Silver Lining: a bright spring dessert table

This shop has been compensated by Collective Bias, Inc. and ConAgra Brands. All opinions are mine alone. #SweetenYourSpring #CollectiveBias

The temperatures are slowly heating up over here (although honestly I'm surprised that it's April and still only 75 degrees yesterday here in Phoenix), and with the new month on the calendar we are getting ready for spring.

And Arizona doesn't do spring halfway. Everything is blooming - the trees, the plants, the flowers, the cacti. It is so gorgeous, vibrant, and alive. (It's also incredibly allergy inducing.) But you know what? We don't really do light shades of timid spring in Phoenix. On our walk to the mailbox yesterday, I saw several trees covered in almost neon-yellow pollen, several bushes with bright red blossoms, and several shockingly bright pink bougainvillea. There was not a pastel shade to be found. Here in this crazy inhospitable desert, I haven't seen a single pastel fragile tulip - spring is brightly colored and hot instead.

These bright colors and bold feel have really been inspiring me lately - in my wardrobe, in my home decor, in everything. (I was also inspired by this site.) So when it came time to shoot my annual spring tablescape, is it any wonder that bright colors trumped delicate pastel shades?

A few little touches that made this spring tablescape bright + peppy + colorful:

For a nice and bright base, I used a green tablecloth, and then I cut a square of my favorite wrapping paper for an accent. It's one of my favorite table decorating hacks - using wrapping paper instead of a table runner is much cheaper, and you have a lot more options when using wrapping paper.

I then used the bright colors in the wrapping paper to help coordinate the rest of the colors. I recommend you stick to 3-5 colors for your entire tablescape.

These bunny decorative accents served a few purposes: they were fun to scatter all around the table, they brought out my main colors even more, and they were a fun decoration to put on each plate.

I added some height with these fun reusable yellow fans. I also used the decorative egg trees, the pie stand, and the drink to add more vertical layers.

When it comes to the actual food, I really like to keep it simple. It takes a lot of love and care to make comfort foods right, and with how crazy life is these days I sometimes substitute high-quality pre-made desserts so I can spend more time with my family. This Marie Callender’s® Chocolate Satin Pie hit the trifecta: affordable, convenient, and delicious. Sam and I have been cutting tiny slices of the leftover pie all week long to enjoy together after the kids are in bed. We picked it up at Walmart, and love that it's so very silky and smooth and rich (a small piece will do!).

For finishing touches, I love small details that tie both color and theme together. I loved making these utensil and napkin rolls with these brightly colored bunnies to match everything else.