We are celebrating Christmas Day at home this year, just our little family of five because we really need a break. Mrs TTO is doing all the cooking and my plan is to drink champagne and faff my way through the day.
It might only be us sitting at the table but it’s still totally worth making the effort to make everything look beautiful. I have a large extended family and gathering around the table is something we do well so here are my tips for styling your Christmas table. I hope you find them useful!
Planning is everything
Plan ahead – take the time to think about how you would like your Christmas table to look and what you will need. Do you want a traditional feel or a more contemporary look? Browse magazines, department stores and Pinterest for ideas. Disappearing down a Pinterest rabbit hole is one of my favourite pastimes.
Details
Sparkle – adding sparkle to a table setting elevates the dinning experience into something special. How you define sparkle is up to you. I like my sparkle to come in the form of gold flatware and beautiful crystal. Glittery table sprinkles are perfectly acceptable too!
Botanical touches – no table is complete for me without flowers or some kind of foliage. Eucalyptus is my favourite because you just can’t beat the scent but it can be expensive although it lasts for ages. Faux is also a good option, the quality these days is fantastic. Ikea has a very affordable range of faux flowers and foliage.
Alternatively forage for your greenery in your garden – ivy, holly, pine and olive branches look fantastic. Avoid large (tall) arrangements in the middle of the table as they can get in the way of conversation
Also consider small pretty cyclamen plants and bulbs at this time of year.
Featured: Champagne Flutes | Dipping Bowls (no longer available) | Gold Flatware | Baubles – All Next
Gold Candelabra – Of Special Interest | Napkins – Neptune | Napkin Rings – The White Company (old)
Water Hyacinth Table Mats – Amazon | Christmas Crackers – Meri Meri
Beyond that, I favour a white table cloth and dinnerware in muted tones. I always use linen napkins and add napkin rings for special occasions. Mine are from Neptune but you can get similar from The White Company here.
Finally no Christmas dinner table is complete without the warm glow of candle light. I treated myself to a brass candelabra from Of Special Interest a while back and I think it makes a lovely centre piece. I found something similar from Amara here.
My last bit of advice is lay the table the night before if you can that way you won’t forget a single thing!
Antonia x
Get the look
With thanks to Next for gifting some of the items featured in this post. All words and opinions are my own.