INDOOR OUTDOOR DINING ~ Now That You Are Home...

Once summer rolls around its time to relax and enjoy the great outdoors. Well, not exactly in my little world. I love being outdoors, don’t get me wrong, but. I love the warmer weather, flowers are blooming, the sprinklers are sprinkling, the smell of freshly cut grass, ahhh! I coexist with the outdoors, just on my terms. To dine outside, but at a table with real silverware and cloth napkins. Proper chairs. No paper plates for this girl. Oh, a nice clean deck or flagstone patio would be perfect. Yes to long slow dinners that turn from dusk to dark. Sipping a nice wine, sharing some laughs. All the stars are lined up. My kind of outdoor experience. Heavenly.

Sounds like too much work. Not if you mix a little of this with a little of that. Casual, but well thought out can make the best of memories and the work easy. Always, I add a little personal touch to the simple details. So follow my simple steps for a perfect night out, and I guarantee this will be the night dreams are made of.

A nice tray is a very good investment.

Start with a simple tablecloth. This is a scrap of fabric left over from a project. I love that the cut edges are slightly frayed from the washer and dryer. Sets a beautiful blank canvas to start.

Layer with melamine chargers, or simple chargers from your stock.

White porcelain dinner plates from your kitchen are next.

Layer with a melamine plate.

Theses are my newest set of summer plates. So cute. Perfect and light weight for outdoor use. To purchase these plates…Link here.

Simple drink ware.

Silverware. It is good to know proper placement of silverware, but it is also fun to add you own style with where and how.

Napkins with a twist. Directions to follow…

Flowers from your garden make the best centerpieces. Simple, small, one, three or so. Low, so their height isn’t interfering.

And my favorite, lighting. Nothing more romantic, more mysterious or more intriguing than a flickering light.

Place. Arrange. Done.

These napkins add just enough casualness to an outdoor table. They are interesting, romantic and affordable. Cool conversation. When dinner is over, they can be tossed. Less clean up the better, I say.

Interested?…here is how to make them.

Start with cheesecloth. You can buy it by the yard or in packages. I purchased my cheesecloth from a fabric store. This package has 6 yards of cheesecloth, prefect to make 4 napkins. You can even find it in the kitchen gadget isle at the grocery store. Or Amazon. It is not expensive. To buy...Link here.

White or natural. I wanted a soft, dusty pink, so I chose to use the natural cheesecloth. Having just a hint of beige for a base I knew the outcome would give me a beautiful shell pink cloth that would be just perfect for a dreamy evening table.

Start with two cups of red raspberries.

Place a pasta pan on stove and fill to the top with water and bring to a boil.

Add raspberries to the water.

Gently smash the berries in the pot with a stainless spoon.

Reduce heat to low and simmer for 30 minutes.

Remove pot from stove.

Use a strainer to sift/remove remove the berry debris.

Pour the berry water into a second pot. I poured the hot water through the sifter just to make sure any remaining berry parts stayed out of the second pot.

Add 1/2 cup of salt and stir. Salt helps the berry color bond to the cheesecloth.

Loosely unwind cheesecloth, place in sink and wet with water. Wring gently.

Add your cheesecloth to pot.

Stir occasionally and let sit for 15 minutes. Remove from pot, rinse and wring excess water. Once the cheesecloth dries, it will be a few shades lighter than when it is wet.