Elegant and Easy Thanksgiving Table Settings

Elegant and Easy Thanksgiving Table Settings

It’s hard to believe that Thanksgiving is right on the horizon. I’m getting pretty excited though because one of my absolute favorite things to do is to dress the table! Check out these cool pictures and get inspired for your own holiday table! There are ideas for every design aesthetic, plus some really awesome DIYs to try. Personally, I’m leaning toward that blue and orange design. So pretty!

coastal-thanksgiving-table-settingblue-and-orange-thanksgiving-table-settingrosemary-wreath-thanksgiving-table-setting

For the full article and links to the DIY projects follow the link below!

Source: 38 Elegant and Easy Thanksgiving Table Settings

Simple Holiday Decorating Ideas

Christmas Decoration

For the past 15 years, my sisters, their husbands, our children, and our best friends all spend Christmas together. Everyone drives over to my house the night before, put the gifts they’re bringing under the tree, and spend the night talking and laughing until the children wake us up at the crack of dawn. This tradition has resulted in two things: 1.  I’ve gotten quite good at decorating for Christmas with entertaining guests in mind, and 2. My loved ones have gradually fallen out of the habit of decorating their own homes for Christmas at all. So when my best friend asked me to write a post on simple decorating ideas that she could use, I jumped at the opportunity.

Even if you’re not hosting a huge Christmas gathering like I do every year, there are still simple touches that you can add to your home that will put you in the holiday mood leading up to Christmas Day.

Christmas Wreath

1 Wreaths

There are so many options out there for holiday wreaths. A quick run to Home Goods, Target, or even a home improvement store will give you tons of wreaths to choose from. If you’re more of the DIY type, you can check out your local arts and crafts store for ‘naked’ wreaths to dress up on your own. Some arts and crafts stores even offer free tutorials on holiday crafts.

Christmas Centerpiece

2 Christmas Centerpiece

Even if you’re not intending on entertaining guests, a beautifully set table with an awesome centerpiece, will fill you with Christmas cheer. A centerpiece like this one is not only for your dining room/kitchen table. You can place this on a mantel, a side table, at the entryway table, or anywhere around the house to create a festive feel.

For more centerpiece ideas check out this link.

http://cityfarmhouse.com/2012/12/book-page-holiday-banners-monogram.html
Image Credit: CityFarmhouse.com

3 Tabletop Trees and Poinsettia

No need for a ten foot tree if you’re not hosting this year. Local grocery stores have plenty of tabletop trees and potted poinsettia readily available for the holiday season. Some of the trees even come fully trimmed. Be careful with poinsettia and other holiday plants, however, if you have small children and/or pets. Some popular holiday plants can be toxic to your little ones.

Christmas Snow Globe
Image Credit: nathanmac87

4 Candles, Lights, Snow Globes!

Candles on any occasion are a beautiful addition, but candles at Christmas are a must have. The subtle and romantic light of candles bring to mind the nostalgic glow of a fireplace. Snow globes also have a subtle and romantic feel to them. Remember being a kid, shaking those things up, and watching in childlike wonder as the snow swirled around that magical scene? Yeah, so you might want to have a couple of those in your house this year.

These are just a few of the small touches that you can add to your home to bring in a little Christmas spirit. What are some of your favorite decorating ideas? Remember, my best friend is reading this and needs some tried and true ideas!

 

 

 

Thanksgiving Table Decor

Thanksgiving

With Thanksgiving right around the corner, I thought I’d share some of my favorite table design tips for the holiday. I absolutely love dressing the table. It gives me an opportunity to add a bit of elegance to our usually, casual family dinners.

1.Determine Your Design Style

Design Style

Rustic, modern, or as traditional as the image above- I always look through images to see what appeals to me and then I try my best to recreate the decor… on a budget of course! You can find a surprising number of inexpensive candle holders, place settings, and even glassware at your local arts & crafts store.

 

2 Natural Elements

Thanksgiving Natural Elements

Thanksgiving is all about celebrating nature’s bounty. Wooden candle holders, winter gourds, fresh flowers, or all of the above should appear somewhere on your table. This holiday is one of the few times in the year that I actually use fresh flowers. I’m absolutely horrible at caring for plants, but since I know it’s a temporary decoration, I don’t feel so bad when I finally manage to kill the unlucky flowers that were placed on my table. If you live in a place that has a produce store, or even at some local grocery stores, you can usually find inexpensive floral arrangements for your table.

3. Putting it All Together

Thanksgiving Table

Thanksgiving table decor doesn’t have to be too over the top or gaudy. Some people really are turned off by a table that screams kitschy Thanksgiving. I find myself gravitating more towards neutral palettes with pops of fall colors. I think that aesthetically it’s more appealing to everyone.

***One final note: cloth napkins are a must, and with all the awesome tutorials on napkin folding, it’s a sure fire way to impress your guests.

Happy Thanksgiving!!! I’d love to see some of your favorite table designs!