Sign up for email newsletters

Sign up for email newsletters

Picnics serve many purposes — as romantic settings (see Jane Austen novels and Merchant Ivory films), and practical ways to get your family and friends out in the fresh air. Above all, these feasts are moveable — from watching a sunset in the park, catching a sea breeze on the beach, or relaxing in the shade of a tree at your fave nature preserve.

You can all enjoy a stylish and lovely picnic party that’s as cool in its gear and spread as in temperature.

To start with, let’s dive in with the lynchpin of it all: the basket. The classic woven straw versions are nice enough, but they don’t keep everything cold. And those bulky plastic coolers do the job, but make you feel like you’re hauling Gatorade to a soccer game. These days there are hybrid designs that are both high-tech enough to keep everything cold and pretty. Case in point: The Cooler Tote Bag ($69 on businessandpleasureco.com) — I especially love it in the navy and white Chinoiserie pattern — is made of sturdy canvas with waterproof vinyl linings and snappable leather handles. Or if you’re just toting bevvies, the Rolling Cooler ($99 on potterybarn.com) in dapper navy and white stripes has a deep interior to hold all sizes of bottles and cans, and pockets for openers, etc.

You’ll also need a comfy (as in, padded) blanket to sit on, that’s water-resistant on the ground side, but soft on the upper side. Pendleton Outdoor Packable Blankets ($40 on amazon.com) come in the brand’s familiar prints, each of which pays homage to America’s National Parks system — perfect for using in your own favorite outdoor space.

If you’ll be eating and hanging out into the evening — especially if you’re headed out on a breezy beach or boat — bring along a blanket that goes from day to night. The Chappywrap Throw Blanket ($109.99 on markandgraham.com) in the nautically inspired Fair Winds pattern is designed by New Englanders and made of durable but soft cotton.

The rise of melamine means we now have plates in all kinds of gorgeous patterns that mimic fine china but are nearly unbreakable. That means sets like Pomegranate’s Green Bamboo Melamine Luncheon Plates ($72 for a set of six on pomegranateinc.com) in a green geometric bamboo pattern.

And you’ll need some civilized napkins to go with that. I go for cloth napkins since they’re so easy to wash, and therefore eco- and budget-friendly. One favorite matched to these green bamboo plates: Block Print Green Paisley Napkins ($23.99 for four on potterybarn.com). To keep the green theme going, reach for a pack of the Leaf Design Paper Cup ($6.95 on bioandchic.com) in a sage-hued graphic pattern.

Carrying the food is easy — stock up on Recycled Paper Food Box Containers (29 cents each on greenpaperproducts.com) for your favorite sandwiches and salads, or for soups, order up a bunch of 100% biodegradable Compostable To-Go Bowls with Lids (14 cents apiece on greenpaperproducts.com).

And for the food itself, if you’re not up for cooking in a hot kitchen, the Boston Harbor Hotel is making and packing up scrumptious picnic fixings in a canvas tote — the likes of lobster bao, mini club sandwiches of smoked turkey, Vermont brie and avocado on a potato roll (various prices on bostonharborhotel.com). Place your order a couple of days ahead and pick it up to enjoy it just next door at the Rose Kennedy Greenway.

And last but not least, protect yourself from forces of Mother Nature. Hot days bring the mosquitoes at dusk, so arm yourself with Repel Plant-Based Insect Repellent ($4.97 on amazon.com). Its lemon and eucalyptus won’t dry out your skin, and amazingly, they both keep the skeeters away and manage to smell as natural as the environment you’re there to enjoy.

We invite you to use our commenting platform to engage in insightful conversations about issues in our community. We reserve the right at all times to remove any information or materials that are unlawful, threatening, abusive, libelous, defamatory, obscene, vulgar, pornographic, profane, indecent or otherwise objectionable to us, and to disclose any information necessary to satisfy the law, regulation, or government request. We might permanently block any user who abuses these conditions.

Sign up for email newsletters