Spring Garden Party Table Setting

With nearly 20 years of experience tailoring fine linens to her clients' tastes, Leontine Linens founder Jane Scott Hodges can set a party with little more than a flick of her wrist. Taking her cues from the elegant brick courtyard of a friend's New Orleans garden, she was inspired to keep things natural at this springtime affair. She created the lunchtime scene by surrounding an antique cypress table with an unexpected pairing of antique and modern Louis XVI-style chairs, and then splashing the space with lush spring blooms and rich jewel tones.

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Think beyond table linens. A graphic monogram boldly embellishes the back of this Louis XVI dining chair.

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Chair monogram: Etienne; leontinelinens.com. Side chairs: Casper Dining Armchair in White; lexmod.com. End chairs: vintage, through Uptowner Antiques; 504/891-7700.

The guest of honor at this affair was undoubtedly the lively, full-color linens. Jane Scott ordinarily opts for place mats, but here, she used a sapphire topper with ocean blue appliqué border. She paired the cloth with coordinating napkins, casually pulled through acrylic-and-agate napkin rings. The pale pink monogram adds a soft touch.

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Flowers: by Dunn and Sonnier Antiques & Flowers; dunnandsonnierflowers.com. Stemware: chaffemcilhenny.com.

Some old-school traditions should never go away. "Place cards give guests the comfort of knowing where to sit," Jane Scott says. These hand-painted scarab cards, paired with small jars of wheatgrass, reinforce the garden theme.

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Place cards: Hand Painted Scarab; bernardmaisner.com. Calligraphy: by Suzanne V. Lossi; lossidesigns.com.
 

Forgo plain white for a mix of fresh colors and motifs. Here, Jane Scott artfully layered Raynaud's Festivite and Herend's Fish Scale china with lavender Anna Weatherley chargers. But even when you're thinking outside the box, keep the classics on lock: Old standbys, such as your grandmother's silver flatware, can ground even the most contemporary scheme.

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Tablecloth: Arch Border in Ocean Linen on Sapphire Linen and napkin: Ocean Linen with Delcambre Monogram; leontinelinens.com. Napkin rings: Lucite & Agate; mecox.com.

Jane Scott continued her mix-and-match approach on the serving table. Pastel macarons, almost too pretty to eat, match the table's hues. The spoons were a gift from her mother, while the plates were purchased on a whim at an estate sale. Layering napkins between the plates looks elegant and makes serving easy.

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Desserts: shopsucre.com.