The Friday 5: Coastal Grandmother Aesthetic
I can’t think of a better way to wind down the Summer season than sharing a Friday 5 dedicated to the ubiquitous “Coastal Grandmother” style. This breezy aesthetic is known for its soft palette of whites, creams, and blues dotted with natural textures like jute and rattan. Picture these: beach cottages, picket fences, linen sofas, sisal rugs, blue hydrangeas, and outdoor dinner parties oozing with casual elegance.
#1 Nantucket
The tiny island of Nantucket, located off Cape Cod, Massachusetts, is known for its gray shingled homes, abundant hydrangeas, and white picket fences. This image from Saltaire Nantucket captures it all, especially the soft blue shutters and white window boxes overflowing with flowers — very Coastal Grandmother.
Image: Saltaire Nantucket
Gray shingled homes, blue and white trim, and lush window boxes embody the Coastal Grandmother vibe
To create this look, try adding fresh window boxes to high visibility areas of your home — just make sure they’re installed in places where you can reach them to plant, water, and deadhead as needed! Try these online retailers for a variety of sizes and finishes: FlowerWindowBoxes.com, Walpole Outdoors, Amazon, and Veradek. If you need ideas for filling your new boxes with flowers and foliage, visit my Summer photo gallery.
#2 blue tablescapes
I love a beautiful tablescape. Sometimes I’m trying to distract my family and guests from my mediocre cooking, but mostly I just love to make the dining table feel like a special destination where we can gather! Either way, I enjoy the layers of a pretty table. I’m also a little obsessed with cabbageware and the botanical vibe it brings, and I had never seen the cobalt blue variety until Deborah from Addicted to China featured it! Click on her photos above and follow her for more beautiful tabletop inspiration.
While these two tablescapes may technically lean more “Grand Millennial” (layers of color, mix of old and new elements, etc.), they’re giving me all of the chic-outdoor-dinner-party vibes and I think they’re lovely inspiration for bringing the Coastal Grandmother aesthetic to your dining table.
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Assorted sizes available in Green, White, Blush Pink, and Light Blue from Terrain. Click HERE to shop.
#3 TRUE blue flowers
If the positive response I get from any Instagram post featuring blue hydrangeas is an indication of how well-loved these flowers are, then I hope this feature will resonate with many of you, as well. True blue flowers are a rare find, but the addition of this hue to your landscape, container gardens, or stems in a vase can instantly bring the Coastal Grandmother vibe to your garden or kitchen counter. Need ideas for blue flowers? Visit Garden Design Magazine’s Top 20 Blue Flowers for Your Garden HERE.
#4 Chinoiserie planters
Two of my favorite Instagram accounts have recently featured front porches adorned with blue and white chinoiserie planters, and I love how the patterns stand out when filled with lush greenery. Follow The Charleston Lens for views of the window box capital of the U.S. (that’s not an official title, but it might as well be) and some of the most stunning coastal real estate the southeast has to offer.
Margaret of York is a dy-na-mo digital creator with a fresh and approachable design aesthetic featured in her Florida, Michigan, and Midwest properties. I can’t resist her fun, but minimal punches of color and healthy use of seagrass for the perfect spin on Coastal Grandmother. And I love how she’s launched us into the Fall season with this breezy front porch in blues and whites…and pumpkins!
#5 blue velvet pumpkins
Speaking of PUMPKINS, Coastal Grandmother transitions to Fall with these posh pumpkins from Hot Skwash! Stuffed velvet gourds are crafted around real pumpkin stems for the perfect blend of fancy and rustic. I’ve featured the blue and white ones here because they’d be perfect for taking your Coastal Grandmother Summer into Autumn, but Hot Skwash offers a breathtaking array of colors (yes, there’s PINK!) across a range of sizes to fit your table and your budget.
You don’t have to live near the water to enjoy the Coastal Grandmother vibe. I hope this Friday 5 inspires you to add a bit of this style to your indoor and outdoor decor. Please drop a comment or question below. To be notified when new blog posts like this one go live, click HERE to subscribe to my email newsletter.
Wishing you all a fantastic weekend!
XO,
Steph
Note: I may receive a commission from some of the products featured here when purchased through my links.