Celebrate summer at the table with black and white buffalo check and cheery sunflowers.
I set a table for two by the lake with black and white and cheery sunflowers.
Sunflowers, which say “summer” no matter what language you speak!
My Sunflower Centerpiece provided the table inspiration, pairing the enamel handled black and white tray with black and white checks.
You can find the tutorial for creating your own arrangement and a favorite trick using an item from the drugstore, here.
Buffalo check plates are serving up sunflower bowls.
Silver napkin rings are abuzz with gold bee magnets for easy embellishing. . .
And Wallace Napoleon Bee flatware is a favorite summer pattern for alfresco dining.
Grown for beauty as well as harvested for seed, sunflowers symbolize the sun, conveying warmth, happiness, adoration and longevity.
Sunflowers make up the genus Helianthus which contains almost 70 different species.
As sunflowers grow, they track the sun’s movement in the sky from east to west. This is caused by the growth pattern of the sunflower, with one side of the stem elongating during the day, followed by the other side elongating during the night.
The growth is driven by genes that respond to light and the plant’s circadian rhythm. As the sunflower matures and growth slows as the flower opens up, they stop their daylight tracking movement and face east.
*Bee*cause east-facing flowers warm up quicker, they attract five times as many pollinators as west-facing flowers as bees like warm flowers! 🐝🐝🐝🐝🐝
The sunflower is made of hundreds of tiny flowers clustered together called the disk, with both male and female components that produce seeds after pollination.
Ciroa Buffalo Check dinner plates / HomeGoods, several years ago
Sunflower Bowls and Napkins / Pottery Barn, several years ago
Sunflower Mugs / Maxcera, HomeGoods
Bee Magnets / Amazon
Silver Napkin Rings / Bed, Bath & Beyond
Tablecloth / Kohl’s, several years ago
Flatware / Wallace Napoleon Bee, Horchow, several years ago
Goblets / Hobby Lobby, several years ago
Willow Chargers / HomeGoods, last fall
The Hum of Bees is the Voice of the Garden
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Between Naps on the Porch
Wow! Sunflowers and black and white checks….perfection. 🌻
Gorgeous! Sunflowers are my favorite summer flower. Love all the pillows. Love the big checks.
Oh this is the perfect summer tablescape….I just love the combination of the black and white check with the sunflowers…and love how you incorporated the gorgeous sunflower arrangement from the porch (on Floral Friday) to the table by the lake!…love that quote…so right! Have a great day Mary!
YES!!! My favorite!!! 👏👏👏👏 Alfresco lake view tables!!! Love the black and white buffalo checked dinner plates and table cloth! The sunflowers are so beautiful, cheery and summery!!! Very creative to put magnets on the napkin rings!👏👏 What a great way to change up the rings for different table settings! I’ll have to remember that!!! Delightfully lovely as always!!! 👏👏👏I I I truly ENJOY!!! Happy Wednesday!!! 👏👏👏👏
Very pretty Mary! Lovin’ the little bee accents too:@)
Lovely, love the black and white tablecloth with the sunflowers !
Thank you, Mary, for the botanical info on Sunflowers. Especially the stems alternating growing longer until the flowers stop turning to the sun. You set a fine table!
Good morning Mary. This tablescape captures summer with those gorgeous sunflowers paired with black and white check. The setting by the lake is perfection. I love that you used your Floral Friday arrangement for this beautiful table. Every detail is stunning. Have a lovely day🌻
Beautiful! LOVE the black & white check and yellow sunflowers! You are very talented!
Absolutely perfect. I enjoyed all the little facts that you posted.
Beautiful table today Mary. I love the black checks with the golden yellow, such a gorgeous combination. There’s just so much inspiration on one table. Thank you for always bringing such beauty to our lives. God Bless you!!!
Just beautiful Mary! I love the sunflowers paired with the Buffalo check and your gorgeous flower arrangement.🌻🐝🍽
Sunshine on a stem!! It sets a sunny table and the black & white check help it stand out more!! HAPPY HAPPY HAPPY! That’s what Sunflowers say to me!! Have a SUNFLOWER day! 🌻🌻🌻🌻🌻🌻🌻🌻🌻🌻🌻❤️
I love all your tablescapes! They make my heart happy! The sunflower tablescape is amazing with the checked tablecloth! You are so artistic. Thank you for starting my day off happy!!! My girlfriends each month have a fun dinner with fancy tablescapes so you are inspiring!!!
Makes me smile again. I can come for lunch along with a few friends. Such beauty without any food. Sweetness & great info. Thanks a million.
Mary, your explaination how the sunflowers grow and turn directions is the best I’ve read. That fascinates me….just hope I can remember it! Lol!
Elizabeth Lawrence is a person I want to know more about. That’s a beautiful quote. I want to order her book that has a collection of her writings from the Charlotte Observer. Sandra @Maison de Jardin mentioned her in her post for Gardens Galore this week.
I’m always amazed at how you find things at multiple places and they all go together beautifully. You weave a tablescape together like an author chooses her words. Speaking of authors, have you read Frances Mayes new book, “Women in Sunlight?” It is fabulous.
Your post was delightful and charming. Oh, and that VIEW!
The simplicity is beautiful! I wonder, do you and your husband enjoy eating at your beautiful tablescapes?
Good morning Mary-Love the beautiful summer tablescape! I absolutely adore the colorful pillows! The one with the cactus blooms just speaks to me! All the pictures are so very welcoming and relaxing! Wishing you a wonderful day! Clara
What a happy table you’ve created, Mary! I’d be happy to sit there and enjoy the beauty and your view. I can see those black and white rimmed plates could be so versatile. What a great Home Goods buy they were, and the plates look so pretty on your tablecloth. Thanks for the beauty!
I love sunflowers and this is stunning
Beautiful, just beautiful!
Oh how I wish I were sitting at that lovely table enjoying a meal and laughter with good friends
Beeutiful! BTW Michael’s has black and white check chargers for under $3 each. Sooo Cute!
Just beautiful! Interesting sunflower information too!
Wow! That black and white tablecloth makes everything pop with color! Those sunflower bowls are colorful and I love the bee magnets on the napkin rings. So glad I ordered some, they work well on my napkin rings too. The goblets are very pretty and go so well with the theme. Enjoyed learning about the Sunflower! God’s gift to us for a happy garden with an extra special blessing of seeds for the birds to eat! Great quote! As always, LOVE the lakeview. 🌼🐝🦋☀️
I didn’t get a chance to plant sunflowers this year but I had patches of volunteers here and there and its been better than me choosing their site….thank you birds. I transplanted some but the rest I left where they landed and I have really enjoyed them……now even more after your sunflower trivia. Thank you for another beautiful post complete with fun information. Now all I need is that Wallace Napoleon Bee Silverware. I’ve been eyeing it for years. I’m turning 60 next month….think I should treat myself to it’s lovliness…lol?
Hi Linda, I think you should definitely treat yourself to a set! If you sign up for Horchow emails you’ll be notified when they’re having a sale (which is frequently) and/ or free shipping offers. 🐝🍽🎂🎉🎊
Again my mini vacation happens through this blog. So special. Thankful for your creativity have a blessed day.
Ironically I just bought some buffalo check fabric for a chair on my front porch. You’ve inspired me with the Sunflower theme. Now I just need to find some of those beautiful pillows!
Hi Debbie, I found the pillow covers on Amazon, they’re very affordable if you have inserts: https://amzn.to/2M5O7JW
Mary i love all the yellow plates and of course those gorgeous sun flowers.
Marion
Love the black and white table clothes with all the yellow things.
Marilyn
The sunflowers and the matching pillow go beautifully with the black and white.
Joan
The sunflower pillow and the sunflower goes well with the black and white.
Joan
I love all your posts but this one had it all… sunflowers… bees…. black, white, & yellow…AWESOME! Thank you, you made my day! Many Blessings!
Great table and terrific information I did not know – thank you for that!
I like those black & white plates as much as any Courtly Check – and much more affordable!
Love, love, love this table setting!! Sunflowers, bees, and black/white buffalos check is Gorgeous!…and then by the lake!! WOW! Got to get those pillow covers.
I LOVE the black and white buffalo checks and they are perfect with the sunflowers. I love learning interesting facts from your posts such as the info about east facing flowers. When visiting Italy years ago, I was fascinated to learn the Italian name for sunflowers. Gira-sole. Forgive the misspelling but isn’t that neat – turning to the sun!
Doesn’t get and more cheerful than this! Never pondered east warms first, fun fact! I can’t wait to plant sunflowers next year, hopefully water will be in to make it happen. Another adorable post 😀
I am buzzing with excitement at your glorious table! The combo of the sunflowers and black and white is fabulous! Every detail is perfect. I wish I could sit there with you.
Striking! And I think I’ll call your tablescape… “summer lovin’”
Gorgeous! Love sunflowers. I love the napkins.
So happy to see the Elizabeth Lawrence quote! Her books continue to inspire my southern garden.
This may be your prettiest table yet! Absolutely delightful!
Beautiful table setting! Also, I wanted to tell you I made your farmer’s market summer salad. It is awesome!!! I didn’t put the chicken in it. I made it plain so my husband could have it as a side salad and I could put salmon on mine as an entrée. The dressing is delicious too.
Loooooove the sunflower table. I might have to have a party and set the table with sunflowers.
Love the table – so inviting! Would like to know where you found the pillows?! Thank you
Another fabulous inspiration…Thanks Mary!
Everything is gorgeous here too ! I love the black and white check table topper and great plates. All your accessories are awesome as well.
Fabby
I love sunflowers, so this table is a favorite. I have long been an admirer of those sunflower bowls, and am also admiring that beautiful coleus in your arrangement. Coleus and I are just not friends. I grow it every year, and every year is it always pale and disappointing.