Creating a Winter Wonderland Tablescape

I love to create tablescapes. Setting the table for holidays and gatherings is one way to create a joyful mood in our home. It sets a stage, creates atmosphere and it’s an art form. Most of the tablescapes I create are on the simple side. Since we use our table every evening for dinner it needs to be either easily moved or simple enough we can eat around it. When we finish the renovations in our basement, that will change as we will have two dining areas again instead of just one.

First Things First

Our Friends over at Folkuture sent us these gorgeous macramé placemats, red and white tablecloth and neutral hem-stitched napkins. We knew right away we would be using them for our holiday, winter and even Valentine’s Day tablescapes. One of the most import elements in a tablescape is your linens. It’s the base and foundation or the building block of your design. I love the macramé placemats as an element of cozy in the space. They are neutral so they will match any color scheme as well.

Tips For Choosing Dinnerware

Once I have chosen my linens, then I can choose which dishes I will use. I have a few different color options for plates and bowls. I have found that dinnerware is expensive and also requires some storage space. Those two things can be challenging. But, there’s a few things you can do to off set the cost and also save some space in your cupboards.

First, check out the party isle or section at your local stores you frequent. Many will have paper goods (plates, cups, bowls) that may match the season, holiday or event you are styling. I found these snowflake paper plates while out and about and felt they would be the perfect addition to the table.

Second, don’t underestimate the Dollar Store, thrift stores or yard sales. I found the red plates at the Dollar Store and have seen many sets of dishes and dinnerware at our local thrift stores. If you have some storage space this is a great option. You can find some really fun patterns, designs and colors.

Next, Mix and match! I will mix my dinnerware sets with each other. I took these white bowls from one set and matched them with my red plates from the Dollar Store and the snowflake paper plates. Get creative.

Building a Centerpiece

Creating a centerpiece or decorating the center of your table polishes off the tablescape. This can be something that cascades down the center from one end of the table to the other, or something that strictly sits right smack in the center of the table.

We have this amazing charcuterie board that we love to use in our centerpieces. It’s easy to move if we need more space while dining and visiting. It adds an element of warmth and cozy which plays off the macramé. Keeping with a winter theme we found a variety of trees from our Christmas decorations and placed them along with some red ornaments that we thought look like berries. Then we added jelly jars full of flavored popcorn for our guests to snack on.

Finishing Touches

The last thing we did was add a sprig of greenery to our folded napkins. There are many ways to fold napkins to add visual interest to your design. We kept this one simple, not too fancy as we wanted the hem-stitching to show but also as not to take away from the beautiful flow the tablescape had taken on.

Paying attention to the little details can make all the difference in the look and feel of your table. Maybe you want to add a name card to each place setting. The napkins are a great option to place name cards. There’s so many ways you can personalize your tablescape for whatever holiday, event or get together that you may be hosting.

Don’t forget to decorate the areas around your table as well. We have a large picture window that our dining table sits next to. We like to hang up paper bag snowflakes in the winter, garlands and other fun decorations that may add to the season. We also have our china hutch and a buffet that sits near the area that we can decorate or add seasonal elements to. We try to keep the flow of the room simple and try not to clutter the space too much as I want conversation to flow easily and feel comfortable.

As I am getting more comfortable with table design, I am starting to branch out more and try new things. You never know what our tablescapes are going to look like, but that is the fun in designing and decorating is changing things up. Do you like to change things up in your decor?

Much Love:

Joleen & Jess