In our opinion, nothing quite builds the atmosphere around the dinner table for special dinners with guests than a great centre piece or strong table setting. There’s just something so satisfying about coming together around a great, festive setup, especially if you’ve made the pieces yourself! That’s especially true around the holidays, which is why we’re always on the lookout for just about any festive and crafty ideas for making our dining table really feel like a place of celebration.
Just in case you love the idea of making your own holiday table settings too, here are 15 of the best designs that we’ve come across so far!
1. Miniature holiday trees and burlap napkin wraps
One of the best ways to make a cohesive table aesthetic is to create some coordination between your centrepiece and your individual place settings! We love the way JSH did that by using burlap ribbon. First they used it to wrap the napkins and keep them neatly folded on each plate and then they added burlap bows to the miniature trees in the middle.
2. Winter wonderland with wooden stars and lights
Candles are always nice in table settings because they create such a comfortable glow, but that’s particularly true if they really suit the theme you’re working with! We adore the way Her Tool Belt created a winter wonderland effect by pairing candles with DIY wooden stars so those appear to be where the glow is coming from. We also like the white paint tipped fir accents!
3. 5-minute table setting with candles, oranges, and pine cones
Have you actually been hoping for something a little simpler or perhaps just quicker to set up because you’re hosting dinner quite unexpectedly? Maybe you just prefer a less cluttered space to serve. In either case, we think you’ll get along quite well with something like this lovely 5-minute table setting outlined on Julie Blanner that combines candles, Christmas oranges, and pinecones with sprigs of greenery.
4. Pumpkin painted menu
This idea might be a little more relevant for Thanksgiving in the fall but, where we come from, pumpkins and gourds thrive late into the year because of the mild weather, so we often include them in Christmas scenes! We simply adore the way The Merrythought painted their night’s menu onto the face of a pumpkin and sat it on the table, making things feel very professional but also quite homey, all at once.
5. Turning vegetables into vases
Perhaps a harvest and vegetable theme is precisely the entire look you’d like to go with and stick with, but you’ve been looking for a creative spin to put on things? Then Brit + Co. has you covered! They show you how to safely turn just about any vegetable into a candle holder to be included in a Thanksgiving or Christmas tablescape that will make people a little extra hungry just looking at it.
6. Floral and silver mercury effect centrepiece
If you’ve never tried creating a homemade mercury effect on glass pieces with silver foiling then we’re sorry to tell you that you’ve been missing out! We’d absolutely suggest taking a look at how Rock My Wedding did that here, pairing it with white flowers so that, despite the blossoms, the whole area looks frosted and still wintery rather than fit for spring.
7. DIY holiday charger plates
We’ve always loved charger plates. They’re simple to make and they just add so much colour and character to your table without requiring you to buy new themed dishes every time you want to throw a fancy dinner; the charger plate does the aesthetic work for you in an easier way! Check out how Lydi Out Loud made these holiday inspired gingham plates that remind us of Christmas on our grandparents’ farm.
8. DIY dollar store leaf charger
If you’re going to the trouble of making a charger plate, would you rather create one that actually looks visibly homemade, just to make sure guests can see how much love and effort you really put into the whole dinner experience? Well, this lovely orange and red leaf charger is perfect for the area we live in because the leaves turn colours and fall all winter long thanks to the mild climate. If that’s not the case where you are because you get heavy snowfalls, try this for next Thanksgiving instead! Get the full details for making your own on AN Extraordinary Day.
9. Colonial Williamsburg centrepiece
Just in case you’re looking for a classic American piece that will remind family and friends of days past, here’s a wonderfully high standing centre piece just like those that would have been made in the colonies! The most interesting part? It’s made entirely out of fruit between the leaves! Find out how it’s made (and fixed in place) on Between Naps on the Porch.
10. Candy cane Santa hat topiaries
Just in case there will be lots of kids at your dinner and you were hoping for something a little more intriguing for even them, here’s a super fun Santa hat idea that will get you in the holiday spirit thanks to the fun of candy canes! DIY Candy shows you how to make these topiaries and everyone can grab a candy cane to enjoy as they leave the table!
11. Wooden box and branch centrepiece
Have you actually been scrolling through our list looking for projects that will help you make a slightly more rustic tablescape for your Christmas dinner because you live in the countryside and you want your family’s experience to be authentically homey? Then we have a feeling you’ll adore this fantastic fir tree box with scattered pine cones outlined by Fynes Designs!
12. Santa hat chair slips
Don’t forget, the centre of the table isn’t the only area you can decorate when you set things up for Christmas dinner! We love the way Make It, Love It took the look a little further and made these surprisingly simple and adorable little Santa hat chair slips that slide right over the back of the chair and make everything look a little more cheerful.
13. New Year’s Eve setting with Christmas leftovers
Have you ever looked around your house and realized that you’re simply not ready to start taking the Christmas decorations down even though it’s time for New Year’s Eve already? Then we have a feeling you’re really going to like the way Melanie Lissack Interiors made their tablescape from elements of both holidays? Try leaving your firs and Christmas pieces in place but adding things like NYE crackers and colourful paper pom poms to the table to jazz it up a bit and diversify the look.
14. Confetti dipped balloons for NYE scapes
If we’re being fully honest with you, we’ve always adored both balloons and confetti. We’re sure you can imagine, then, just how excited we were when we saw this idea from Studio DIY that suggests combining them in one place by confetti dipping your balloons! We love the idea of dotting bundles of these around the room regardless of whether you’ve updated your tablescape from Christmas or not. It’ll give you another festive combination look like the one above!
15. Glitter embossed NYE dinner menus and place cards
Just in case you’re the kind of host who would rather go all out when it comes to making decor changes between Christmas and New Year’s Eve, here’s a classy table setting that’s totally fit for ringing in the turn of the calendar! We’re in love with The Lovely Drawer‘s suggestion of glitter embossing both a personal menu card and each guest’s place card, just to make them feel really special as they countdown to midnight.
