Tablescaping, the art of dressing a table, is something everyone can achieve stylishly, no matter the size of the dining table, the type of flatware you own, or your overall style. (Note: this is a repeat of last year’s fav post!)
One of the best things about tablescaping is that there aren’t really any set rules – it’s essentially a creative outlet with instant gratification. Tablescaping comes into its own in the festive season when we are all looking for clever ways to showcase our Christmas table ideas.
Focus on how you want your guests to feel and remember your dinner party,’ advises Gina Hardy, McQueens Flowers Head of Events.
With the holiday season approaching, there’s no better time to get involved with this trend. We’ve selected a few of our favorite tablescaping ideas to get you thinking about how you might dress your Christmas table this month.
1. BUILD YOUR TABLESCAPING AROUND THE CENTERPIECE
A Christmas table centerpiece – or perhaps Christmas table garland ideas – should be your starting point when tablescaping. It might be that you design it to echo the patterns in your china or the color of your napkins, but it will be the focal feature of your tablescape, so you do want it to stand out.
‘There’s a decision to be made with a centerpiece – whether at Christmas or in high summer,’ says Homes & Gardens’ Editor in Chief Lucy Searle. ‘And that’s to do with its size. If you want impact, it might be larger than the table can cope with when it’s laden with food, so you may want to make space to move it on to a console table once you start serving dinner. Left on the table, it should never be so big that guests opposite each other can’t see past it.’
2. MATCH YOUR TABLESCAPE TO YOUR DECOR
(Image credit: Simon Bevan)
Tablescapes work best if they complement their surroundings, so during the festive season, be inspired by your Christmas dining room decor to choose a colorway, materials and china that works with the decorations throughout the rest of the space.
This is true at any time of year, whether you are planning a festive feast or a summer wedding party.
3. FOCUS ATTENTION ON YOUR GUESTS
(Image credit: Designers Guild)
Tablescaping, as we said above, isn’t just about how the table looks, but also about how it makes your guests feel – and the best ways to make them feel welcomed and special is with Christmas table gift ideas. This is another idea that can be adapted year-round. Depending how much time you have, you can of course give small individual gifts to each guest – or buy lots of the same type of gift, such as beautiful, scented candles, and put them in a cute gift box.
4. LOOK TO NATURE
Photography/Chris Everard
Christmas foliage ideas are wonderful anywhere in the home and will add a fresh and lively dimension to your dinner table.
‘Bringing the outdoors in at this time of year is an effective way to decorate your table,’ notes Ronny De Koning, global buyer at Petersham Nurseries. ‘A large vase of branches and garden foliage can look both dramatic and stylish. I like to mix these with a few decorations scattered across the table.’
One tablescaping trend with foliage is creating a living runner. There are two main ways of doing this. Firstly, for a relaxing look, forage long loose sprigs and branches of eucalyptus and ivy to trail all all along the center of the table, embracing all the natural kinks and curves. Dot with clippings of holly, dried seed heads and pine cones to enhance the earthy, natural feel.
For a more formal approach, lay either one long, or several small, blocks of floral foam and carefully inset small sprigs of all your types of foliage, being careful to create a fairly even surround and building up to the desire height and depth.
Gina Hardy notes that that, ‘no one wants to start shuffling flowers around to see the person opposite, so remember “‘the conversation will flow if you keep things low”.’
To continue this ode to nature, select hand-blown drinking glasses, natural linens or cotton napkins, and pretty, individual foliage-focused place settings.
Article by Thea-Babington-Stitt . For more tablescaping ideas, click the link below.
Source: Tablescaping: 19 ways to create a beautiful tablescape | Homes & Gardens (homesandgardens.com)
