Effortless Thanksgiving Table Decor

With just a few items to dress up your Thanksgiving table, you’ll impress your guests and create an instagram-worthy dinner. I’ve always been interested in how I can make any event effortless, but now that I am a little over 6 months pregnant, I’ve hit a whole new level of ‘how simple can I do this?!’ So, I thought I would share my go-to items to creating any tablescape and what a few options I put together to spark some inspiration.

WHAT I ALWAYS HAVE ON HAND:

  1. WHITE DISHES: white or off-white dishes go with anything so these are the best staple to have in your cabinets. Unless you have unlimited storage, I suggest just sticking to the simple white when it comes to bowls, plates and most of your platters. The only other material I keep on hand is wood—I keep a couple wooden cheese boards and one wood slice—they are perfect to add apps to, or put plates or centerpieces on.

  2. CLOTH NAPKINS: I stock up on cloth napkins because they can instantly add a stylized feel to your place-settings. I love the World Market ones—they have a ton of colors available in a soft gauzy cotton and some pretty patterned linen ones as well. I would suggest getting colors that hit all of the seasons (for me I keep a pale dusty blue, mustard, sage green and then a few patterns like the marbled blush)

  3. FLATWARE: We use silver as our main color that we eat with most of the time, but I did grab some matte gold flatware for dinner and party occasions and I have not regretted it! The unexpected color instantly elevates your table or food spread. I got mine from Target but World Market also has some really unique selections. My next purchase might just have to be matte black, it is so pretty and a beautiful contrast to the white dishes!

  4. VOTIVES: I also always like to have votives on hand—I have an assorted mix of mercury glass ones. Candles just instantly create a mood or intimacy at dinner parties, so why not fill your table with them? I tend to collect mine so they are from a variety of places—antique stores, Home Goods and a few I’ve grabbed from Pottery Barn.

  5. VASES: I have an assortment of vintage vases, some colorful and a lot of milk glass that was handed down in my family—I would recommend just three various sizes that you can mix and match together. If you’re anything like me, your collection will soon exceed the three, haha!

DETAILS TO ADD:

  1. FLORALS: for these Thanksgiving place-settings I chose dried florals. You can get them at any craft store and even places like Target and World Market offer a beautiful selection for an affordable price. If you are local you MUST check out The Heavy—they have been offering mini dried floral bouquets, and they are gorgeous!

  2. FOOD: Yes! You can add fresh fruit or other food garnishes to create a beautiful table setting—obviously white pumpkins and gourds are a go-to for Thanksgiving, but I’ve also used pears for an option they look so gorgeous and you can letter your guests name in gold for a personal touch. I also went FULL PIE this year! I added mini pies (only $3.99 at Publix…whaaaa?!) they are so cute and guests will love digging into them.

  3. DETAILS: Guests appreciate the details! Incorporating details into your place-settings are what make a lasting impression, and as a bonus, they can double as a take home favor! Below I’ve added leaf place cards and pie toppers. If you don’t want to write your guest’s names yourself, you can outsource pretty little placards like these watercolor ones or wooden cutouts.

Leaf Place Setting

Layer your napkin over the plate and add details like a personalized keepsake and unexpected dried florals

I added mini pies for an unexpected visual—then I topped them with T+T’s pie toppers—the pie with toppers double as dessert and as favors for your guest!

ACS_0908.JPG

Here’s another example of using food as your detail—I took pretty pears and wrote guests’ names with a gold marker—you can use other items such as pumpkins or gourds to achieve the same effect. I put the plate over a wooden slice and simply placed dried floral next to the plate.

Let us know which place setting is your style and show it off! We want to see how you decorate your table—Follow and tag Tassel + Trim on instagram in your place-setting or centerpiece photo for a chance to win your very own set of pie toppers! A winner will be chosen on 11/20!

FOLLOW, TAG + WIN!



Meredith Herman