my future sister in law helped me set our each charger plate, which we topped with our American flag plates, and I added a fluffed paper napkin to each mason jar.
When my Mom walked in the door, we had dinner done, the table nearly finished, and it was great to see her smile. And of course…she added her own genius touch to each place setting: apple namecard holders. She simply sliced a small slit into each apple, and we placed the namecard in each slit. So easy, and it couldn’t have worked better with our theme.
Stay tuned later this week, as we feature our delectable Summer Dinner Menu: cold cracked crab, mozzarella, basil and tomato stacks, Mexican Inspired shrimp cocktail, Sauteed & Chilled Shrimp, and Stuffed Mushrooms! Check out this amazing spread!
How do YOU beat the heat and kick off Summer? Let us know in a comment below or hit us up on Facebook!
