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Around here, this coming weekend marks the end of summer. This Labor Day Tablescape is the perfect way to celebrate and invite company over for a cookout or casual meal.

Labor Day is that last little hurrah before the summer is over, no? In the US, it is intended to honor the American labor movement. To me, it's a great day to reflect on the fact that we are blessed with work. And many years into it, I'm so humbled to say that this blog has provided me with work that I absolutely love.

Since it's still a summer holiday, I thought it would be fun to incorporate a bit more red, white, and blue into a simple Labor Day Tablescape that's perfect for a cookout or casual dinner with friends over. Living in a military community kind of gives me carte blanche to decorate in patriotic colors year round. Check out this entire tablescape below, including free printable candle wrappers and Labor Day quotes about work and inspiration.

Labor Day Tablescape

Now that it's *somewhat* cooled down, we can go out on the porch again for dinner...you know, if it's after 7 pm, that is. The 90s are actually a blessing after the three-digit temps have been so brutal. So excited to be able to entertain out here again.

You can see the entire backyard makeover (including this porch) here.

Labor Day Tablescape Ideas

Here are some easy ideas that can be incorporated into any tablescape>>>

I use plain wrapping paper as a table cover instead of a tablecloth. It's fun to do this for any holiday...you could even incorporate patterns for more eye candy.
Layering is one thing that seems to always work for me.

I used large-width burlap ribbon (available at any craft store) down the middle of the table for a runner...it also adds some nice texture to the table.
To add more pattern, I use sheets of scrapbook paper under my plates and chargers. I have a great set of dark wooden chargers that I've had since before I got married. They were a little pricier than most chargers, but were well worth their investment. I use them for EVERYTHING and every holiday. The nice dark wood is fantastic for dressing a table up OR down...super versatile! Seriously, these things are like 15 years old and still work perfectly...I'll never get rid of them!

Plates and napkins are placed on top of the chargers. These are just paper plates, but using those chargers I mentioned really dresses them up and makes them pop.

Instead of getting matching plates, I grabbed some red polka dot dinner plates and then plain blue ones for salad plates.

Then the FUN starts...I added the little stools to give some height to the table. They're not too tall so people can still converse across the table.
The mason jar full of flags is in a spot that doesn't block cross table conversation, either. I tied the flags together to keep them from blowing too close to my candle flames.
I added all of my flatware, mason jar drinking glasses (with cute patterned straws), and table chairs. I also added a fun quote for each guest that was about "work" or something inspired by Labor Day. And included a small votive candle as a take-home favor at each spot.

Above is a fun little video of how the table came together.

Such a nice, casual way to enjoy the end of summer.

I shared the tutorial for the Go Jump in the Lake Sign as a guest post at Uncommon Designs here.

Easy Candle "Dress Up":

I used candle wrappers (available for free download below) to tie the larger candles into the overall look of the tablescape.
Tying a bit of twine around them helps give more texture and dimension to the table.

Every time I use candles on a table, I can hear my mom's "candle rules" in my head: Never light candles on a table before 5 pm. And if you're using new candles, quickly light and blow out the wicks to leave them blackened. Apparently having "new wicks" is bad luck, y'all. Always keep them black. Oh, mom.

Always use complete caution when using candles on a table.
I made sure I had plenty of space between my flags and candles...if it had been a breezy day, I would have left the flags off the table and set them in another spot for guests to enjoy.
Also, be careful tying anything around candles...I made sure to tug at the twine to keep the loops and tails downward, away from the flames. If there had been kiddos at the table, I may have skipped the twine.

Labor Day Printables

Make sure to print these onto white letter-sized cardstock for the best results.

Click here to download the candle wrappers (these can double as napkin rings, too). They require 11x17 paper for printing...so they're long enough for the larger candle jars. They would be darling for gifts, too. You can write on them with chalk (woot, woot!).

You can also grab them on Dropbox here, or on Google Drive here.