When summer weather cooperates, any meal served outdoors is a bonus. And why shouldn’t that bonus be as stylish as possible?
Wedding gifts that help a couple set a chic table or picnic blanket can add the missing touch to an otherwise enjoyable meal. A tablecloth made of chalkboard paper creates instant place cards or a rundown of the menu.
There are novel ways to transport all the necessities. A new bicycle by Madsen with a large 40-gallon cargo compartment on its back will take both lunchers and their lunch to the desired picnic spot. (It’s useful for pre-picnic shopping, too.) The cargo bucket comes with removable seats and seatbelts for four passengers; when empty, you can fill the bucket with ice and drinks.
Picking wildflowers along the way? An empty wine or water bottle becomes a colorful vase thanks to a coated-paper origami-like cover. The coated-paper cover is reusable, too, avoiding unnecessary trash.
This vase cover was designed by Pepe Heykoop in the Netherlands, for which he won the Editors’ Award in May for best new designer at the International Contemporary Furniture Fair in New York.
Mr. Heykoop developed the product for the Tiny Miracles Foundation, a group that works with 700 members of the Pardeshi community, who live on one street in the red light district of Mumbai, India. So far, by teaching women to sew and fold vase covers, Tiny Miracles has reported being able to employ more than 100 women who live on that street.
And when organizing your summer table, why not use melamine plates that look that like ceramic dinnerware with vintage-inspired floral designs? And an old favorite, bistro style chairs, have now been redone in bright hues to perk up a drab porch or patio.
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Corkcicle Air
The Corkcicle Air is an efficient way to chill, aerate and pour wine. After 90 minutes in the freezer it is cold enough to keep a chilled bottle of white wine cold for an hour. As it pours, the wine is aerated.
Melamine plates with vintage-inspired floral designs like this foxglove pattern look like ceramic dinnerware but are durable for outdoor meals and are dishwasher safe; dinner plates are $20 each, side plates are $12.
SolarPuff, a four-and-a-half inch solar-powered cube, folds flat. After eight hours in the sun it is ready to light up a table, tree branch or patio for another eight hours, (it’s water resistant in case of rain); It has an on/off switch.
A unique way to cover a picnic table, mark place settings or the menu is with a paper Chalkboard Table Runner (25 feet by 30 inches).
$24.95; a box of eight chalkboard pencils is $16; from anthropologie.com, 800-309-2500
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Deluxe Watermelon Tap
The Deluxe Watermelon Tap kit makes it easy to use a hollowed out watermelon as a drink dispenser. The directions for using the tap are: slice, scoop, insert and fill (and you can use the melon flesh for a refreshing fruit salad).
$29.99, (you supply the watermelon), from kegworks.com, 877-636-3673
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Metal Bistro Chairs
Painted Metal Bistro Chairs, in a choice of five colors, are a great present for any couple with a terrace or patio. The chairs fold flat for easy storage and carrying.
This coated-paper reusable cover converts any disposable bottle into a colorful vase. The Paper Vase Cover, which comes in a choice of colors and patterns, was designed in the Netherlands by Pepe Heykoop for the Tiny Miracles Foundation in The Netherlands; he won the award for best new designer at the 2015 ICFF in New York this past May. Mr. Heykoop designed the product for The Tiny Miracles Foundation, which supports about 700 people who live on one street in Mumbai, India; he has taught more than 100 women to make these folded paper products; and the foundation sends their children to school.
Transport your picnic provisions — food, table, accessories, even a passenger — in the roomy 40-gallon cargo compartment of the Madsen Bucket bike. It has two removable seats and can haul up to 600 pounds (including the rider). Available in orange, green, blue or black.
