Perfect Picnics Ideas - Style on a Budget

Different styles of picnic require different planning. Is this picnic going to be for you and your hearts desire, you and your family or a group of people?  Will you be taking a picnic basket with you and then storing it before you go onto another event or is the picnic the main focus of the day?  Do you have a back up plan for bad weather?

Wicker picnic baskets are wonderful as the evoke a romantic era and there are many different styles. The traditional picnic basket  with plate-ware and cutlery strapped to the inner lid and filled with containers for your food looks practical but really might not be. You would have to wash up all your plates, cups, and cutlery before strapping them back in the lid and heading off home. If you do decide to buy one of these then make sure that there is enough room in it that you can place the dirty dishes and cutlery in a plastic bag and lay it on top of the containers so you can wash everything up latter.

While picnic baskets are often sold in the spring and summer at high end shops you don't have to spend a lot of cash to get one. They often show up in thrift stores at a fraction of the price you would buy new. Antique stores and auctions will have them occasionally and  while not cheap, the older ones tend to be a better quality, with strong bottoms, good hinges and clasps that work.

Poorly made wicker picnic baskets can be dangerous because they were never made to hold the weight of a lot of food and dishes and the handles can break off or detach from the body of the basket. If you decide to buy a wicker basket make sure that the construction is sturdy and that the handles and strong and firmly attached. If you are regularly picnicing in a large group then it makes sense to have different types of picnic baskets for the various parts of the meal that different people can carry to and from the site. One basket can be designated for the dishes, cups, cutlery, serving utensils,  picnic cloth and under-cloth, another can hold the food and the third could hold the beverages.
 

Of course you don't have to use a wicker picnic basket, you could just use a sturdy backpack. This is the more sensible solution if you are starting out in the morning and will have to carry it all day, if you are planning to sight see and stop for a picnic lunch and then continue sightseeing,  if you are going to your picnic destination on public transit or if you have to carry it a great distance from your car to your picnic site.  If you are planning to do this regularly you could buy a specialty picnic backpack.

You can even turn your bicycle basket into a picnic basket by lining it with your table cloth and carrying your food in it. If your picnic is a lunch time reprieve from work then a carry-all bag would be fine. If would be best if it was insulated so you could put in some cold packs and your food would stay chilled.

One of the most important aspect of having a great picnic is the practical matter of where you will be having the picnic. The one criteria that is incredibly vital is that  you have access to a washroom if you need it. Doesn't sound very romantic but it can be a real disaster if you have to abandon your lovely picnic setting because someone needs to use the facilities and the closet restroom is a 10 minute drive away.  It doesn't mean that there has to be a washroom in the park that you plan to eat in but scope out if there are any restaurants nearby that you could use in case of an emergency. Public parks and conservation areas often have public washrooms, make note of where they are. If you are in a park in the downtown core of a small town see if there is public access to  the City Hall washrooms, the local library or if there is a sports arena nearby. If you are having your picnic before you attend a show or concert ask before hand if there is access to their washrooms. This is especially important if you are planning your picnic to be an all day affair. If you are having a picnic on your lunch break then you know that you will be able to use the washroom back at work.

Generally the whole idea of having a picnic is that you are outside while enjoying the beauties of nature. Parks, beaches, river sides, conservation areas, historical districts are some great places to picnic. Some historical estates let the public picnic on their grounds with out charging them admission. Some road side parks are often shielded from the traffic and are very quiet. Pack some folding chairs and you can set up your picnic in the back of your car if you have a hatch back or station wagon. This is ideal to do in the cold fall weather so if the weather turns too cold or it rains you are not stuck. Where ever you decide to picnic make sure that it is not private property, you don't want to be trespassing. Google your area for picnic sites and you might find a treasure that you never knew about.

You will need a throw  or picnic cloth to lay on the ground or on a picnic table and a ground cloth to underneath it. A great option for a ground cloth is a inexpensive shower curtain from a dollar store. The cheery red checkered table cloth is a standard at picnics, partly because it does such a good job at hiding food stains but any table cloth will do. For real elegance you could use a white table cloth but be prepared for it to get soiled. Don't forget the napkins, if you are going high end these should be cloth. 

So what food should you bring on your picnic? The traditional romantic picnic calls for a loaf of bread, a chunk of cheese and a bottle of wine but I think most of us would prefer a bit more. It really depends on how complicated you want to get, casual  finger foods, like sandwiches and wraps are convenient because you don't have to deal with cutlery. Fried cold chicken is great but you have to make sure that it is kept chilled. Remember that you  are not feeding an army,so don't bring too much food.  There are numerous food sites that you can go to for some great picnic ideas. Chocolate dipped strawberries are a wonderful indulgence but nibbling on any fruit, like grapes or berries is also fun. What ever you bring make sure that it is not super messy as you don't want it to end up on your lap.  

Champagne or sparkling wine (read Great Bubbly at a Great Price) is great to have but make sure that you are not breaking any local laws that might prohibit drinking alcohol in a public place. If you are going to the effort of taking champagne then please, no plastic glasses, wrap your champagne glasses in cloth napkins and place inside a ridged plastic container. (Some things are just worth doing right). It is the beverages that you bring that will weigh down your picnic basket especially if you are carrying them in glass bottles, so consider light weight thermoses or plastic recyclable bottles. If you are bringing wine don't forget the cork screw.

A general list of what you need on a picnic would include:

Picnic cloth
Under cloth
Plates
Cutlery, cutting knives
Cups, glasses, or stemware
Napkins
Food
Beverages
Corkscrew
Plastic bag for dirty dishes
Plastic bag for garbage
Paper towels
Water - important to clean hands and face with

Though I have never been bothered by ants at a picnic some suggest that you should have a small shallow container of syrup that you set up a few feet away from you picnic that the ants will be attracted to and leave you alone. Cut up ripe fruit would also serve this purpose.

If you are making up your own picnic basket then consider something nicer than plastic plates. Corelle dinnerware plates are great as they can take the rough and tumble of being outside while still looking a feeling like quality plates. If you want to be elegant then spy around thrift shops for partial sets of dinner ware. You can often find beautiful patterned plates selling for $1 of $2 because the rest of the set is broken. A lunch sized plate would be ideal for a picnic basket. You can also find champagne glasses, wine glasses and silver plated cutlery very inexpensively at thrift stores.

It is often said that food tastes better when it is eaten outside, so try to have at least one picnic this year and see if it is true. You might find that you get addicted to the romance and elegance of picnics.