In association with Resene.
Get the look
– When styling tablescapes like these, select a palette of three to five key colours to ensure a cohesive look you can roll out across everything from tablecloth to glassware to flowers.
– Position tall floral arrangements between place settings, so the conversation can flow effortlessly around them.
– If you prefer your dining table to be more pared back, arrange your food, drinks and decorations on a separate trestle table (scroll down to the blue beauty below). Consider your food to be decorative too — think exotic fruit, bright packaging and large platters that display a feast of colour.
– Wide, coloured stripes are an instant mood-booster. We’ve added them to the hero element in this scene — a tablecloth that could double as a picnic blanket. Before you commit to painting an entire piece of material, use inexpensive Resene testpots to trial different colours on some smaller fabric swatches.
MAIN IMAGE & ABOVE, PAINTED ITEMS Wall in Resene SpaceCote Low Sheen in Resene Longitude and Resene FX Paint Effects Medium coloured with Resene Seachange; tablecloth in Resene SpaceCote Low Sheen in Resene Pōhutukawa; placemats and coasters in Resene SpaceCote Low Sheen in Resene Escapade, Resene Lemon Twist, Resene Sepia, Resene Stromboli, Resene Cararra, Resene Red Red Red and Resene Aviator; vases in Resene Waterborne Smooth Surface Sealer and Resene SpaceCote Low Sheen in Resene Escapade, Resene Cararra and Resene Stromboli, resene.co.nz. ABOVE, ITEMS FROM TOP LEFT Freemans linen fabric (used as tablecloth), $75/m, marthas.co.nz. Small Checkers napkin, $142/set of six, bonnieandneil.com.au. Coasters by Crafters Choice, $6/set of six, spotlight.co.nz. Coucou glasses by Maison Balzac, $99/pair, thisisfabric.com. Cutlery basket by Icon Chef, $13, chefscomplements.co.nz. Cutlery, $245/24-piece set, acmecups.nz. Mansikkavuoret plate by Marimekko, $42, boltofcloth.com. Afternoon Delight bowl, $280, thearcdept.com. Ortiz sardines, $13, sabato.co.nz. Placemat by Crafters Choice, $12/set of six, spotlight.co.nz. Wavy bowl stylist’s own. ADDITIONAL ITEMS MAIN IMAGE, FROM LEFT Orange surprise-filled decorative ball, $42; Italian Fruit candle, $60, garden-objects.com. Candleholder, $49, and Twisted candle, $25/pair, by Anna & Nina; Paloma bag by Lalo, $149, rubynz.com.
Go extra
– Sketch ideas for painterly placemat, coaster and vase designs on a piece of paper. Apply a basecoat of Resene Waterborne Smooth Surface Sealer to your vases, then paint them, your placemats and coasters with two coats of Resene Lustacryl tinted to your chosen colours — we used Resene Escapade, Resene Lemon Twist and Resene Cararra. To achieve a smooth finish on your placemats and coasters, use a roller. When dry, draw your designs in pencil over the top before using small brushes to colour them with tinted Resene Lustacryl — we used Resene Escapade, Resene Lemon Twist, Resene Sepia, Resene Stromboli, Resene Cararra, Resene Red Red Red and Resene Aviator.
ADDITIONAL ITEMS ABOVE Bistro folding chairs by Fermob, $190 each, jardin.co.nz. Flowers, POA, isadia.co.nz. Vases stylist’s own.
Line it up
– Make this tablecloth by laying a piece of linen on a dropcloth. Mask a border by sticking two widths of 38mm painter’s tape side by side around the edges, ensuring clean lines by pressing it down firmly. Use a ruler and pencil to create your stripes; the thicker they are, the quicker they’ll be to paint. We stuck two lengths of 38mm painter’s tape side by side, leaving 76mm gaps between each tape stripe that we then painted with Resene SpaceCote Low Sheen in Resene Pōhutukawa. Allow to dry, then remove the tape.
ABOVE, PAINTED ITEMS Wall in Resene SpaceCote Low Sheen in Resene Longitude and Resene FX Paint Effects Medium in Resene Seachange; tabletop in Resene Lustacryl in Resene Cararra and Resene Aviator; vases in Resene Waterborne Smooth Surface Sealer and Resene SpaceCote Low Sheen in Resene Cararra and Resene Lemon Twist; resene.co.nz. ABOVE, ITEMS FROM BACK LEFT Alba cushion cover, $70, cittadesign.com. Coucou jug, $169, and glasses, $99/pair, by Maison Balzac, thisisfabric.com. Serena dip bowl, $20, cittadesign.com. Ortiz sardines, $13, sabato.co.nz. Checkerboard cushion cover by Castle, $99, boltofcloth.com. Flowers, POA, isadia.co.nz. Candleholder, $49, and Twisted candle, $25/pair, by Anna & Nina, rubynz.com. Italian Fruit candle, $60, garden-objects.com. Afternoon Delight bowl, $280, thearcdept.com. Alba cushion cover, $75, cittadesign.com. Wavy bowl and vases stylist’s own.
Set the scene
– Replicate this limewash wall effect with two basecoats of Resene SpaceCote Low Sheen tinted to Resene Longitude. When that’s dry, switch from a roller to a large brush to apply Resene FX Paint Effects Medium coloured with Resene Seachange in a criss-cross pattern, before using Stockinette cloth (available from Resene ColorShops) to immediately wipe it in a figure-eight motion. Work quickly across the wall, aiming for an irregular but uniform finish.
ADDITIONAL ITEMS ABOVE Cutlery basket by Icon Chef, $13, chefscomplements.co.nz. Cutlery, $245/24-piece set, acmecups.nz. Small Checkers napkin, $142/set of six, bonnieandneil.com.au. Forge pickle fork, $15, cittadesign.com.
Set the table
– To recreate this graphic trestle tabletop, take note of our design — it’s dynamic, with lines and shapes that allow an interplay between our selected colours yet are uncomplicated to mask with painter’s tape. We used a roller to paint the entire table with two coats of Resene Lustacryl tinted to Resene Cararra. Once dry, mask out your pattern before painting over the top with two coats of Resene Lustacryl tinted to Resene Aviator. Allow to dry, then remove the tape.
Styling Alice Lines
Photography Wendy Fenwick