9 Festive Tablescapes to Inspire Your Thanksgiving Decor
Turkey, stuffing, cranberry sauce, mashed potatoes, sweet potatoes, Brussels sprouts...one rarely has to guess what will be on their Thanksgiving menu because the holiday leaves little wiggle room for culinary experimentation. Creative whimsies can, however, be carried out elsewhere: the decor. An autumnal color scheme, foliage garnishes, and decorative pumpkins may be classic, but they're also highly unoriginal. And unoriginal you are not; thankfully this year provides an opportunity to shake it up.
The easiest way to add a dollop of freshness to your tablescape is to go beyond “Thanksgiving colors”; these include cranberry-reds, camel browns, and any color of the gourd variety. La DoubleJ does this masterfully, with a turquoise tablecloth, emerald green tablewares, and sprigs of lavender-colored snapdragons. Award-winning events producer Fiona Leahy, meanwhile, draped a table with an Indian textile-inspired print of Mediterranean blue and rose-colored red. The whole thing comes together in a color harmony that suggests the season, without knocking dinner guests over the head with it.
If you’re unwilling to disregard the pumpkin entirely, consider giving the vegetable an inventive transformation. Los Angeles-based table setting company Case de Perrin had the clever idea to paint Chinoiserie whisps onto miniature pumpkins in a blue and white color scheme borrowed from toile china patterns. Or, dip dye your pumpkins in a scarlet red and pair them with Neo Baroque black and gold plates per Fancy Tables. It’s all very Versace. Also Italianate is Cabana’s take on the holiday table, with Ebru-marbled and slip-decorated plates and patterned linens hand blocked in the Emilia-Romagna region of Italy. While you're at it, look to the tastemakers at Milan-based Cabana for just about all your design needs. Because everything is made better, even on an American holiday, with a bit of la dolce vita.
