How To Style A Romantic Outdoor Table for Two

Make a date night at home fun with my tips for how to style a romantic outdoor table for two.

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Summer is slowly winding down, and we’re trying to savor every minute before the busy school year starts in just a few weeks.

At this point in our lives, I’m pretty sure Kirk and I could confidently add professional chauffer to each of our resumes. Especially during the months of August through May.

I know that so many of you can relate!

Free time is a thing of the past. Which makes finding time to go out on a date challenging to say the least. So today, I’m sharing a way to create a fun date night at home with tips for how to style a romantic outdoor table for two.

Summer Picnic Dinner Party

I’m excited to join my blogging friends this month to bring you some ideas for how to style a summer picnic.

We have so much fun hosting these supper club parties each month. I hope you enjoy them too!

Are you new to our dinner parties? You can see last month’s tablescape here. And if you love casual outdoor dining, you might also like my tips for styling a boho summer picnic.

If you’re visiting from my friend Rachel at The Ponds Farmhouse, I am glad you are here!

For those who may be new, thank you for stopping by, and welcome to Midwest Life and Style! My name is Jen. I’m a wife, mom of two, and lifelong Nebraskan.

Here, at MWLS, you’ll find posts filled with delicious made-from-scratch recipes, tips for how to decorate for the seasons, and simple do-it-yourself projects. My main goal is to inspire you by showing you that you don’t need to spend a lot of money to create a beautiful and inviting home.

How To Style A Romantic Outdoor Table For Two

Last month, my husband Kirk and I celebrated our 15th wedding anniversary. We enjoy getting dressed up and going out once in a while. But honestly, staying at home is more our speed.

So I set out to style a romantic outdoor table for just the two of us in our backyard. No expensive menu. And no babysitter needed.

Here are a few simple tips for planning a date night in and setting a romantic outdoor picnic.

Keep It Casual

Styling a romantic table doesn’t mean that it has to be fancy, or expensive!

Summertime here in the Midwest can get a bit steamy. And since we’re dining al fresco, I kept the table setting casual using mostly items that I found around the house.

We purchased this bistro set soon after we got married in 2006. Quite honestly, it has seen better days. But I can’t justify buying a new set right now. So instead I freshened it up with some matte black spray paint and added some new striped patio cushions.

And it looks brand new!

For the place setting, I used some rattan plate chargers topped with striped cotton napkins and my everyday cream stoneware dishes.

Then I finished with some simple champagne flutes and old vintage silverware.

Create A Focal Point

Add interest and charm to your romantic outdoor table with a simple centerpiece.

I picked up some fresh seasonal flowers from the grocery store and arranged them in a glass vase. Mixed with a few stems of hydrangeas from our yard, I created an inexpensive bouquet for less than $15.

The flowers are the perfect focal point for an al fresco table set near the garden.

And the pretty shades of pink and purple from the bouquet add to the light and summery feeling of the romantic picnic tablescape.

Set The Mood

Part of the magic of dining out is the ambiance. Set the table and the mood for date night with candles and lighting.

To recreate some of this magic in our backyard, I mixed in some galvanized candle holders as part of the tablescape. I’ve had them for several years, and I like the rustic, yet romantic feel they add to our outdoor date night setting.

Don’t you love the dramatic look of the drippy wax? Usually, I would be cursing our non-stop wind but not this time.

And the light breeze helps to make the summer heat a bit more bearable when dining outdoors.

To add to the dreamy outdoor setting, I strung some new solar string lights in our tree from AQ lighting.

The LED Edison-style filament bulb creates a classic vintage look that I love and the warm glow of the lights adds to the inviting atmosphere.

Choose The Perfect Outdoor Menu

Add the finishing touch to your romantic outdoor table for two by choosing the perfect menu.

For our date night in I created a simple and light charcuterie board. To start, I filled a round board with Foccacia bread and soft herbed cheese. Then I added a bunch of sweet red grapes and some cured meat.

Charcuterie boards are easy to make and can also be filled with some of your other favorites like olives, nuts, dried fruits, and jams or honey.

They make a great appetizer and can be easily packed and taken to any location for the perfect picnic snack.

And of course, it wouldn’t be a romantic date night without some cocktails! Peach Moscato is the ideal sweet and refreshing wine for the summertime.

How To Style A Romantic Outdoor Table For Two

Who’s ready for a date night in?

Kirk and I love the bistro table’s new home under the tree, and the glow from the solar string lights adds the perfect ambiance.

They help make this cozy backyard space the ideal spot for dinner and drinks, or when we need to sneak away for some quiet time to reconnect.

This picnic was so much fun to set up and style. I think I see more backyard date nights at home in the near future!

I hope you enjoyed my simple date night tips and ideas for how to style a romantic outdoor table for two.

Be sure to see how all of my friends styled their summer picnics (linked at the bottom of this post).

Don’t forget to see our dinner party menu with five brand-new summer dishes to add to your recipe collection, including the recipe for my creamy broccoli salad. It’s sure to become one of your new favorite side dishes!

More Summer Picnic Inspiration

Looking for more summer tablescape ideas? Nex, visit Anne and AnnMarie at Simply2Moms to see how they set their table and check out all the picnic tablescapes linked below.

XO,

Michele at Vintage Home Design / Stacy at Bricks n’ Blooms / Rachel at The Ponds Farmhouse

Jen at Midwest Life and Style / Anne and AnnMarie at Simply2Moms

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