Easy Tips for How to Set a Colorful Tropical Tablescape

Try these easy no-hassle tips for setting a beautiful tropical tablescape with inexpensive bright florals, palms, and monstera leaves.

You know that feeling you get when you create something that brings you back to a favorite vacation spot? You can almost feel the cool ocean breeze, watch the swaying palms, and crunch…. is that sand in your mouth? It is so much fun to bring that tropical vibe to your dining table and I’ll show you how (without the invasive sand).

A Colorful Tropical Table

Hey there!  Welcome to day 5 of A Very Global Easter where my friend Casa Watkins Living and I are sharing 7 days of globally inspired Easter DIYs and decor.  If you are popping over from Stephanie’s blog, welcome!  We are a military family living overseas in Japan.  You’ll get to see a little bit of what it’s like living in a traditional Japanese home while I share my tropical Easter table with you.   If you haven’t been over to Casa Watkins Living, make sure to check out her rustic and global Easter tablescape!

This table is so fun and colorful and super easy to throw together.  I wanted to add a botanical feel to my Easter table so I picked up palm and monstera leaves from the dollar store ahead of time.  The palm branches are perfect for Easter but are great for a summer tablescape too!

How to put a tablescape together:

• Start with a neutral background by laying out a white/cream tablecloth or runner. This will help your tropical touches really pop! I started with a lace curtain panel as a wide runner.

• Keep the table settings neutral with natural elements. My place settings consist of a woven charger, white Ikea dinner plate, bamboo salad plate, paper napkin, silverware, and colorful glass tumbler. The settings are casual with everyday dishes, paper napkins but elevated with chargers and colorful tumblers.

• Add in tropical touches by placing a large botanical leaf and tucking the stem around each plate.  Stop here if you want to keep the center of the table available for food otherwise go on to the next step.

• Collect small bud vases and other pretty containers in neutral colors for a simple and easy centerpiece. Drop in a colorful floral stem or two in each one. Real or faux. If you are creating a Spring or Easter tablescape you can scatter a few neutral decorated eggs around too.

My centerpiece consists of three Japanese vases.  Two are concrete vases from a local home decor store but the gourd shape is a special piece of pottery from nearby Miyajima.  They already had artificial blooms in them so all I had to do was set them on the table with a few of my DIY Easter eggs.

Palm leaves and Easter eggs are perfect for this non traditional table but still have a nod towards our religious beliefs.  I love that! 

I’m super excited I managed to get a birds-eye view of the entire table.  Super tricky to do in my little dining tatami room. If you want to see more of our Japanese rental house have a look at our home tour and watch the video below.  

I hope you feel inspired to set a tropical table in four easy steps! Remember to head over to Casa Watkins Living to see her beautiful rustic and global table! 

You can find all the best decorating ideas and DIYs for Spring and Easter on this page! It also includes seasonal printables, checklists, and worksheets for Spring decluttering and organizing.

Have you done any Spring decorating or DIYs yet?

You might also enjoy these global Spring posts!