Setting a Beautiful Table with Peonies and Roses
... and savoring an al fresco lunch before the heat sets in.
Sunday lunch in the countryside is an important moment in our household. It’s usually the time when we all gather around the big kitchen table, and it’s a chance to talk about everything and nothing. It’s also the day of the week when I truly take the time to set a pretty table and pick some fresh flowers in the morning to decorate it. It’s not always a fixed ritual, but we do our best to make Sunday lunch feel a little special. And when summer rolls around, I often (when it’s not too hot) set the table outside in the garden.
This year again, we’ve been lucky to see the peonies bloom – bold, full of personality, in deep magenta tones that could easily be mistaken for roses! That’s what inspired me to share this post with you on how to set a beautiful table featuring both peonies and roses.


Some varieties are more delicate, in softer shades, and they’re perfect for creating gentle, nuanced arrangements. I recently used them to decorate a table set around a “birds in the garden” theme, which you can see in another post. One standout is the Coral Charm peony – truly exceptional, and if you have a garden, I highly recommend planting some. You absolutely won’t regret it.
For this Sunday lunch, I felt like going for something colourful, summery, and visually rich. Late spring is the perfect time to celebrate these stunning, short-lived flowers that look so generous and glorious in bouquets. We planted a few more peonies last year, but it takes around three years for them to really establish themselves. A bit of patience is required – but the wait is more than worth it! Peonies bring a vibrant touch to the garden, and they remind me a little of hydrangeas, which bloom just after them. They’re perfect for decorating the house with either large or small bouquets, and even for dressing up cakes – like for one afternoon tea where, alongside roses, I added a Coral Charm peony for a dreamy, poetic look.


To set this floral table in shades of pink and red, we could have chosen a green tablecloth and matching tableware. But in the end, I went for blue – probably inspired by one of our garden benches, which we recently painted in that colour! I loved playing with the contrast: the blue of the cloth, the vases, the napkins and the dishes on one side, and the pink and red of the flowers on the other – it turned out to be a surprisingly harmonious mix.
When I set a round table, I usually place one large bouquet in the centre. But with more guests, I bring out the long table, which calls for several smaller arrangements so that everyone can enjoy the flowers and the whole table feels balanced (just be sure not to make the bouquets too tall!).
When it’s hot outside, flowers for evening arrangements should be picked at the very last moment. For a lunch, I gather them early in the morning, place them in a basin filled with water and leave them somewhere cool, then arrange them just before we sit down to eat. We’re nearing the end of spring (even though it’s still May), so outdoor lunches are possible – and, more importantly, bearable (though some days are already quite hot). Once the real heat sets in, being in the garden between 9am and 7pm becomes nearly impossible. That’s why we’ve planted a few trees, hoping they’ll one day give us the shade we need.
To highlight the peonies and roses, I added some stems of allium, scabiosa and lady’s mantle, and used small blue-striped jugs I found from a favourite ceramicist in the south of England. Their size is perfect for little arrangements that I can move around the house after the meal and keep enjoying. One of my all-time favourite roses – perfect if you’re looking to create a bold, characterful bouquet – is the Hot Cocoa variety. As my mother says, it’s a “real rose”, full of beauty and elegance, with a brick-red, rusty colour that gives it an old-world charm. Quite amusing, really, since it’s actually a fairly recent variety, registered in the US in 2002!


I won’t go on about my love for mixing floral prints with gingham or stripes, because I’ve already written plenty on that here, but the contrast of patterns always creates such a lovely visual effect. The (French) tableware adds a charming, vintage flair to the table.
I love entertaining at this time of year, when spring has fully blossomed and summer is approaching faster than we’d like. We enjoy simple, flavourful dishes that don’t require too much prep – which means we get to spend more time with our guests and less in the kitchen! A chilled beetroot soup, a roast chicken with crispy potatoes, a bit of salad and cheese, and to finish, a rhubarb tart.
That’s what I call life’s sweet little pleasures.
J'ai encore des progrès à faire... Je fais des efforts pour décorer mes tables mais, j'ai encore beaucoup de mal à trouver de l'inspiration et à associer les fleurs. De même sur mon temps en cuisine qui est beaucoup trop long. J'ai reçu 6 personnes ce week-end. Pour être organisée et efficace, je m'y suis prise 3 jours à l'avance. Le jour J, j'avais beaucoup moins de chose à faire, mais quand même. J'ai lu que tu proposais une entrée, un plat, un fromage et un dessert. Il est peut-être là mon problème... Je propose généralement, plusieurs apéritifs, une entrée, une viande avec plusieurs accompagnements, le plateau de fromage/salade et 2 voir 3 desserts. C'est un temps fou. Merci pour ce bel article, encore !
P.-S : Je n'arrive pas à recevoir la newsletter en français (même en m'inscrivant sur ton blog), est-ce normal ?
Bises, Manon
I felt I could imagine the gorgeous perfume from those densely packed petals in the roses.