Create An Outdoor Dining Room

Perhaps because the June gloom here in LA has been so...well...gloomy, we immediately honed in on this image from wide open spaces. It's an easy DIY that can be set up for a party and left up for the summer...

A few poles shoved into the ground (try Cost Plus or Home Depot), a light bright sheet or bedspread (Govind on Venice Boulevard carries those Indian block print bedspreads we used in college in bright colours) and a simple spread of what's been making our mouth water on our sister site, the kitchen and you've created a welcoming refuge from the sun that'll soon be shining too brightly. Add colourful streamers and a few bright pillows and we could easily imagine spending a lot of time here, can't you? And no, you don't need a wide expanse of lawn, just enough space to tuck a tiny table under. No lawn? Plant your poles in flower pots and you can create the same effect on a balcony or patio.

[image via: wide open spaces

Comments (9)

this is great. love outdoor spaces like this... keep em coming!

posted by Sumhope on June 9th 2009 at 2:20pm
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All I see is ticks.

posted by Pixie on June 9th 2009 at 2:31pm
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ahhhhh-chooo!

posted by AZkathy on June 9th 2009 at 2:50pm
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This is lovely, and exactly what I need. But I don't think it's all that easy a DIY... has anybody actually done it? What thickness poles? Do they also need to be tethered like they are in this picture? How do you attach the cloth to the poles? Can just the cloth be taken down or does the whole contraption have to be disasssembled?

posted by idontdobeige on June 9th 2009 at 3:03pm
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This makes such a beautiful picture... I can see possibilities with it. But the only problem I have when I try these beautiful ideas is this... wind blowing down my pretty covering, bees and bugs flying around the food, and my husband say... you might think you are a nature girl, but really, you're not.

But I do love the covering idea with a nice fabric rather than an umbrella, I would also love info on how to hold it all together.

posted by sfteri on June 9th 2009 at 3:14pm
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Oooooohh!!!

posted by cardboardbox on June 9th 2009 at 3:14pm
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Yes, actual instructions, please!!

posted by mad on June 9th 2009 at 7:39pm
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That looks really lovely and totally reproducible with a bit of common sense.

posted by Melton on June 9th 2009 at 10:22pm
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Louis XIV used to throw parties with similar outdoor setups, though his tended to feature chandeliers, live classical music, and very expensive imported Chinese porcelain.

posted by Stiletto on June 9th 2009 at 11:56pm
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