PICNICKING DONE PROPERLY

1. Whether you’re feasting at a festival, treading the polo turf, planning a beachside grill-up or taking a trip to your favourite beauty spot, food always tastes better outdoors.

With a little effort, it’s easy to turn everyday picnics into occasion dining with sensational sharing boards, ingenious two-in-one cutlery, keep-cold wine coolers and mini must-haves that are as compact to carry as they are big on style.

THE LIE OF THE LAND

Unlike dining at home, there are no second chances when it comes to packing a picnic – so planning is key.

Before you decide on your menu, think about the venue. Is there a level spot to set up? Will there be enough shade? How far will you have to carry the food?

Traditionally, picnics are eaten at ground level on rugs. And if your venue is miles from the car park, or in a particularly rural or romantic spot, it’s still much the best way to dine.

But to make it more of an occasion – without being showy – setting up a cloth-covered camping table and chairs can make life easier and more comfortable, particularly for elderly guests.

Small cutlery. Keep cutlery to a minimum to travel light, but ensure you have the pieces you need to picnic in style. You probably won’t require fish knives or salad forks, for example, but you may need pastry forks and a butter knife or olive spoon. We love our Kingham cutlery collection – elegant and neat, and perfect for outdoor summer dining.

The spork. Embrace the spork. In picnic etiquette, it’s acceptable to eat with a spork. Light to pack with only one lot of washing up, it’s a spoon and fork in one and the practical solution to outdoor eating.

Tray. A Drift Serving Tray is neat enough to pack down the side of a bag, yet incredibly handy for placing glasses on to fill, and refill.

Serving bowls. Eating out of Tupperware may be practical, but serving dishes in proper bowls elevates the whole experience. Decant olives and nuts into our Drift Bowl Minis. Serve salad in a Cascade Dish Medium and take Stanton Bright Salad Servers – they’re all dishwasher safe.

Chilled wine. There’s nothing worse than warm wine at a picnic. Chill your wine and fizz thoroughly the previous night. Then, just as you leave, pack tightly in cool bags with ice packs before you transfer to our Drift Double-Walled Wine Cooler. Don’t forget the corkscrew.

Napkins. Elevate your table – or picnic rug – with linen napkins in our Radford Napkin Rings. In bright sunlight, they sparkle and bring a real sense of occasion, however informal your feast.

Serving boards. From bread to charcuterie, whether you’re lounging on a rug or feasting at the table, wooden boards are a must for cheese, cold meats and bread. Our Radford Bright Charcuterie Set and Signature Bread Knife are must-have best-sellers for a reason.

Seasoning. Just as in a formal dining setting, it’s unwise to assume you’ve seasoned your food to your guests’ tastes. Our Signature Small Salt & Pepper Mills are as cute as they are compact to carry.

Lighting. As the sun sets, our Helix Hurricane Lamp and Drift Hurricane Lamp create light and atmosphere – even in a light breeze. Just make sure you pack the hot glass away carefully when it’s time to pack up.