Belgian Summer Tablescape

Seaside-Garden Inspired Tablescape

My husband grew up in Ostend, which is a seaside town in Belgium. It’s a cozy beach town with lots of beautiful blooms in summer. With hydrangeas growing in abundance at his family home, I wanted to make a cute little tablescape for a family dinner.

(This is a table setting from last summer, but feel free to ask me any questions! Here’s my IG post for videos on this.).

Colour Theme:

Using the seaside and garden as my inspiration, I chose colours which embodied the town. I also wanted to match the existing interior of the family home. The colours I chose were light grey, olive green, teal and beige/ white.

Dining Table Decorations

The materials I tend to lean towards are linen, straw and ceramics. I love using plain coloured/ no patterned items, as the flowers added later do much of the talking. These items below were from Casa. I chose items which would be versatile so that my mother in law could use them for future indoor and outdoor table settings:

Light grey/ mint table runner (x2)
Straw placemats (x6)
Beige linen napkins (x6)
Teal grey ceramic candle holders (x 3 in total, one tall & two shorter ones.)

Flowers

Using what we had in the garden, I incorporated white hydrangeas and vibrant green foliage.

Here’s how I decorated the table with flowers:

2 hydrangea centrepieces on either side of the table (2 hydrangeas in each vase)
Foliage down the middle of the table. I used branches from trees in the garden.
1 flower branch on each plate (x6).

Just remember, when cutting flowers directly from the garden, you must wash them thoroughly otherwise ants will follow you to the dining table.

Set Up Tips

START with the two table runners down the middle. Then add the placemats. This will give you and idea of how much space you have to decorate.
HEIGHT plays an important part in the tablescape, as you want to provide dimension. I usually do this by adding candlesticks. You don’t have to always burn them but they look so pretty when you do!
NAPKINS look great when they are knotted on the plate. As long as they are long enough. Don’t tie napkins in a knot if it looks too short.

3 Tablescape Tips

When buying table decor, choose items that match the current decor of your house so you can use them again and again.
White flowers, in any kind, are always my go-to when creating a minimalist design.
Candlesticks are a great addition which also add height to the table.