when creating beautiful tablescapes for the holidays, i love adding elements of color, whimsy and personal details to liven up a traditionally formal setting. no one feels comfortable in a stuffy environment. have fun mixing elements that create conversations between guests. much like my design philosophy, I believe that layering various textures, colors, patterns and off beat details creates not only a unique and interesting setting, but it also creates a celebratory atmosphere for your guests to enjoy. don’t be afraid to think outside the box and break the rules a bit. work with volume, finishes and height to give your tablescape a lift with lots of beautiful dimension. this keeps the eye dancing across the table.

this year we wanted to ensure that we stayed focused on food, laughter, and budget! a unique and beautiful table can certainly be set on a budget without appearing so in the least. first of all, your table should represent your own style while fitting the holiday theme, so you probably already have pieces in your home that can be used. think vases, boxes, trays, and candles that you have in various areas. we highly suggest gathering all possible accessories in your home before purchasing anything. second, decide on a color scheme appropriate for the holiday, or your own personal spin on a holiday color scheme. this year we are really loving the metallic pops and decided on an organic and neutral palette including amber, gold, orange, green, and purple. the easiest way to add color to your table when trying to keep within budget is beautiful flowers, fruits, vegetables, or gourds. we loved the addition of petite pears and artichokes to simple flower arrangements. also remember, you don’t want to block the view across the table with an oversize floral arrangement, and with small children it can be easy to do! so keep your floral arrangements simple, but with the right pop of color. see below for photos and more information about our thanksgiving tablescape, including links to purchase every piece!

as we said before, pick a color scheme that fits the holiday as well as your own sense of style. we personally love amber and gold so it fits perfectly into our thanksgiving color scheme! plus, have you ever realized how much warmth it really brings to the table? it is so important to create a table that feels warm, comfortable, and inviting. that was very important to us with this set up; to be very well thought out, but still casual and cozy. i mean, we are all about to eat too much so we should be comfortable, right? one way we like to achieve this atmosphere is by mixing vintage pieces and new pieces together. vintage pieces always add in unique character, and if you are hosting new guests they are great conversation pieces!

a great examples of mixing vintage pieces with new pieces is our vintage gold greek key tumblers paired with these new amber glasses. we love this antique persian inlaid box for the incredible details and the fact that it ties in our color scheme perfectly, decorative boxes are great for purely aesthetic purposes, or even for after dinner mints, matches, stirrers, or toothpicks even. we aimed to keep our tablescape at a generally low height with the exception of a pair of brass candle sticks and our brightest pop of color, our orange roses!

we’ve always had a love for gold flatware, so we were very excited to see that west elm was carrying modern, gold flatware this year! not to mention the coordinating chargers and napkin rings, that tied our gold detailed napkins in perfectly! we layered these gold pieces on a woven placemat, with a cocoa dinner plate, and these gorgeous scavo salad plates for neutral elements and casual textures.

always be sure to mix in organic and living elements to your tablescape. and instead of the typical centerpiece, we opted for a looser interpretation of one, by gathering several elements in a beautiful grouping.  we love this traditional pumpkin from pottery barn, and gourd from crate and barrel, as elements to be kept for years to come! the artichokes and succulents were sourced from a local market and add the gorgeous deep purple that compliments our warmer tones so well. we also used a vintage drip glaze bud vase that was similar in color and scale to the pumpkin and gourd for texture variation, and of course a place to hold our buds! the mercury votives were found at pottery barn and add that pop of metallic and amber we love! and we just cannot leave out our vintage brass peacock who adds so much character to our table.

my last minute tip? have champagne or wine already poured in glasses just before guests are ready to be seated at your holiday table. it adds an extra sparkle and elegance to welcome them as they sit down for a night of toasting and giving thanks.