Simple Summer Tablescape

Over the weekend, while shopping at the grocery store I noticed a display of pre-made summer flower bouquets.  Typically I don't like to purchase pre-made bouquets, because they  often look busy, include too many filler flowers and are more expensive than single variety bouquets.  However this summer bouquet seemed charming, so I decided to buy it for my table centerpiece this week…big mistake. 

When I got the bouquet home, I un-wrapped the packaging, trimmed the ends and placed the bouquet in a vase…it looked like a dog's breakfast!  I felt totally duped!  These flowers looked absolutely charming when packaged up at the store, but that charm immediately vanished as soon as I transferred the flowers to a vase.  In an effort to try and salvage the bouquet, I disassembled the entire bouquet, trimmed and re-arranged the flowers.  The result was an improved centerpiece that inspired me to create a tablescape using a color palette based off of my flower bouquet.  Thankfully, the tablescape ended up enhancing the aesthetic of the centerpiece and I was relieved to know that flowers weren't a total disaster.

For this tablescape:

• Tablecloth: Ballard Designs Essential Tablecloth
• Placemats: Chilewich Gold Dahlia Placemats
• Chargers: World Market Rattan Chargers, Set of 4
• Water Goblet: Villeroy & Boch Boston Goblet, Green
• Votives: CB2 Gami Rose Gold Candle Holders
• Napkins: Chilewich Solid Linen Napkin, Freesia Pink
• Salt and Pepper Cellars: Sur La Table Blanc Lions Head Bowls
• Wine Glasses: World Market Event All Purpose Wine Glasses, Set of 4
• Wine Coaster: William Yeoward Georgia Bottle Stand
• Wine: La Crema Pinot Noir

The mix of pinks, greens, golds and rattan created a beautiful setting for this casual summer dinner.  While the tablescape seemed to salvage the dog's breakfast floral centerpiece, I have certainly learned my lesson.  I will heed my own advice (*see this post on Tips for Flower Care and Arranging) and refrain from buying pre-made floral bouquets in the future.    So while I may have initially purchased a less than ideal bouquet of flowers, a little rearranging and a beautiful tablescape have transformed this former lemon into pretty palatable lemonade.