5 Simple Ways To Decorate Flat Surfaces In Your Home For Summer
Discover 5 simple and beautiful ways to decorate the flat surfaces in your home for summer. From garden-fresh arrangements and potted plants to patriotic decor celebrating America’s 250th birthday, these easy ideas will help you bring the charm and beauty of summer indoors.
Quick Start: Walk through your home right now and identify the largest flat surface in your main living area. That is your decorating sweet spot. One beautiful summer arrangement on that surface is all you need to make your whole home feel like summer.
There is something about summer that makes me want to bring the whole outdoors inside. I am a seasonal decorator at heart, and nothing makes me happier than stepping outside and coming back in with something beautiful and fresh from the garden.
Just this morning, I was out tending to my raised bed gardens and came inside with a handful of flowers that went straight into a small mason jar, and an aromatic handful of herbs that I dropped into a coffee cup near my prep area. Those two little arrangements — nothing fancy, nothing planned — added the most wonderful summery charm to my kitchen. That is the magic of seasonal decorating. It doesn’t have to be complicated or expensive to be beautiful.
The flat surfaces in your home are some of the best decorating real estate you have. A dining table, coffee table, buffet, or sideboard can be completely transformed with one simple, well-done arrangement and just a few thoughtful accents. Less is almost always more, and the most beautiful summer looks usually come from one good idea done well.
Here are 5 simple ways to decorate the flat surfaces in your home for summer: ideas you can pull together with things you already have, things growing right outside your door, and a few favorite pieces from around your home.
Bring The Garden Inside
One of my favorite things about summer decorating is that some of the most beautiful arrangements are literally growing right outside your front door. A simple trip to the garden with a pair of clippers and a basket is all it takes to bring the most charming, fresh seasonal beauty indoors.
Cut stems of zinnias, sunflowers, black-eyed Susans, or whatever is blooming in your garden right now and tuck them into a simple pitcher, a crock, a mason jar, or a pretty vase. Do not overthink it. A loose, casual arrangement of garden cuttings has an effortless beauty that no store-bought bouquet can match. The imperfection is part of the charm.
If you do not have a garden or prefer a more polished look, high-quality faux stems are a wonderful option. There are so many beautiful faux florals available now that look incredibly realistic and can be used summer after summer.
Pot Annuals And Perennials Indoors
Another beautiful way to bring the garden inside is to pot up a few of your favorite annuals or perennials and use them as a living arrangement on a flat surface. Geraniums, impatiens, begonias, and herbs all make wonderful indoor arrangements during the summer months. Tuck them into a pretty cachepot, basket, or ceramic container, and add a couple of simple accents alongside them. It is fresh, fragrant, and so summery.
A Post To Help You With This Idea
Summer Annuals And Perennials To Plant Indoors — Everything you need to know about finding the perfect containers and flowering plants, caring for them indoors, and enjoying summer’s prettiest offerings right inside your home.
Celebrate America’s 250th With Patriotic Decor
This summer is extra special, and I have to tell you, I am genuinely excited about it. America is celebrating her 250th birthday, and that is worth every bit of red, white, and blue we can bring into our homes!
I was raised as an Air Force brat, and growing up, I had a front-row seat to the sacrifice, dedication, and deep love that the men and women of our military have for this country. I saw it up close, and it made an impression on me that has never left. This country is worth celebrating, friends. Every single year, but especially this one.
Patriotic decor has come such a long way from the themed and kitschy looks of the past. Today, it can feel elegant, intentional, and genuinely beautiful. The key to patriotic decor that looks polished rather than overdone is to treat it just like any other color palette. Choose one focal arrangement in red, white, and blue, and let it do the work. A white ceramic pitcher filled with red zinnias or geraniums, white Queen Anne’s lace, and a few stems of blue salvia from the garden makes a stunning, completely natural summer arrangement. Add a small flag, a star-spangled ribbon, or a simple blue-and-white transferware piece as an accent, and you have a patriotic vignette that feels curated and lovely.
This kind of arrangement works beautifully on a dining table, a buffet, or an entry table and carries you effortlessly from Memorial Day right through the Fourth of July and into the rest of the summer.
Decorating Tip
Keep your patriotic palette grounded with plenty of white and green. Too much red and blue can feel heavy. White and greenery lighten everything up and keep the arrangement feeling fresh and summery.
Let A Beautiful Plant Do The Work
Sometimes the best decorating decision you can make is to let nature do the heavy lifting. A beautiful indoor plant is one of the simplest and most elegant ways to decorate a flat surface for summer, and it requires almost no effort.
I have a gorgeous plant sitting on my coffee table right now, and honestly, it is all that space needs. The lush green color, the interesting shape of the leaves, and the life it brings to the room make it feel fresh and summery without a single additional arrangement. I just added a couple of simple accents alongside it and called it done.
That is the beauty of a great plant. It does not need much help.
When choosing a plant for a flat surface, look for one with an interesting shape, good fullness, or striking foliage. A simple fern, or a guacamole plant like mine, can be absolutely beautiful on a coffee table, sideboard, or entry table. Tuck it into a pretty cachepot or basket to give it a more finished, decorative look.
Then add just one or two simple accents alongside it, a candle, a small stack of books, or a pretty object you love, and let the plant be the star. Summer decorating really can be that simple.
Decorating Tip: Choose a plant that is the right scale for your surface. A plant that is too small will look lost, and one that is too large will overwhelm the space. When in doubt, go a little larger than you think you need.
Add A Casual Collected Feel With Natural Elements
Summer has a relaxed, unhurried quality that I absolutely love, and nothing captures that feeling better than a casual arrangement of natural elements on a flat surface. This is one of those ideas that looks like you spent a lot of time on it, but really could not be simpler.
Think about the things that make you think of summer. Shells you collected on a beach vacation. River stones from a hike you took with your family. A piece of driftwood you could not leave behind. A bowl of lemons, limes, or artichokes from the grocery store. These simple, touchable, natural elements bring a relaxed and collected feeling to any surface in your home.
I love to gather a few of these kinds of pieces together in a low bowl, a wooden tray, or a pretty basket. You do not need a lot. Three or four pieces grouped together tell a little story and give a flat surface that warm, lived-in feeling that makes a house feel like a home.
Last summer, I set out a shallow blue-and-white bowl filled with fresh peaches on my kitchen counter, right next to a pot of colorful garden flowers. Peaches, by the way, should never go in the refrigerator. They lose their flavor and that gorgeous soft texture that makes them so irresistible. Keep them out on the counter where they can ripen beautifully and do double duty as the prettiest, most fragrant summer decor you will ever find. Something that simple gave my kitchen the most charming, seasonal look, and it cost almost nothing.
This is also a wonderful opportunity to display things that have meaning to you. A shell from a favorite beach, a stone your grandchild picked up on a walk, or a piece of sea glass you found years ago. Those personal touches are what make a home feel uniquely yours.
Decorating Tip: Group your natural elements in odd numbers, threes, or fives, for the most visually pleasing arrangement. Add one slightly taller element, like a bud vase or a small lantern, to give the grouping some height and keep it from feeling flat.
Set The Stage With Summer Linens
One of the easiest and most overlooked ways to change the feeling of a flat surface for summer is with linens. A pretty tablecloth, a casual runner, or even a basket of folded napkins tucked into a vignette can instantly set a summery tone in a room before you add a single flower or accent piece.
I love to think of linens as the foundation of a seasonal arrangement. Just like a great rug anchors a room, a beautiful runner or tablecloth anchors a flat surface and gives everything you place on top of it a finished, intentional look.
For summer, look for linens in light, breezy fabrics like linen or cotton. Stripes, simple checks, soft floral prints, and classic white are all wonderful choices that read instantly as summer. A blue-and-white striped runner on a dining table, a soft floral tablecloth on a buffet, or a basket of neatly folded linen napkins tucked into a vignette on a coffee table all add that easy, relaxed summer feeling that makes a home feel so welcoming.
This summer, I am leaning into green in my kitchen, and it has been such a fresh and pretty change. I lined a nubby-textured basket with a green-and-white check runner, tucked our coffee containers into the basket, and filled a stout little pitcher with herbs and chive blossoms to carry the green color scheme through the arrangement. A trio of mugs and my very favorite green-and-brown summer napkins were the finishing touches. Simple, easy, and completely charming. That long countertop needed nothing more.
Vignette Decorating Tip: I tucked a wooden-framed print of oranges behind the coffee vignette to add height. If you create an arrangement or vignette against a wall, it’s a nice idea to tuck something like a piece of art or cutting boards behind it for height and an additional layer.
That is the power of linens in seasonal decorating. A runner, a napkin, or a pretty dish towel can set an entire color palette and give a flat surface a finished, intentional look with almost no effort at all.
The best part is that linens are incredibly easy to switch out from season to season, making them one of the smartest decorating investments you can make for your home.
Decorating Tip: Keep a small basket of seasonal linens in an easy-to-reach spot so you can switch them out quickly and easily as the seasons change.
Posts That Go Hand In Hand With This Post
If this idea caught your eye, you will love these posts too.
Summer Specific Posts
- Using Summer Annuals And Perennials To Decorate Indoors — Everything you need to know about finding the perfect containers and flowering plants, caring for them indoors, and enjoying summer’s prettiest offerings right inside your home.
- 5 Fresh And Easy Summer Decorating Ideas To Try Now — Beautiful and doable summer decorating ideas you can start using in your home right away.
- A Summer Bucket List For Your Home: Simple Ideas To Savor The Season — A wonderful list of simple, meaningful ways to make your home feel like summer all season long.
Flat Surface Decorating Posts
- What To Put In The Middle Of A Dining Table: Easy Centerpiece Ideas — Simple and beautiful centerpiece ideas for your dining table that work for every season.
- What To Put On A Small End Table — Easy and beautiful ideas for styling a small end table in any room of your home.
- What To Put On A Kitchen Island: Simple Ideas That Are Beautiful And Useful — Practical and pretty ideas for decorating your kitchen island for every season.
- What To Put On Your Coffee Table: Simple Ideas That Always Work — Tried and true coffee table styling ideas that look beautiful in any home.
Summer is one of my favorite seasons to decorate for, and the flat surfaces in your home are the perfect place to start. You do not need many pieces or a big budget to make your home feel warm, welcoming, and beautifully seasonal. One well-done arrangement, a pretty linen, a living plant, or a bowl of fresh peaches from the farmers’ market is often all it takes to bring the feeling of summer indoors.
Start small. Pick one flat surface in your home, your coffee table, your kitchen counter, or your buffet, and try one of these ideas. I think you will be surprised at how much of a difference one simple, thoughtful arrangement can make in the way a room feels.
That is the beauty of seasonal decorating. It does not have to be perfect or complicated to be lovely. It just has to feel like you.
Happy summer decorating, friend…
