Salute a Summer Wedding with a Citrus Theme Table Setting

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Few things say summer better than fresh, juicy, brightly-colored citrus fruits— lemons, oranges, and limes. Thus, a summertime wedding party captures the essence of the season with a citrus-inspired table display.

It begins with viewing the table setting as one big arrangement, with all of its elements centered around the citrus theme. The table cloth serves as the backdrop, the place settings and table centerpiece serve as the main attractions, and the decorative accents serve as bonus pieces. » Click to view slideshow

Start With Citrus Hues and Their Variants

A citrus-inspired color palette clearly includes bright, cheery orange, yellow, and green.
» Click to view slideshow

Clearly, citrus-inspired means applying the natural hues of oranges, lemons, and limes. Thus, peach, a subdued variant of orange, is selected as the dominant color to be used as the backdrop for the entire table setting. Lemon yellow is chosen as the middle dominant hue, appearing in the floral arrangements, the napkins, and other selected elements. Finally, orange and green complete the palette as accent colors appearing in touches throughout the table. The overall effect? A beaming summery look that will surely have guests smiling back.

Some decor items may come in more subdued shades, such as this sachet bag in chartreuse and light orange.

Staying within the same citrus palette, introduce different tints and shades for visual interest. For example, the chartreuse and light orange colors of a silk shantung sachet bag subtly echo the surrounding elements in orange and green, including the peach background provided by the tablecloth.

Ivory, being neutral, can be used as a complement to all the colors in the palette. The ivory-colored fabric blooms in these miniature clay flower pots, for example, help offset the bold oranges and yellows, lending a softer, creamier appearance to the entire display.

Mini pots of ivory-colored roses help temper the bold oranges and yellows of the table display.

Despite being “non-citrusy,” these pretty table accents also play into the theme by holding place cards in the shape and color of oranges, while the fabric blooms themselves remind one of fresh, dewy orange blossoms.

Play Up the Same Palette in a Vibrant Centerpiece

With the occasion’s palette clearly in place, the centerpiece of each table may then display the same dazzling hues. In keeping with the lighthearted ambiance, deep orange gerbera daisies and sprays of Dancing Lady oncidium orchids may be casually arranged in a glass bowl, showing off their natural beauty and suggesting freshness with the water element visible. Other flowers in citrus hues that may be used are roses, liliums, carnations, and poppies.

The casual arrangement of gerbera daisies and orchids in a glass bowl plays up the party’s lighthearted ambiance.

To create varying heights in the table display, tall rectangular glass vases may be substituted for the glass bowl. Or a group of freestanding slender vases, each holding a single flower, can be arranged in a circle in the center of the table, with the colors positioned in an alternating fashion.

For an arrangement that is a little more subdued and more affordable, miniature flower pots may also double as centerpiece elements. Several of them may be grouped together closely in the middle of the table—their ivory blooms providing a visual respite from the brightness of the table’s decorations.

Add Zesty Elements

Beyond the traditional floral centerpiece, why not incorporate real, fresh fruits in the display? Aside from their colors and textures, actual fruits add character and authenticity to the table arrangement.

Real, fresh citrus fruits add character and authenticity to the display.

Ideal placements for these fruits include:

- in groupings at each place setting
- surrounding or as part of the centerpiece
- as holders for flowers or candles (a mini bouquet or a tealight may be embedded into a fruit sliced in half)
- in a small, woven hand basket set beside the centerpiece
- in halves or slices positioned amidst the table decorations
- as peels cut artistically into interesting designs or curls, and scattered around the table

Displayed in any of these ways, the light, tangy scents of these fruits provide a refreshing aroma for guests to experience.

Make Your Own Citrus Decorations

TAKE 5

• Choose lemon yellow as the base color, with orange and green completing the look as accent colors. For a color with both a green and yellow hue, chartreuse also make an elegant addition. The effect is a summery look for a jubilant citrus-table display.
• Create centerpieces with flowers in citrus hues such as gerbera daisies, oncidium orchids, roses, liliums, carnations, and poppies.
• Incorporate actual fruits into the table display, artfully arranging them in special groupings.
• Craft table decorations with whimsical cutouts colored in yellow, orange, and lime green that mimic citrus fruits.
• Serve sweet things that entice the senses such as sorbets, then conclude the party with favors such as silk sachets filled with citrus-flavored candies.

Inject some spontaneity into the decor by applying creative accents that are easy and fun to make. For example, vari-colored paper cutouts can serve as inexpensive embellishments to the peach tablecloth, giving it more texture. Their circular shape and festive hues are an obvious reference to citrus fruits, yet their graphic-design look lends an edgier feel to the more traditional decorative elements. As an alternative to these cutouts, citrus-colored confetti, swirly ribbons, and crinkle paper could be used. For a playfully sweet touch, serve lemon drops, orange slice candies, or citrus-flavored hard candies in little porcelain dishes around the table.

Add Sweet Things to the Decor

Citrus doesn’t always have to mean tangy and sour. Using sweets and desserts with a citrus spin adds a bright and sweet flavor to the scene. For a festive dessert offering, serve up refreshing sorbets in chic martini glasses, soda drinks in orange, lemon, and lime flavors, and for something a bit more sophisticated, lemonade infused with limoncello liqueur or citrus vodka. As an alternative to one big wedding cake, a grand display of frosted cupcakes in summery colors and flavors such as lemon fits in perfectly at a carefree summer wedding celebration.

Hand Out Refreshingly Unique Favors

Charming favors in perky colors mark a fitting end to a citrus-inspired wedding event. Delicate silk sachets decorated with hand-painted flowers, for example, take the summertime concept one step further when filled with citrus-flavored edibles. These charming little sachets may be hung on the backrest of each chair or laid at each place setting. Alternatively, they may be presented in a large woven basket adorned with brightly colored ribbons, or distributed by attendants using decorated hand baskets.

Handpainted silk sachets, hung on the backrest of each chair, are pretty favor containers for citrus-flavored treats.

Take-home treats can also be presented in keepsake boxes elegantly wrapped in olive green and burnt orange organza. As both these colors are sophisticated derivatives of the basic green and orange of the event’s palette, they lend an elegant touch to the setting while still blending nicely with the surrounding colors.

Yet another decorative and useful favor option are ivory flower pots. As place card holders, they complement the citrus color palette of the table. Then, their beautifully crafted fabric flowers with a matching satin ribbon make them attractive mementos for each guest as well.

Organza wraps in olive green and burnt orange serve as sophisticated packaging for heart-shaped favor boxes.

A Citrus Theme: A Celebration of the Senses

The joyful exuberance of summertime can be infused into a wedding event through a citrus-inspired theme that appeals to all the senses. It begins with a color palette that takes its cue from the natural hues of oranges, lemons, and limes, and extends this to all the decorative elements—from the place settings, to the centerpieces, to easy-to-make accents, to summery favors. After all, who says a wedding party can’t be a fun, lively affair? And a citrus theme sets just the right mood for it.

External Resources

- Cocktail Party Ideas - tips from Sunkist.com
- Lemon & Citrus Highlighted Desserts - a slideshow from BHG.com
- Lemon Daisy Centerpiece - an article from About.com

Products Mentioned

Luméseta Silk Favor Pouch

Florentina Place Card Holder

Lusetalleante Floral Sachet