Gosh, I’m glad for spring! Aren’t you? Me and mine have been positively reveling in all the green! Dogwoods and azaleas and tiny leaves popping open… Ahh, makes me feel like a brand new person. And to celebrate, I’ve got a fresh and easy outdoor table setting full of vintage southern charm that is just perfect for that Easter meal right around the corner.
That’s right! Easter is just 11 days away. Have you started planning yet?
Easter is my favorite time to plan our first outdoor meal of the year. Usually we have ham, sometimes fried chicken, paired perfectly with potato salad, deviled eggs, a pickle and olive platter, and sautéed green beans and bacon. Home food. Deep rooted family food. Pass the platter and hold the hurry food. (I told you spring had me feeling like a person again.)
Even though we’re eating outside, it is Easter and I do want it to feel special, and that always begins with moving some of the inside out. Mix and match chairs and real dishes are teamed up with the weathered outside table for a casual, but personal setting.
Next, the centerpiece is chosen! Nothing too elaborate. We want to leave plenty of room for all that potato salad we’ll be serving, not to mention the easy conversation that’s sure to follow. We don’t want anything to be in the way.
This year’s centerpiece stars melon-colored Ranunculus and soft Lamb’s Ear in a yellow ironstone pitcher. For a little height, I placed it on a scalloped galvanized cake stand (<– affiliate link, it helps keep the lights on here at ASD and helps you create this look in your own home) then placed it in a basket-style serving tray with some extra dishes and an egg basket with the cutest egg-shaped salt and pepper shakers. I love the serving tray and grapevine wreath because they make me think of nests even though I didn’t actually use any on this Easter table. To create a real feel for the season, use natural, outdoor elements and materials!
Now that the centerpiece has set the tone, it’s time for dishes. Nothing beats layering up dishes for texture, style, and color. For this table, I decided to layer rattan chargers (that nest thing again!), light turquoise dinner plates, and farmhouse lace salad plates. These Pioneer Woman salad plates are my absolute favorite! From the scalloped edges to the delicate pattern, what’s not to love? I took a cue from the center piece and folded a butter yellow napkin between the plates to pull it all together.
Now, what’s special to me about this little place setting is the sweet little metal mold in the center. It is actually a jello mold from some bygone era (who knew?? ok, if you knew, just keep it to yourself) that I inherited from my grandmother’s kitchen. When she first gave them to me, I thought they were for baking little cakes. I’ll never forget her amused expression when I exclaimed about all the little bundt cakes I was going to make. And while I have yet to mold some jello with them (which makes way more sense given their weight and shape), they are just about the cutest thing going and the perfect topper to tie this farmhouse place setting with the galvanized cake stand in the centerpiece.
To round out this Easter table’s vintage touches, hobnail goblets were mixed in with my plain glass stemware. They were one my splurge for this table, so just buying a few and mixing and matching with what I already had was the perfect answer to not breaking my bank.
Last but not least, little bottles scavenged from my grandmother’s shed adorned with a flower or a two fill in the center of the table. Little bottles like these can be found at almost antique shop worth its salt. Grab them up when you can. They make great bud vases!
And who should be hiding amongst these bottles? A little brown bunny, of course! You can’t have Easter without one of those.
I hope this Easter table setting inspires you to think about making Easter you first outdoor meal of the year. Moving just a little of the indoors out, mixing and matching, using elements that you already have in a new way, and incorporating natural elements are just a few ways you can create a fresh and easy vintage southern feel that celebrates your home and family this Resurrection Sunday. Happy Easter!
***Pin this Outdoor Spring Picnic Tablescape here!***
For more Easter Inspiration, you might also like these ASD Spring favorites!
Woodland Easter Tablescape to Celebrate Spring
Old Fashioned Coconut Ice Box Cake
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I loved the post. You have me thinking of resurrecting some pieces I have. As always…keep inspiring!
Yes, Calithea!! Resurrect those pieces! Love you much. Muah!