These Chic Accessories Will Upgrade Your Backyard Picnics in a Major Way

Enjoying a picnic spread with good food and drink is one of those simple luxuries you'd think humans have enjoyed since the beginning of time. However, the concept of picnicking has only been around since the 14th century, when medieval England's elite would throw large outdoor feasts to celebrate a successful hunt.

Through the years, outdoor entertaining spread through Europe and hit a height of popularity in the Victorian Era, spurred by the rise of the middle class. Toward the latter half of the Industrial Revolution, a community of white collar urbanites emerged that had long been split between either extreme wealth or inexorable poverty. This society found themselves with more leisure time, and they desired activities in green spaces such as picnicking. George Seurat's famous pointillist painting Sunday Afternoon on the Island of La Grande Jatte perfectly captures this newly popular pastime in 1884.

The French, of course, have championed the art of picnicking. The word picnic comes from the french word pique-nique, which describes fashionable aesthetes who preferred to bring their own wine when dining out on the town. Today, picnicking has evolved closer to a version of the potluck, where casual food is savored outdoors and everyone pitches in with their own dishes.

Whether you're having an impromptu lunch break on a blanket in the backyard or hosting a casual family dinner outdoors, we believe you should always picnic in style. These picnic accessories will add a festive touch to your next backyard extravaganza.