Christmas Tablescape Ideas for Christmas Dinner

I am sure it’s still all you hear about but this post needs to be prefaced with the fact that times are very different during the holidays this year. While 2020 has made our typical lives and gatherings completely change, it has made us become more creative….or at least that’s how I look at it. Celebrating holidays and events with your immediate family, no matter how small that may be, is still important to keep that magic alive, especially during Christmas (my favorite holiday). Even if your gathering will be small or if you are a parent of several children, you can still make your Christmas dinner feel special.

I’ve found that creating the perfect tablescape helps with that special feeling, which is why I’m excited to share some table decorating and table setting ideas for your Christmas dinner!

Oh, and these ideas can also be used for micro weddings, birthday parties, or any other event happening in your life during the holiday season!

Place Cards

I am a calligrapher, so I will always be biased and say place cards with calligraphy can go a long way in elevating your typical place setting, but it’s true! You can use so many different items to write on and during the holiday season, glass ornaments are one of my favorite ‘place cards’ to use. I personally love the white frosted ornaments with gold or rose gold lettering. You can pretty much have any color combination as the theme of the tablescape when you opt for that ornament place card combination.

The other place card option is to stay basic with the place card and write the name on a piece of paper. I’d opt for a thicker, textured piece of paper like watercolor paper to give it more of a unique look than just printer paper and then use another element to play up the basic place card. You can have a special place card holder like these stone reindeer ones that double as a napkin holder, these cube brushed gold ones, or these marble and brushed gold ones. Another option is having the place card next to a fun item like a Christmas themed chocolate!

Centerpieces

Greenery or faux greenery is always my go-to for the center of the dining room table. You can use a tray that is shaped in the same shape as your table, so for example, our table is a rectangle and we would use a rectangle tray.  There will be so much food and other items on the table so you don’t want the center piece to take up too much room. In that tray you can add greenery and have it overflow to give it a more organic feel. I’ve acquired random greenery over the years and mix it all in together and have placed other random pinecones I’ve also acquired to add to it. I also have very small battery powered ‘fairy lights’ that go throughout to give it some light and warmth. 

While I try to opt for lower centerpieces, the look of candle holders at different heights is so inviting and beautiful. I recently got these metal candlestick holders in small and medium height from Magnolia that would look amazing with some greenery laid around it right down the middle of the table.

A simple centerpiece trick that my friend thought of is just using a large blanket scarf as a small runner on the table. We’ve only lived in our house for a little over a year and it’s our first dining room table so I haven’t acquired too many tablecloths and runners just yet but I definitely have endless colored and patterned scarves! Choose one you don’t wear too often so you won’t mind if food (like cranberries!) gets on it.

Place Settings

Since I like having greenery around, I tend to lean towards neutrals with a pop of natural metals like gold or silver to compliment everything.  It may seem ‘boring’ but it is calming for the eye. When you have so much going on like multiple utensils, multiple plates, multiple glasses, bowls, centerpieces, etc. it becomes overwhelming and too much powerful color can make it look messy or just feel too much.

White, gray, beige, and even black plates and bowls can all be an option for the place setting. If you’d like to use a place mat, keep it neutral or natural like rattan. If you want to use a charger, also keep that neutral to compliment the plate or natural like wood.

The utensils can be gold, silver, or even black but again, be sure that you have a color that compliments all of the other colors. It’s more common to have silver so if you don’t want to get new utensils specifically for this Christmas dinner, then start with silver being your starting point to base all your other colors off of. I personally love the look of gold utensils for a Christmas dinner but will I actually buy all new silverware for that? Probably not. Maybe one day! But just being honest.

I have a love affair with drinking glasses and I’ve come to realize it’s because of my Dad. He has sooo many random glasses that don’t match. Even at 69 he keeps getting more. I mainly keep buying wine glasses and cocktail glasses but I still have to make sure it doesn’t get too out of hand (LOL). When buying new glasses, it’s important to buy them in sets and allow for them to compliment what you already have. That way, if you have a lot of people over (some day it will happen again!) and you need more than one set of glasses, they look good together.

Fun, fancy glasses that you use specifically for the holidays are always a fun option as well!

Here are some glasses that would be beautiful for your Christmas table setting:

I have these angular type of wine glasses and love them for either red or white wine (they’re actually my favorite!)

For a cool vibe type of wine glass these square bottom glasses are good for red or white wine

These gilded rim champagne flute – Just soo pretty with that gold detail!

These textured glasses add an extra design element to the table and can be used for either cocktail or water glasses

Accessories

Think small bowls for condiments, decorative knives, wine glass charms, etc!

In the past year of owning a home, I realized I didn’t have small bowls for dips/condiments. We only had our Pirex dishes and that was not going to cut it. I found the cutest Hearth and Hand by Magnolia dip bowls at Target and they’re the perfect addition for a Christmas dinner table. I’ve also had my eye on these hand carved marble & copper dip bowls for a while now. They tend to sell out often but they are just so elegant looking!

I have some cute cheese spreaders that are Christmas themed that can be used but any nice looking cheese spreader will do! They can obviously be used for cheese but they can also be a nicer alternative for butter or spreads that are on the table.

A cute little touch and a way to tell whose seat is whose if place cards aren’t used are wine glass charms! I’ve been gifted a few over the years and they really come in handy!

Some of the images above are from a styled shoot that involved a ton of very talented people and I was extremely grateful to be a part of it! A list of all involved: 

PHOTOGRAPHERS: TERRIE IMAGES Instagram- @terrieimages, CORTIELLA PHOTOGRAPHY Instagram- @cortiellaphotography, BETH WATERMAN PHOTOGRAPHY Instagram- @bethwaterman, SUZIE LOPES PHOTOGRAPHY Instagram- @suzielopesphotography, DENIA MOLINA PHOTOGRAPHY Instagram- @deniamolinaphotography | Venue: The Capen House Instagram- @capenhouse | CREATIVE DIRECTORS/CONCEPT/PLANNING:  PINE AND PETAL WEDDINGS Instagram- @pineandpetalweddings, TERRIE IMAGES Instagram- @terrieimages | CHARGERS/FLATWARE/GLASSES: TABLE OF LOVE Instagram- @tableoflove | SERPENTINE TABLE/OVAL CHAIRS: TIERA EXQUISITE Instagram- @tieraexquisite | CUSTOM CHOCOLATE: Instagram- @myfavoritesweetsfavors  Instagram- @flatlaysweets | CURATED STYLING ITEMS: TERRIE IMAGES Instagram- @terrieimagesshop | CALLIGRAPHY ORNAMENTS AND PLACE CARDS: LOVE, GRACE CALLIGRAPHY AND DESIGN Instagram- @lovegrace_calligraphy

Be sure to save this post to Pinterest to remember all of the Christmas tablescape ideas and be inspired to set your table up for Christmas dinner!