One of the best days of the year for family, friends, and food, Thanksgiving is all about gathering those you love around you and creating holiday memories. And what is one of the biggest highlights of the day? The food of course! This means that you need to set the mood for that delicious feast you’ve been planning and cooking for days… but how??
You need to create the most beautiful Thanksgiving table of course! You have to complement that phenomenal cooking with and beautiful setting! And luckily I don’t just know how to decorate, I know a lot about entertaining too! So let’s mix the two and design the most beautiful Thanksgiving table that your friends and family won’t stop talking about! …until they try your conversation stopping, delectable, pumpkin pie that is.
Choose a Style…
Okay, first step in creating your festive spread is to decide what kind of vibe you’re going for. Are you a farmhouse kinda gal, an upscale traditional lady, a trendy boho chic, or a fun, out of the box, type of person? Knowing what kind of style and vibe you want will help in your decision making and create a road map of where we’re going with the design.
Let’s say you’re more of a farmhouse style fan, this means that you’ll want to keep things simple, whites, creams, with simple floral/pumpkin arrangements and more of a traditional fall color palette. Adding in more natural fabrics like burlap or a gingham runner will really tie everything together.
If you’re more upscale traditional you’ll want to take those whites/creams and add some golds/silvers, floral patterns, and more formal floral arrangements for a more of a finished look. Finish off the table with a white linen runner or table cloth for a clean, upscale table scape.
If you’re an out of the box type, play with color! Pastels, deep blues, whichever color you choose add in those whites/creams but maybe use an unexpected floral arrangement to match. Tie in those fun colors with napkins and table runners that add more of that color play.
Centerpieces are Everything…
Deciding what’s going to be at the center of your table is one of the biggest make it or break it moments, no pressure. But no worries, I’m here to help! So, decision number two, do you want your centerpiece to be taller with dimension or would you like a lower, more conversation friendly option?
Choosing to go with a taller centerpiece tends to be more traditional and can also, depending on what you put there, be a more fun, un-conventional option. So if your style is traditional/playful try something taller. You can use a floral arrangement with classic oranges/reds, a dried arrangement with bundles of wheat, a hurricane filled with your primary color and a large candle, skies the limit!
Want some added dimension? Create tiers! Three items tends to be the designer go-to when adding more than one piece to a single space. Use risers, cake stands, cut tree rings, whatever you like to place items on to make your centerpiece go from short, to medium, to tall. Switch up what’s on eat riser. One has a floral arrangement, one has pumpkins and boards, and one has a ceramic turkey… BAM! Thanksgiving magic!
Not into the large centerpiece idea? Go with something that’s lower profile and runs the length of the table. A string of eucalyptus with votives scattered throughout creates a simple, elegant, table with quite a bit of ambiance. Want more color? Switch out the eucalyptus for a string of fall leaves, sprinkle in some white pumpkins, and some taller candles.
Another option is the ever popular table runner! I love adding material into a design because it softens the space and makes it feel more cozy. The same can happen with your Thanksgiving table! Place a beautifully embroidered runner or a simple linen runner along your table to add some lovely dimension and style to your table. Adding items along the runner creates smaller centerpieces as well as room for glasses and serving dishes.
Don’t forget that lighting is everything! Candles work with every style so really play up the intimate dinner vibe with some tea lights, long tapered candles, or a hurricane with a large creamy candle. Dinner now looks comfy, cozy, and oh so intimate!
The Perfect Place Settings…
Now that the center of the table looks absolutely beautiful lets work on the place settings! Here’s where you finish off the table style you’ve chosen and create an individually curated moment for each guest. Add something unexpected like a pumpkin, dried flowers, or personalized tag to spice up the setting!
If you’re more traditional you can go with the classic setting of stacking the dinner plate, salad plate, and soup bowl with the cutlery placed around the plate. Choosing to use that elegant china your grandmother gave you would fit perfectly in this setting! Adding in some white linen napkins folded and tucked between the bowl and salad plate would finish it off perfectly!
If you want more of a relaxed setting try using a single dinner plate with a napkin, napkin ring, and a name tag for each guest. You can place the silverware on the outside of the plate or you can fold them into the napkin. Get creative! There are lots of DIY napkin folding tutorials on pinterest, have fun with it!
Where to Place the Feast…
Now for the best part… the food! Where are you going to put it?? Well that all depends on what kind of dinner you want to have. Do you want a buffet style dinner? Maybe you want more of a family style meal. Or you could even have a perfectly curated plate made in the kitchen and placed at the table. Decide your work flow for you and your guests first and then we’ll talk about how to set it up. Have you decided? ….great!
If you’re having a more relaxed Thanksgiving dinner where you want your guests to be able to serve themselves then you should go with a buffet or family style dining option. This means that the food should be placed either on a buffet table or on the dining table itself.
To make it look well designed try to use different types of serving dishes that are different heights. Cutting boards are great for placing the ham or turkey, white bowls for the stuffing and mashed potatoes, and try using a cake stand to stack the rolls. Dimension, beauty, and usability? That’s what I’m talking about!
If you’re doing a plated dinner then the food can stay in the kitchen and the plates themselves become the art. Use serving utensils like ice cream scoops for the perfect portion of mashed potatoes, sweet potatoes, and the like. Try to have color interspersed on the plate and not all in one corner. Keep the pattern and placement the same on every plate to create that upscale dining vibe. And when placing the plates in front of guests always have the meat closest to the guest. There! It’s five star dining in the comfort of your own home, you’re guests will love it!
What a Gracious Host…
Your guests will feel so comfortable and warmly welcomed with all of your hard work and effort to create the perfect Thanksgiving dinner! Remember to plan ahead so that you’re not running around like crazy on the day of! You’re going to have an amazing dinner and your guests will remember this Thanksgiving for years to come!
