How To Style a Budget Summer Garden Party Table for Pennies With Foraged Flowers
I love creating summer garden-party tablescapes using free, foraged wildflowers. If you are looking for an inexpensive way to entertain this summer, you are in the right place! Today, I’m sharing a fun table setting using thrift-store tableware, botanical dishes, and foraged flowers. The entire tablescape only cost me pennies. You can easily recreate this look with my tips for safely foraging Queen Anne’s Lace and creative ways to style thrifted tableware and dishes.
Let me take you step by step through the process.
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How to Create A Budget-Friendly Summer Garden Party Tablescape
I love creating unique tablescapes, but I don’t like spending money in the process. For this table, I didn’t spend any money. However, I know that isn’t realistic in some cases, but you can still set a high-end table for pennies with these tips.
- Use what you already own.
- Shop thrift stores for unique tableware.
- Get creative with your flower containers.
- Use wildflowers, greenery, or garden flowers that you can gather for free.
Welcome to the Greenhouse Summer Garden Party
The ideal setting for a summer garden party is our DIY greenhouse. The space is filled with an 8-foot work table that doubles as a dining table when needed.
The rafters are hung with my collection of vintage baskets for quick access, and the DIY potting table doubles as a buffet table for entertaining.
How to Forage and Arrange Queen Anne’s Lace Safely
To create a centerpiece for this summer garden party, I decided to forage for Queen Anne’s Lace and wild ferns. We have several areas where the flowers are growing wild. However, you should take precautions when gathering wildflowers or foraging for other free materials.
Foraging for Wildflowers & Greenery
I recommend reading: Foraging Safety Guide: Tips for Pinecones, Acorns, Flowers, and More. You will want to ensure that your flowers and greenery are free of bugs if you plan to bring them indoors.
I shake them as soon as I cut the stems, and before bringing them inside, I mist them with a mild mixture of Neem Oil spray. Then allow them to dry for a few minutes before arranging.
How To Make a Basket Arrangement of Wildflowers
Since our table is very long in the greenhouse, I wanted to add a basket full of Queen Anne’s Lace at the end of the table. This thrifted oversized basket is one of my favorite thrift store finds.
- Add water-filled containers to the basket. I used two medium-sized crocks and placed one at the front and the back.
- Next, add the wild ferns to the water at the back of the basket.
- Finally, I gathered large amounts of the wildflower stems and placed them in the water at the front of the basket.
- I continued to add stems until the basket was overflowing.
This was not a professionally styled arrangement, but I wanted the basket to appear as if I had gone into the garden and just picked the flowers for a very organic centerpiece.
How To Create a Queen Anne’s Lace Centerpiece
I’ve had these great chippy thrifted urns for several years and wanted to use them as the centerpiece for the summer garden table. Instead of adding water directly to the urns, I filled some recycled yogurt containers with water and placed them inside the urns to hold the stems. Since the containers were smaller in diameter, they made arranging the wildflowers easier.
To create a natural-looking, organic arrangement, I began with small wild ferns around the edge of the urn and then filled the center with the cut stems. I continued to add stems until the containers were overflowing with blooms.
I’m thrilled with these simple arrangements. They were free, they only took minutes to complete, and I love the rustic, organic feel they provide to the summer table. However, using two overwhelmed the table, so I used one for the centerpiece and added the other at the end of the table on a stool.
Rustic and Elegant Centerpiece Vignette
With the rustic wildflower centerpiece, I decided to add a touch of elegance with vintage sterling silver salt and pepper shakers and silver candlestick holders with flameless tapered candles.
Styling the Table with Thrifted Botanical Dishes
The summer tablescape theme was inspired by these thrifted botanical herb dishes. I only paid 47 cents each for these sweet dishes several years ago. They are the perfect addition to any summer table. Since the tablecloth has touches of blue, I used my vintage blue earthenware pottery dishes as the dinner plate. The green and blue tones provide a cool summer feeling to the table.
Each dish represents a different herb, and I decided to fill some tiny vases with garden herbs to add to the center of each place setting.
Insider Tip
Want to provide guests with a thoughtful gift? These vases are inexpensive thrifted finds, and the herbs are clippings from my garden. The cute vases make a great take-home gift and only cost pennies. When left on a windowsill, the herbs will sprout, and they can plant them in potting soil. Learn more about windowsill plants at Styling Your Kitchen With Herbs & Greenery.
Vintage and Budget-Friendly Thrifted Tableware
To complete each place setting, I used my blue earthenware pottery dishes to hold the botanical plates with a thrifted rattan placemat as the base.
The silverware was thrifted a few years ago for a steal at a Habitat ReStore, and the rattan placemats were found on a thrifting adventure in Wilmington.
I used these green water goblets paired with clear wine glasses to complete the glassware for the party table.
The napkins were an easy no-sew fringe DIY project from a few years ago, and the napkin rings are thrifted sterling silver. To learn more about budget-friendly tablescapes, see “The Ultimate Guide to Creative Tablescapes on a Budget”
Finishing Touches
To complete the Summer Garden Party tablescape, I added the vintage basket filled with wildflowers to one end of the long table.
At the other end, I’ve added another vintage basket with additional botanical dishes and napkins for extra place settings if needed.
Final Thoughts
I love using the DIY Greenhouse for small parties, and the space is so inviting. This summer table is the perfect example of creative and budget-friendly ideas for entertaining.
The table is counter height, so I have bar stools for seating around the rustic table. With a repurposed thrifted solar chandelier, we can entertain in the evening as well.
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Design Challenge
Today’s post is part of the monthly series “Design Challenge” hosted by Cindy at County Road 407. Each month, Cindy provides us with a design challenge and inspiration from Pinterest or Instagram. This month’s inspiration comes from Pam at Everyday Living.
Be sure to click each image below to follow along for more summer tablescape inspiration. Up next is Barbara at French Ethereal.
