Outdoor Centerpiece Ideas

As the weather warms, outdoor entertaining season kicks into gear. Centerpieces finish your dining decor, but there are special considerations outside. Wind and heat can wreak havoc on candle or flower arrangements. The same centerpieces that look fine indoors may be too overpowering or out of place on an outdoor dining set. Choosing elegant yet casual centerpieces specifically for the patio is necessary. Does this Spark an idea?

Garden Ideas

Instead of the traditional flower arrangement, use bounty from the garden--or your grocery store--as a centerpiece. Fill an earthenware bowl to overflowing with lemons, limes or oranges. Mix and match fruit to match your color scheme, or choose a single fruit. Vegetables such as tomatoes also make a good centerpiece filler. Use green or red tomatoes, depending on the time of the year.

Fill a clear glass bowl with water. Arrange two to three lemons or limes in the bottom of the bowl underwater. Float slices of lemons and limes on the surface with floating candles that mimic the fruit interspersed among them.

Flower Ideas

Potted flowers survive outdoor heat much better than cut blooms. Set a small potted arrangement inside vintage bowls or dishes to dress up their usual containers. Arrange herbs in small terracotta pots on top of a pillar candelabra. The spikes that hold the candles in place can be removed with wire snips if they don't fit inside the pots' drainage holes.

Fill a clear glass pitcher 2/3 full with water. Cut the stem from a large artificial flower. Glue fishing weights inside the petals so they are hidden. Sink the flower inside the water. Arrange floating candles on the surface.

Candle Ideas

Pillar candles and other styles of centerpieces where the flame is unguarded are dangerous outside if there is a breeze. Solve this with votive holders and other candle arrangements that offer protection from the wind.

Create a nautical-themed candle arrangement. Choose a votive holder slightly shorter than the fishbowl and place it inside. Fill the space between them with sand, shells and dried starfish and sand dollars.

Combine candles and flowers. Place votive candles into tall glass vases. Place the stem of an artificial flower, such as a dahlia, against the side of the vase with the bloom facing out. Tie a brightly colored ribbon or length of raffia around the stem and vase to secure. Cluster several flower votive candles in the center of the table with the blooms facing outward.