A new buzzword making its way around the internet, particularly in inspiration and mood board websites is tablescaping, which is the art of dressing a dinner table. The intention should be to create something of a sense of occasion and a conversation piece around your dinner table for your next dinner part or event. With a few clever tips and tricks, you can easily achieve professional levels of style and sophistication at your table the next time you host a dinner.
Choose and Stick to a Colour Scheme
It’s always a good idea to decide on the colour scheme before you start adding elements to the table. Choosing a colour scheme might be done for you if you’re dressing a Christmas table or other holiday event with traditional colours which serve an important purpose of drawing your guests into the festivities and occasion. Don’t forget to incorporate other elements of the room into your colour scheme and be sure not to clash with the colour of the walls, flooring or artwork that already exists in the space.
If you’re not dressing a table for a traditional holiday, try and decide on what colours you’re going to use on your table and stick to it. You can use your colour scheme in the plates, napkins, tablecloths, place mats and, of course, in your centrepiece.
Start with the Centrepiece
The best place to start when you design a tablescape is with the centrepiece, particularly if the table is being dressed for a holiday or occasion where tradition is being worked into the tablescape. That isn’t to say that the centrepiece shouldn’t complement your other elements like matching colours of your napkins, but it should serve to be the first thing most people will notice.
A quick tip that is very important to follow is to not just make it as big as possible, but rather design it to make an impact. Remember that there needs to still be room on the table for the delicious food to be served!
Incorporate Natural Elements
Many tablescaping ideas include some element of the outdoors in the design, usually in the form of green leaves and foliage from the garden. It’s also almost a given that you’ll want to incorporate a floral arrangement on the table, whether as part of your centrepiece or not, and choosing something suitable is quick and easy now that you can order flowers online.
Look to elements like long foliage that can be used as a table runner, like a healthy piece of ivy you can have run the entire length of the table or intertwine eucalyptus or similar. For Christmas, a few pinecones and sprigs of holly will quickly set the theme for your table while incorporating those natural elements.
Tablescaping is something of a trend that’s here to stay, and more likely evolve. Because the old rules of setting a table (besides providing cutlery for your guests!) are being replaced by the desire for creativity and elegance in dressing a table, you’re free to do anything you want at your dinner table.
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