Get Into the Fun of Outdoor Dining

Outdoor dining is one of the highlights of warm weather. Be sure you have an outdoor dining area furnished and stocked for some of the best meals of the year with friends and family. Having a special set of dinnerware dedicated to your outdoor meals lets you get food on the table quickly and easily. Plus, when you have friends over, you can boost the atmosphere with boldly-designed pieces that won't shatter or crack if they're dropped during all the fun.

Outdoor Dining Basics

Get ready to eat outside all the time once you have a collection of durable, beautiful basics. These pieces are easy to stack, serve, carry, pass around and even clean.

• Grab a stack of melamine plates to start. Melamine is the classic outdoor dinnerware material because it won't shatter if you drop it and it holds lots of bold color well.
• Pick up a set of acrylic glassware. For a versatile set, choose large tumblers that can hold a wide variety of beverages or serve as water glasses.
• A silverware caddy makes it so convenient to bring out several place settings worth of utensils at once. These are indispensable if you're having a picnic or barbecue at your place.

Try a New Aesthetic Outside

Seize the opportunity to play with a whole new aesthetic when you curate a dining area outside. While there's definitely a current lifestyle trend toward indoor-outdoor living, your interior and outdoor spaces don't have to match the way rooms in your home might flow together aesthetically.

• Shoot for seriously bright colors that reflect the sky, spring flowers or your favorite pool float. A little neon looks amazing outdoors in the sunshine.
• Play with upbeat designs on plates that evoke the best of summertime fun. Colorblocking and graphics go great in this scenario.
• Try different finishes, like a glossy cooler or sophisticated, desaturated plates that matte and modern.

What You Need for Outdoor Entertaining

If you love dining outdoors, entertaining outdoors is the next logical step. Everyone loves a barbecue, pool party or night around a fire pit. Stock up on outdoor entertaining essentials now.

• Make sure you have at least one large and several smaller coolers. Place the small ones around the yard so there's a cold beverage nearby, no matter where friends gather to mingle.
• Check out clever drink caddies that carry tumblers to friends that you can pour from a pitcher or dispenser.
• Get yourself a drink dispenser with a high-quality stand, so you can make a big batch of your favorite beverages and friends can step right up.
• A bar cart can make things fun, too.

Explore the fun of eating and entertaining outside with all the right tabletop and serving pieces.