Setting a Summertime Tea Table out in the Garden

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Hello everyone and welcome to this month’s Pinterest Challenge! Our lovely host Cindy of County Road 407 fame has chosen the theme of an Outdoor Tablescape for this month’s challenge. Here in North Texas the weather has cooled off just enough to create a beautiful summertime tea table for you…

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If you haven’t been over for a Pinterest Challenge before, this is where we take a themed photograph, or even just an idea, and recreate the image in our own way. Each month I love this month’s outdoor tablescape! Welcome to everyone coming over from Carol’s blog, Bluesky at Home. Isn’t her table heavenly?

This pretty outdoor tablescape comes from Hello Hayley. I love her use of creamy white hobnail-style dishware atop a wood plank topped table! The subtle coloring of summer greens and white play well against the brownish-tans of the table and the woven grass placemats. Lovely!

In that same post, Hayley shares soooo many breathtaking tablescapes… Do check it out. 🙂

I started my outdoor tablescape by gathering my own creamware onto a silverplate tray and heading outdoors…

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Tea table time

I immediately thought of a tea table when given this month’s challenge. I had sewn this tablecloth a few years ago and as pink is my favorite color, it was the perfect foil for this tablescape.

When we were living at a few campgrounds, I had access to picnic tables with worn wood plank tabletops but I don’t have one here. I used a small round bistro table instead which my inlaws used in their coffeeshop for a number of years.

As you can see, my “greens” are all in the background. Not much is blooming this time of year except for the plumbago and sunflower. July has just been too hot, naturally. 😉

After bringing out a Wedgwood Queens Plain Queens Ware teapot, this table was all set. The plates underneath the Ikea bowls are from Marshalls and were made in Italy. The tea mugs are from At Home.

I love that you can take any creamware, from any era or shop, and blend those pieces all together to create a lovely tablecape big or small!

Since this bistro table is small, just a little faux bois vase decorated with small birds was added and it holds two sunflowers and a tiny sprig of plumbago.

Weather was coming in, so I only cut just those three flowers so I could still get the table set and then have time to shoot before the summer rain showers. 😉

The sun kept peeking in and out so I was just able to get a few “sunny” photographs for you. I love how this tablescape turned out. The chairs we picked up from Lowe’s a couple of years ago give this setting a turn-of-the-century Titanic feel.

They are indoor-outdoor all-weather furniture. I love their look and they bring in the natural wood look from our inspiration photo, plus with really padded cushions they are comfortable for long chats!

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A little look around the garden

Just this past week, I cut back the snapdragons growing in this pot. These guys came back from last year, which was really cool. Exciting to see plants reseed themselves or act as perennials.

These are our citrus trees. I had lemons and small mandarin oranges growing on them but we didn’t get them outside soon enough and the fruit fell off. The trees are growing well now being outdoors and I have fed them again to get them to fruit in the fall.

Here is a long view down the whole south garden fence from this section where most of the roses are. It is a nice view looking into the utility/kitchen garden beyond. You can see the newly installed powder-coated aluminum fence panel on the right and the thrifted wrought iron fence which was installed the fall after we moved in five years ago.

This area was just an expanse of dead lawn when we moved in and it’s nice to have a couple of outdoor rooms now for entertaining.

And that is my summertime tea table set out in the backyard garden! I really do enjoy sitting underneath the oak tree here to the left. It has grown so much that it provides a lot of shade now ~ totally welcome in summertime!

I hope you will take away from this post that it is easy to gather a few pieces of china from your stash to set a simple but beautiful table in your garden perfect for an alfresco luncheon ~ or for a tea!

As we get into fall, we do spend more time out here having lunch and enjoying the garden. 😉 Always fun!

Up next is Diane from South House Design and I know you will love her fun mismatched blue & white plates used in her outdoor summertime tablescape! Please enjoy your visit to all of the ladies on today’s tour.

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Blessings to you,