Soon, planes, trains, and automobiles will be crisscrossing the country with one common goal–uniting families around the Thanksgiving table! A festive spread deserves festive decorations, so we’re here to offer seven simple ways to achieve a beautiful decor scheme.
Whether you’re purchasing a new dining table or an entire new dining set, you’ll design a beautiful fall spread with the help of the modern home furniture experts at Caravana Furniture.
1. Rustic and Natural
Thanksgiving table decor idea #1: Go for a rustic, natural tablescape to bring the natural world inside. Add natural fibers like jute and straw for placemats and table runners, and use coniferous greenery for your centerpiece, which you can accentuate with dried grasses and small gourds in different shapes and colors.
Repeat the theme for your place settings with linen or cotton napkins in a nubby, natural weave and candles placed down the center of the table on woven coasters. Your simple Thanksgiving table decor looks even better with a dining table in a distressed finish, underscoring the rustic theme. Create a centerpiece in a striking seasonal color like golden yellow or cinnamon, or use both for an extra colorful display.
2. Use Non-Traditional Colors
Orange is a great holiday color, but not all Thanksgiving table decor ideas need to incorporate it. Non-traditional colors are a welcome, sophisticated surprise, and a gorgeous alternative is cranberry.
This rich, vibrant color is usually associated with Christmas, but cranberry is a warm color that’s perfect for any winter celebration. Pair cranberry with gold. A set of gold-colored cutlery is excellent for this purpose. If you have gold-toned plates, even better. Or try setting your table with rich, sunny yellow plates. Cranberry-colored glass can be added to your existing table settings to create a unique and simple Thanksgiving table decor that’s completely fresh. Modern dining tables with glass tops are great for this idea as the glass reflects the setting, especially when you add gold and cranberry-colored candles.
3. Abundance and Gratitude
One of the most potent symbols of Thanksgiving is bountiful food and celebration. Abundance and gratitude are key themes of Thanksgiving, making this one of the best Thanksgiving table decor ideas.
A large basket or a nested set of baskets doubles as a cornucopia, for those who don’t own one. A full-size pumpkin provides the focal point, with other fruit, gourds, and vegetables arranged artfully around it. Use small objects like mason jars or tins to create dimensional levels inside the basket, covering the jars and tins with a piece of seasonal fabric. Add flourishes of greenery and dried or fresh flowers. Scatter pieces of fruit and greenery down the table, interspersed with tea lights or candles in thematic candle holders for a more simpleThanksgiving table decor. You can always use a round table for this setting, with diners forming the classic circle that symbolizes the grateful abundance of family life.
4. Express Your Gratitude
Sentimental place cards bearing not just names but loving messages take your tablescape to another level. By personalizing each place setting, you’re creating a sense of belonging while celebrating the people in your family. This Thanksgiving table decor idea takes gratitude a step further, gracing your setup with familial love.
This is where the magic happens. For each family member, create a place card with the name of the person and a phrase about why you’re grateful for them and their presence at your table. You may be grateful for your uncle’s sense of humor or your sister’s listening ear. Choose a quality for each person, then proclaim your gratitude. You can add simple Thanks giving table decor idea to any of the other ideas featured here. Again, choose a round table if you want to fortify the family circle!
5. Black and White Elegance
Nothing says “elegance” like simple Thanksgiving table decor in black and white. Ideal for modern dining room furniture, black and white decor brings stately, high-end elegance to your Thanksgiving table.
This Thanksgiving table decor idea demands that you dress your setup to impress. Echoing the colors of a tuxedo, elegance is well-expressed in white linen tablecloths, juxtaposed against a black table runner and black placemats in a fine fabric, and with tapers set in modernist candelabras. Your candelabras might even be lucite to intensify the high-end effect without veering into “kitsch”. If your dining suite is black or white, this is your perfect table setting!
6. Choose Minimalism
Let the food be the star of the show with simple Thanksgiving table decor for your table that’s minimalist and clean. “Minimalist” doesn’t mean you’re not decorating–it just means that your hand is restrained.
Candles set in simple holders with minimal embellishments are a good place to start. Down the center of the table, add tall slim vases holding twigs and dried grass. At the base of each vase, place a small, white gourd. With a minimalist tablescape, the arrival of the turkey becomes the star of the show. A mid-Century Modern table with unfussy lines is a great setting for this Thanksgiving table decor idea.
7. Mad for Maximalism
While minimalism seeks less, maximalism is all about more. Achieve this Thanksgiving table decor idea with the use of patterns. Layer the patterns of your dishes against the patterns on placemats, table runners and napkins. Intersperse your table settings with dishes stacked in alternating patterns and solids that are either tonally matched or contrasting.
Go absolutely mad with your centerpiece, creating a Thanksgiving extravaganza of color and texture. Surround your centerpiece with elemental symbols of the season and yes–deploy that Thanksgiving orange liberally. Contemporary home decor best suited to maximalist design honors its “more is more” philosophy, so if your dining table is dramatic and oozes personality, you’re halfway there!
We hope our Thanksgiving table decor ideas inspire you to design a holiday celebration like no other. Ready for a new dining table or dining set for the Holiday season? Come meet the home design experts at Caravana Furniture at our Long Beach showroom.