Category: tablescapes

Fall and Thanksgiving are seasonal first cousins.  I like to intertwine the two and hit upon the best of the best.  New traditional is a wonderful concept that I definitely embrace.  It incorporates the classic standards together with new trends.

One of the biggest considerations in the art of tablescaping is reining in the costs. Taking that into consideration, the basics of  seasonal tablescape 101 is to bring good foundation pieces to the table.  Classic accents will pay for themselves over and over again, tablescape to tablescape.

Fabric, ribbon and mesh in core holiday colors are interchangeable with other holiday themes.  I have tablescaped the heck out of $1.00 burlap bags,  and mastered the art of reinvention by mixing and pairing china and crystal  patterns.  Nature provides endless inspiration for centerpiece ideas.

I pushed back from the keyboard and took an “eye”dea stroll around the house with the intent to set from within.  Setting the table with items I rediscovered here at home produced a ‘tween fall and Thanksgiving tablescape with a nod to nature and traditional fall colors.

Last year I style spotted items perfect for a Thanksgiving tablescape, but me paying full price for seasonal items is a rare occurrence.  This girl will wait a good clearance sale out with the patience of Job.  It paid off when I timed a visit to Hobby Lobby just right last year and got my 80% clearance on!  Included in those items was two yards of home decor fabric and one yard of green burlap. The wheels of creativity began to turn.

A standard table runner doesn’t offer the width needed for our kitchen table.  A tablecloth is too much.  If you can’t find what you want, make it or fake it.  I am no seamstress.  Hem tape is a wonderful invention.  An iron gets hot…real hot. My mouth is no prayer book.  The DIY 40″  X  70″ not really a runner, and far from a tablecloth, but exactly what I wanted came out perfect with straight lines and rocking corners.

I’ve stared at the vase in the image below for months.  It has been sitting on the counter in the man cave kitchen, basically in my way.  Turns out the vase served as the starting point of inspiration for the centerpiece. Brown and green eucalyptus and grapevine branches are inexpensive ways to add filler volume and color.  Backyard hydrangeas bloomed in time for me to cut and begin the drying process.  Pheasant feathers give good fall and Thanksgiving decorating, but can be rather costly.  The hunt for a good deal on pheasant feathers began a couple of months ago.  Ebay came through with an auction for ten 20-22 inch feathers.  Determination, luck and a winning bid  of $3.91 sealed the deal.

I filled the vase with Aromatique Creme Caramel potpourri.  The remnant yard of burlap and a decorative tieback found at Goodwill embellished the neck of the vase and camouflaged any signs of stems.

Can you tell what I used for a charger?  Dave the Builder’s stockpile of  12 X 12 floor tiles came in handy for this unique use.

Dinner napkins tucked in Kerr jars with vintage flatware and brown velvet ribbon ties creates an all-in-one display.  I tried the look with and without fresh rosemary.  The jury is still out on this one.  Kerr jars keep with the theme and intent of this tablescape idea- use items from around the house with an emphasis on natural fall elements and colors.

Simple and uncomplicated never fails to set a beautiful table.