The Christmas tablescaping trends to try at home
What is tablescaping?
Forget presents and endless cups of mulled wine - tablescaping might just be what everyone's most looking forward to this festive season.
As we shift away from stuff and towards experiences, tablescaping, which has been around for eons (it was popular back in the 18th century among aristocratic crowds), is having a major moment.
The influence of TikTok on anything and everything is definitely playing a role, as we show off our intimate dinners to hundreds, or even thousands, of followers. More than just a centrepiece, a tablescape is a mood, a way of dressing the table in a considered, stylish and personalised fashion. Some might even call the process - the opposite of our rushed, frenzied lives - effective self-care.
Often, tablescaping centres around a theme, whether that's rustic, monochrome or designed to reflect a celebration.
As home entertaining becomes ever more popular, creating an exciting - and inviting - environment for guests is what it's all about (it's also why we're all ordering those phenomenal-looking grazing platters for our dinner parties).
The current popularity of tablescaping means that Londoners can get the dinner setting of their dreams delivered. There's no shortage of inspiration for tablescapes to suit every style and price point online and you can even become a pro yourself by booking into a tablescaping workshop.
Tablescaping inspo and everything you need to make a tablescape
No matter your theme or occasion, there are a few key ingredients that help to make a tablescape one to remember - and one that you enjoy creating.
This is one case where adopting a "more is more" approach can really pay off, but the basics for a decent tablescape include:
- Crockery and cutlery like plates, silverware, napkins and a tablecloth.
- Decorative extras: candles, glassware, bows, figurines, crackers at Christmas etc. You may even want to adorn your chairs.
- Flowers or branches (these can be real or dried).
- Food: the way you lay out your food can absolutely fit into your overall dressed-up dining table look.
- Something personal: adding a name card with an inspiring quote or scribbling a name on a leaf or Christmas cracker will give guests that extra-special feeling of being well-cared for by their hosts.
Alice Naylor-Leyland, aka Mrs. Alice, is the stuff of tablescaping (and interiors, and fashion) dreams. The US Vogue contributor and homewares designer has launched a festive collection of Tablescapes in a Box, which you can purchase to recreate her dreamy dining table looks in your own home. Choose from her range of collections including A Winter's Tale or Gingerbread Lane for an amazing festive-winter table with maximum impact and minimum effort.
UK-based FLOWERBX also offers ready-made tablescapes with their Holiday Dining Series, from extravagant citrus to delicate winter whites.
It's not just homewares experts and designers who offer tablescaping workshops and courses - florists are in on the action, too.
Sage Flowers in Peckham, run by Iona and Romy, also offer occasional wreath and flower arranging workshops. Learn how to use fresh, dyed and dried floral elements in your tablescape.
Iona's top tablescaping tips?
"Definitely mix fresh fruit and veg in with the floral displays to add an extra Dutch Masters-esque touch to it. Also lots of candles!" she tells us.
There are plenty of other brands to make note of if you'd like to up your table-setting game. Here are some of the trends we are looking out of this year.
Festive Reds & Golds
Colour and prints galore.
Winter Whites
Clean, pristine tabletops.
Alpine
Turn your table into an alpine landscape.
This article was originally written in December 2018 and updated and republished in December 2022