(DVF dress similar here, here, and here; earrings here and similar here)

Growing up in an SEC family, football was as synonymous with fall as Pumpkin Spice Lattes, so you can imagine I was thrilled to branch out and style a few fabulous ACC tailgates this season for my husband’s alma mater. With a handful of games on our calendar, I started to jot down a few key staples I could use over and over while still making each tailgate interesting.

The Linens

Finding attractive branded items is not an easy task for any team. I usually try to stick to the team’s colors instead, bringing in the branded items in cocktail napkins, plastic cups, and small bunches of fabric to line baskets. For each of our tailgates, we used the small 5×5 camp table that we had for Diner en Blanc (similar here and here) and a larger rectangular table (similar here).

For the tablecloths, I used this burgundy one, a natural one, a branded VT one, and a white one (to use under the VT one since the fabric was thin).

(Devon Baer top similar here; jeans similar here; Lisi Lerch clip-on’s here; wearing Mom’s peep-toe wedge sandals from her Gator days)

I used bunches of fabric that I picked up here and there to add as basket liners on the table. Williams-Sonoma is my go-to for kitchen towels, so I snagged a bunch of different styles in the team colors. These are great to have handy as bar towels, for cleanup, and for hot plates and slow cookers.

The Anchors

Who doesn’t love a little symmetry? For the first table, I used the two mums in the team colors to frame the tabletop so that the table and terrific spread look balanced.

 

The mums also added some height to the table, which makes it a bit more interesting. When you use only platters, even when some are slightly higher than others, you run the risk of making your table look flat. Cake stands are great additions, and you can overturn a serving bowl and rest a platter on top of it to fake one pretty easily.

The black two-tiered server (similar here and here) I found at Home Goods was a great addition that give both height and interest to the table. It pulled double duty at both tailgates: once to hold our utensils, coozies, cocktail napkins, and the second, to hold orange treat boxes of caramel corn, pretzels, and M&Ms in orange and maroon.

For the second tailgate (shown below), I used one of the mums to anchor the left and the black tiered server to anchor the right. The light-up marquee letters sat right in the middle of this second table.

The Serving Pieces

I kept things simple by using lots of rattan serving pieces (similar here) and white pieces as the base. The gold-rimmed fluted baker set I have from Williams Sonoma is sold out, but they have a similar baker here. For the maroon table, I loved the pop that the silver had against it, so I used a few of my Beatriz Ball pieces.

The natural tablecloth base on the second table needed some dressing up, so I chose to bring in bright orange accents here and there.

The Gear

It’s a stretch to find anything paper for the table (other than paper straws and witty cocktail napkins) in our house, but there’s something about a tailgate that just needs that carefree touch – and easy cleanup. I used our tiered server and rattan caddy to corral and dress up these “toss and go” items.

I also picked up a few fun items to add a little something extra, like these penalty flags and a turkey (Home Goods find, similar here) with the team’s helmet. We found a glass turkey last season at Williams Sonoma (sold out, but similar ones here on Etsy) that was perfect for holding M&Ms or jellybeans in the team colors.

I’d love to see how you mix and match your tailgate spreads this season. Tag @magnoliastripes on Instagram or Twitter! Special thanks to my fabulous assistants and photographers, Jennifer Divers, Cheryl Fontenot, Karen Marrs, and Diane Pearce for all of their help.