Outdoor Summer Luncheon Table Styling Tips

*Today’s post was made possible by Unison, and features gifted product for the purposes of a candid review. All opinions are my own.

We don’t entertain often (product of a marriage between two shy people), but when we do, it’s generally a really small group of people. We prefer low key, quiet affairs so we’ve never had more than five people over at one time. And that’s a good thing because our home is on the small side, too, so it’s perfectly suited to these types of more intimate gatherings.

Take our new paver patio, for example. At just 16 by 12 feet, it’s not the biggest outdoor entertaining area, so we’ve had to think strategically about how to fit everything we want onto it without making it look and feel overcrowded. I’ve experimented with lots of different configurations, including this sofa setup, but I keep coming back to the arrangement of two lounge chairs for relaxing on and a small bistro-style eating area. It’s juuuuuust right for an outdoor summer luncheon for four, so today I thought I’d share my tips for styling the scene using my favorite pieces from the collection at Unison.

The first thing I did was swap the location of the lounge chairs with the bistro table set, that way the chairs would be in the shade mid-day. You can see how the setup looked before here in my hardscape patio installation tutorial. Now the sunning chairs are where they ought to be (in the sunshine), and the table gets more protection from the sun’s heat thanks to the walls of our home.

Next, I covered the vintage glass tabletop with a washable tablecloth that, I think, elevates the look for a more special occasion, like a summer luncheon. I placed a low teal glass vase in the center of the table, and filled it with just a few tulip stems. The reason I went with just a few stems is because I knew they would drape a little lower than normal arrangements, allowing everyone at the table to see each other and talk easily. This Arc Green Low Vase from Unison is the perfect height, and has such an eye-catching shape and color, don’t you think? It’s the ideal centerpiece for a tiny table, and is really all I needed to make the tabletop look fit for a party.

I chose their Hopsack Mocha and Sand Napkins to nod back to the creamy beige and white colors in my tablecloth, and looped each one into a little bunch using these Deep Pine Leather Napkin Holders. The metal button-post closure was really easy to open and close around the cloth napkins, and I love how the rich teal color of the 100% recycled leather complements the same color in my vase centerpiece.

Honestly, though, my favorite part might be those gorgeous Hasami Amber Glass Tumblers. They are really substantial-feeling in your hand, and actually stack, which makes it really easy to transport them from the kitchen to your deck or patio. You can even pair them with the Hasami Ash Wood Lid from Unison to make them air-tight storage containers! I’m adding those to my wish list right now. For the drinks at my luncheon, I served filtered water with fresh cut mint leaves and lemon—my new favorite combination for summer. I always keep a pitcher of it in the fridge now.

Of course, you can’t have an outdoor summer luncheon without beautiful break-resistant melamine plates and bowls. I love the mod 1960s design of these stackable Heller White Melamine Dinnerware pieces. It’s tricky to serve multiple courses at an extra small table where you don’t have room to spread out, so what I did was stack the salad plates right on top of the dinner plates for the first course, that way my guests can eat their salads, then swap those out easily for the dinner plate underneath when we all go inside to the buffet that I had set up on the kitchen counter. Everything is right there within reach, and I think it looks stylishly layered this way.

Check out the entire homeware collection at Unison here, and let me know what you’re going to add to your wishlist. I am so drawn to the timeless, multi-functional designs that they offer, and appreciate that their mission is to create collections that homemakers will come to love for a lifetime. This is “heirloom quality” to a T! See what sparks your creativity when it comes to entertaining, organizing, and decorating this way.