Wednesday, December 8, 2010

Reuse, Recycle, Revamp your Holiday Table!

So I decided to do something different for my holiday table this year. Usually I try and come up with something I haven't done before. This year, however, I did a spin off of last year's table. I did this because the average woman (especially a newlywed) doesn't have a stockpile of table decorations lying around their home. And let's face it, there couldn't be a worse time than the holidays to find extra money to splurge on these items. So what is a poor girl to do?

I decided to start with a staple every bride should have available ... my wedding china and flatware! The dishes were the start of both of my holiday designs. I didn't want to have two completely identical tables (what's the fun in that?), but I wanted to create two looks using common items and other affordable options.

Here are the two designs!

2010 - Formal Holiday Dinner








2009 - Holiday Brunch





Now for the details! I'll start with describing the items in my 2009 design.

I decided to accentuate the white and blue of the dishes in this look. I laid out a simple white tablecloth (on sale from a fabric store) and put silver chargers (from a dollar store) under the china. Each year I use an ornament for a place card (so each person will have a memento for their tree to take home). Last year I was inspired by Martha Stewart's Sweetgum-Fruit Wreath, since I have this tree in my front yard and tons of the spiny fruit fall from it. I decided to make mini wreaths for each person and used the extra fruit to craft silver trees for the table. Because this design is more casual I used paper napkins dressed up with snowflake napkin holders I got at an after Christmas sale at Target. For my centerpiece I raided my Christmas tree decorations! I got a clear glass vase and stuffed it with white stuffing. Then I stuffed sparkly white branches and hung all the small blue and silver ornaments I could find in my collection from them. Lastly, I found some silver tinsel garland from the dollar store and strung it up and down the table.

For my 2010 transformation I again started with the same china and dollar store chargers. I laid my white fabric down on the table and covered it with a cotton damask fabric I purchased at the fabric store. For my centerpiece I found the candle pillar holder at Target for only $19.99 and filled it with silver and blue ornaments I found in my ornament collection. You can also see the sparkly white branches from last years centerpiece in it as well! For the place cards this year I found these pretty black ornaments for $2 each at Target. I further dressed up the table setting by printing my own menus. The silver sweetgum-fruit trees are getting used again alongside some fresh flowers. Finally I strung some larger blue and silver ornaments from the ceiling all of which came from a dollar store!

I hope you enjoyed my table transformation. I'd love to hear what you do to create a fresh and beautiful table each year without breaking the bank.

5 comments:

  1. What a great idea to build on your basics. Gorgeous as always.
    Stop by and check out my new blog when you can...www.11magnolialane.com
    We will definitely be featuring your gorgeous tablescapes!
    Amy

    ReplyDelete

Note: Only a member of this blog may post a comment.

Related Posts Plugin for WordPress, Blogger...