Italian Summer Picnic - Scene Setting

Party Ideas

Regional Italian Cuisine

Italian WinesEntertaining Tips

Search by Recipe Type

Enter your zip code:

Store your recipes for free.

Italian Summer Picnic

Setting the Scene

There is something so enjoyable and enticing about dining outdoors. We love being able to take in a beautiful landscape while relaxing with friends or family over a delicious meal. It's also a great way to show off your garden with all of the hard work you have put into it. Outdoor dining can be as causual or as elegant as you like. The main idea here is to make this as pleasurable for everyone, including the host, as possible. We suggest enlisting guests to help with final preparations or to carry items outdoors to ease your workload and create an opportunity for you to enjoy your guests you while last minute details are attended to. For our Italian Picnic we added a few extra touches that were effortless to make our setting a little more elegant. We hope your creativity is inspired by our ideas and help you transform the outdoors into a luxurious and comfortable dining experience for your guests.

Tabletop: A tableloth is a great way to dress up your table, giving your outdoor table a casual yet chic look. It's a great way to incorporate elements of traditional indoor dining to the outdoors. We chose a neutral cream colored linen tablecloth that goes well with an endless choice of accent colors. We added a woven table runner, in a natural straw textile, to add a layer of texture to our table. If the day is windy, you may need to attach small weighted objects to the corners of the tablecloth to keep the cloth down.

Dress up chairs by adding comfortable cushions to the seats and colorful pillows to the back of the chairs. We selected cherry red pillows that coordinate well with the greenery of the surroundings and nicely pick up the color of cherries placed at each setting.

Use cream colored dinner plates to create a coordinated tabletop look. We added woven plate holders and woven napkins in green, pink and cream woven shapdes to add color and texture to each place setting.

We love simply styled, clear wine and matching water glasses; they are timeless, elegant and often inexpensive.

Décor: The décor should be simple, yet elegant. Choose relaxing colors to set the mood. Have fun with the decorating and let nature be your inspiration.

Find unique ways to serve food or beverages; we used a ceramic flowerpot filled with ice, set on an inexpensive plant stand for our tableside wine bucket. We selected old fashioned glass jars to hold breadsticks in. We found a metal wine glass caddy that holds small glasses, reminiscent of traditional Italian wine glasses. The caddy holds six glasses and is a handy way to carry multiple beverages outdoors.

Our glass candle holders with candles wrapped with a string of raffia add a touch of casual elegance to our table. The tall hurricane holders will ensure the candles stay lit even when the wind is blowing. As the afternoon moves into early evening, the glow of candles creates a romantic setting.

Mood: A lovely, no-fuss centerpiece is a simple basket filled with potted annual flowers that can be found easily at any garden center. Or perhaps you have a potted plant elsewhere in your yard that can easily double as a centerpiece.

The sounds of nature outdoors may be all the music you need for this party. If you decide to play music for your guests, check out a few of our favorite contemporary Italian artists like Tiziano Ferro, Eros Ramazotti or Nek.

Favors: We love the idea of giving a small, inexpensive party favor to guests as they are departing. It's a great way to make guests feel special. Select a party favor that does doubles duty: acts as part of the tabletop decor and is a nice gesture to thank your guests. We selected a simple basket filled with fresh Bing and Rainier cherries to give guests as a reminder of the wonderful time you had together.

Element of Fun: A little friendly competition helps liven up any party atmosphere. Bocce ball is a traditional Italian lawn sport that just about anyone can play. It doesn't require a great deal of lawn space, is easy to learn and sets can be purchased at many sporting goods stores or online.

Location: When entertaining in the open-air almost any location will do: the backyard, front porch, patio or deck. Plan out the space you will be using in advance. If you are using the lawn, be sure to select a level area for the table and chairs.

If you have the space, we recommend setting up different spaces in your yard for alternative seating areas. We chose an outdoor bench, added cushions and pillows for our guests to sit on and relax while sipping Bellinis or lemonade.