Hydrangea-Inspired Table
Join me in creating a hydrangea-inspired table for a sunny summer afternoon of food, fun, and friends.
Confession – I love hydrangeas, also known as Hortensias. They are big, showy, and look great in the garden for a good portion of the summer all the way into fall. They come in such wonderful colours, different shapes, and sizes. They are great for foundation planting and hard to kill, except for the grocery store pots that come out too early in the season to be planted and look great indoors for a week at most. Cruelty to both plant and wanna be plant owner!
It’s no great surprise then that I wanted to host an afternoon BBQ with a hydrangea theme, I started searching for party décor and paper plates but found much, much, more.
You can see the items I found and love here on Shop the Look : Hydrangea-Inspired Table
A Brief History of Hydrangeas
While native to eastern Asia (Japan, China, and Korea) as well as the Americas, fossils of early hydrangeas in many diverse areas of the world. In Japan they’ve been celebrated for centuries and symbolize gratitude and heartfelt emotion.
They caught on in Europe in the late 18th and 19th centuries, especially in Victorian England where they work so well in the romantic garden style.
Meaning of Hydrangeas
The Victorian language of flowers gave them mixed meanings – gratitude and abundance, but sometimes also boastfulness. That’s understandable – because they are so big and blossomy.
Hydrangeas are loved throughout the world – and can be celebrated – with abundance – and of course, with gratitude – at our tables.
Inspiration
I do have to say that I bought a new garden flag earlier this spring – and, yes, it was a hydrangea motif, which got me thinking about hydrangeas. Well now I can host many more hydrangea parties as well as enjoy family dinners in the garden since I also purchased a table runner, cushion covers, placemats, and more.
Come and discover how I’ve used hydrangeas (all blue in this case) to create a pretty afternoon table. And yes, I’ve made it easy for you to re-create the look!
Create Ambiance & Comfort
Start with a Focal Point Centrepiece
I already have a centrepiece -it usually lives in my kitchen window providing a jolt of color in an otherwise white kitchen. I have faux hydrangea blossoms in a white vase laden down with glass beads. The beads give color but more importantly stop Roman from throwing the vase onto the counter or floor – yes, he’s one of those cats – most pretty things in my house live behind glass doors.
Bring in the comfort
I found two cushion covers online that I really liked, and since I’ve been known to leave cushions out overnight – I bought exterior cushion inserts – yes, that’s a thing! I paired the pale linen-like cushions with a velvet cushion I brought out from inside. Yes, bringing the inside out for an afternoon is fine -just don’t leave velvet cushions outside – condensation would not be good for them.
Shop Your Home
This, for me, is the first step in decorating. What do I have that I can use? Then, and only then, what do I need (or want?) This summer on the “wants” I really wanted something more permanent than a plastic tablecloth and paper plates. Yes, great for a BBQ, but not great for a more elegant meal.
It Doesn’t Have to be Perfect
I found a table runner and placemats – they aren’t the same – the placemats are less vibrant than the table runner because the matching placemats weren’t available at the time. But they go well so I can use them together or apart. The table runner with seagrass placemats looks great. The tablemats on a white or blue tablecloth look great. Lots of options. In my life no table setting is ever replicated!
Looking for Hydrangea-Inspired Items?
These are the items I purchased to complete the look.
Have Fun with Styling
I played around with a few different looks here.
I love the vibrancy of the colours in the party set – it came with this plastic tablecloth, 2 different sizes of paper plates, cups, serviettes, and straws. Perfect for a BBQ or other summer meal – think watermelon!
Clarissa’s Tip
Be careful with watermelon juice– it stains! Be aware – it can leave a mark on pale table linens, so blot spills quickly and rinse with cold water before washing. Be sure not to put the tablecloth in the dryer until you know the stain is out.
How do I know this? I lost a lovely white shirt to watermelon juice when I was making the watermelon basket fruit basket earlier this season.
Create Your Own Hydrangea-Inspired Table
You certainly don’t need an entire collection of hydrangea table and dinnerware to create a pretty hydrangea inspired table. Start by looking at what you already have, add in either fresh or faux hydrangeas (I have faux so I can enjoy them year-round), and then add in a few pieces of blue and white (or pink and white if you love pink and white hydrangeas).
For me, it meant purchasing a few new items that I’ll use over and over again – the table runner, placemats, and cushion covers. They don’t match perfectly color wise, but neither do hydrangeas – that’s part of the beauty – and fun.
Looking for More Inspiration?
If hydrangeas are one of your summer favorites too, I’ve put together the items I’ve purchased along with a few other items (all hydrangea inspired) that you can find here on the Shop the Look: Hydrangea-Inspired Table. Take a look, choose pieces that work with what you have, and create your own version of a Hydrangea Inspired Table.
And, yes, that’s another excuse for me to head back to the garden, enjoy a summer afternoon with friends and family – a pretty table, good food, great company, and hydrangeas in bloom.
This post contains affiliate links, which means I may earn a small commission if you choose to make a purchase — at no additional cost to you. As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases. All product information is provided by the retailer, and pricing or availability may change at any time.
If you liked this post you’ll love the English Country Garden Tea Party Ideas and Shop the Look : English Country Garden Tea Party
If you’d like to see more of the garden you can visit A Simple Summer Garden Refresh.
