By Libbie Summers
Assisted by David Dempsey
Tabletop Linens from Yum Yum Smile Shop

“When I asked her to tell me a food the inspired or held a special memory for her, she quietly whispered “radish”. And so a luncheon table was set in her honor..”

I wanted to honor a friend by setting a table inspired by her favorite vegetable, radish. I started with a foam head form from my local craft store, and three dozen pink geraniums in three different shades of a radish – the idea was to duplicate the beautiful ombre color of a radish. I carefully removed the tops from the stems and pinned them to the foam head using long corsage pins. From the back, I pinned darker pink or reds and in the front I pinned the lighter pinks. Once finished I added a fun temporary tattoo from Tater Tats! Isn’t she beautiful?!

To set the table: I used white hand thrown plates, pink water glasses, rosé glasses, gold flatware, and Agen Linens Napkins from Yum Yum Smile Shop!

We opened a great bottle of rosé, poured two glasses and sat to eat.

The coarse; a fresh greens salad with matchstick radish, a sprinkle of fresh thyme and a drizzle of homemade Raspberry Jam Vinaigrette dressing.

Raspberry Jam Vinaigrette
(sweet, smooth and pretty)

By Libbie Summers
Assisted by David Dempsey
Photography by Siobhan Egan
Tabletop Linens from Yum Yum Smile Shop
Published in Paprika Southern, Fall 2019

“Take a lover who looks at you like maybe you are magic.” – Frida Kahlo.

I was asked by Paprika Southern magazine to style a table and write a little something for their Fall issue with inspiration from Frida Kahlo. And this is where my head went. .

Maybe she said to me, “Set a secret dessert table for two in the garden,” a certain September day in 1938. Things had been rocky with she and Diego –his philandering getting in the way of their happiness so it was only natural she took her own lover. The brilliant colors used in her artwork had been missing in her personal life. So maybe, I would have created a scene for her sweet tryst just like this one. With the colors that surrounded her at La Casa Azul. With the colors of her Autumnal world in Mexico City. With the colors of lost love and newly found lust. With the colors of magic. Just maybe she said to me “Set a secret dessert table for two…” -Libbie

Shop my Yachtie Linen Napkin Set from the Yum Yum Smile Shop

(Frida Kahlo’s Blue House; Mexico City, Mexico)

By Libbie Summers
Assisted by David Dempsey
Location: The Loft at Straton Hall Events

When you have a box full of baseballs leftover from a previous event and your “Pork and Berries” dinner needs a centerpiece…you make blueberry baseballs! #homerun

Blueberry Baseball
makes 1

What you need:
1 Baseball
Newspaper
Scissors
Blue, white, and black paint
Masking Tape
White glue
Water
Paintbrushes
Paper Towels

What to do:
1. Mix equal parts white glue and water in a small bowl. While that mixes, cut the newspaper into half inch strips. Then, cut the strips into small 1-2 inch pieces. Use the masking tape to create a “lip” on one side of the blueberry…this will be the top of your blueberry. Paint the mixture onto the baseball, place one piece of newspaper on the baseball. Continue one by one until ball is completely covered. Allow to dry completely.
Pro Tip: We made a “stand” out of rolled up foil for the balls to dry on.

2. Mix white, black and blue paint together to make a perfect blueberry color. Cover the entire baseball blueberry in the blue color. Allow the blueberry to dry completely. Save leftover paint, you’ll use it soon!

3. Mix black paint with a slight amount of white paint. Using a thin brush, paint a primitive star in the lip at the top of your blueberry. Allow to dry.

4. Add a bit more white to the saved blueberry blue paint mixture. Wet a paper towel and dip it into a slight bit of paint and pat the color all over the sides of the blueberry. Let dry overnight.

Thats it! Gather some trimmings from your Blueberry Bush (or any tree outside), lay the branches down the center of your table. Add in your blueberry baseballs and fresh blueberries if you like.

By Libbie Summers
Assisted by David Dempsey

When your event needs a little more POP, here’s an easy and fun removable idea! For this application, I was hosting in intimate dinner party inspired by cherry blossoms. The environment was very organic and I thought I needed to add a bit of a modern twist. Boom. A simple chair decal on a white ghost chair brought it all home…and was so fun to do.

What you need:
1 Plastic chair
Vinyl Sheets (Available at Michael’s Crafts. For this chair, I used one light pink, one bright pink and one copper)
1 piece thick card stock
Pen/Pencil/Marker
Scissors

What to do:
1. Make a Paper Flower Template: Depending on what your inspiration is for the chair (mine was cherry blossoms), Draw a simple outline of a flower, bud and leaf on the card stock and cut out. NOTE: for this application, I did two different sizes of the same flower. Flower were 2 to 2.5-inches in diameter.
2. Cut Out Flower Template: Cut out the flowers, buds and leaves from the card stock.
3. Cut Out Vinyl Flowers, Buds and Leaves: Working on the back side of the vinyl, use the paper templates to draw around onto the vinyl and cut out. Note: for this application, I did a full sheet of light pink flowers and a used the bright pink for buds and flowers. I didn’t cut leaves.)
4. Apply the Vinyl: Do a simple sketch on paper of the the design you want to start with. Beginning with the limbs, cut out strips (1/4-inch wide and various lengths), peel backing off and apply to the chair. Working one at a time, peel off backing from the vinyl flowers, buds and leaves.

Before and After!

The whole process took me 1 hour and was the perfect modern touch the table needed.

By Libbie Summers
Assisted by David Dempsey

I find inspiration for meals and events great or small in those things blooming and growing around me. This dessert moment is inspired by the delicate beauty of cherry blossoms.