Christmas lunch is one of the biggest events at the end of every year. It’s a great opportunity to relax and celebrate with your nearest and dearest, so you want to make everything right and set up the table for a Christmas feast to remember.
And while you may be browsing Pinterest or Instagram feeds looking for Christmas gifts with a cup of tasty and beneficial chai or hot coffee in your hand, take a look at some table setting ideas as well. Or maybe not, as you could easily get overwhelmed. To avoid it, here are a few easy and simple steps you can take that may help you save the day.
How to Set Up Your Christmas Table This Year
Get Exquisite Tableware
No matter your style, you can find your favourite pieces for the season, from plates and cutlery to mugs, bowls and salad servers. You can choose from a selection of tableware sets and add a festive flourish to your Christmas lunch in a simple and easy way. The idea is to create a memorable dining experience with timber boards and serving ware, ceramic plates and coordinating linens and placemats.
All of these items hold immense importance in setting the right tone for various occasions. Each one of them can be the very first thing that catches the eye when your guests sit at the dining table and wait for the food to be served. If fully embraced, the dining experience gives you the privilege to carry on a tradition of good food and good life surrounded by family and friends.
Handcrafted tableware is a great choice to enhance your experience as it’s both practical and stylish. A beautiful mix of tradition and minimalism, it’s perfect for achieving a sense of modern and unique style, simple and sophisticated at the same time.
After all, Christmas is more than gifts, drinks and food. It makes sense only if you are surrounded by the people you love. So, once the house is clean and the food is cooked, it’s time to start thinking about creating a beautiful Christmas table setting. So, let’s begin.
Look at Other Decorations
When deciding how to dress your Christmas table, first take a look at the rest of the decorations in your home. Consider the colour of the baubles on your tree and apply it to your table or use a contrasting hue for added interest. You can even use a few baubles to add to centrepieces.
Choose Your Colour Palette
If you want to add a twist to the traditional Christmas setting, start with a neutral palette, whether you prefer a classic red and green, or a modern silver and blue interpretation, with a Nordic influence. There is a vast choice of tableware sets, so you can find a Christmas colour palette that will work perfectly for you. Begin with a tablecloth that covers the entire table and layer up.
Using layers is a great way to make an impact with your table setting. For a vibrant Christmas table, use a floral table runner on top of a white tablecloth for added texture and once you’ve layered the runner, add bowls and plates and centralised boards as a nice finishing touch that will hold your courses when they are ready to be served.
However, there is one decorating trick you can use if you want to make your Christmas table easy on the eye. It’s the white-on-white colour scheme, which is a key trend in Australia lately, and makes the colour in the summer fruits and salads pop up.
Add a Touch of Greenery
Plants and floral arrangements look great when centrally placed on the Christmas table. If you want to go one step further, go to the nearest eucalyptus tree and add bring some leaves to your table or use a sprig of fresh rosemary and place it on a plate, on your guest’s napkins or tied up as a napkin ring. For subtle sophistication, combine a palette of green and navy blue.
Create a Beautiful Centrepiece
It doesn’t have to be a big floral arrangement because if the flowers are too tall, people sitting opposite to each other will not be able to chat. If you want to give your Christmas a jolly Australian spin, use red waratahs as a floral centrepiece. If you want to create a simple, but elegant table centrepiece, group small tea candles that will provide soft lighting and let the Christmas lunch begin.
Make It Personal (Even a Little Bit Counts)
Assigned seating can be a nice touch and will let each guest know they have been considered. Seat people who have more in common next to each other and if you want to make them feel even more welcomed, add handwritten cards to each plate. Also, you can wrap small presents for your guests in their favourite colour (if you know it). They will certainly appreciate the effort.
Think Modern
Many Australians know that preparing a European-style baked meal on Christmas doesn’t work so well here. Summer is too hot to turn on the oven and feed family and friends four different kinds of heavy meats with wine you ordered online which is why many have started to break with traditions.
Instead, Australians are embracing the beauty of the season by getting outside in the gorgeous warm weather as there is no snow, no ice and no warming fire required in our Christmas. To fully embrace the season, you can adorn your table with in-season produce and native flora. Even a few kangaroo paws or proteas can make it all look more Christmassy.
If you want to create a relaxed atmosphere, incorporate beachy textures using rope, starfish and shells with your traditional Christmas decorations. A palette of blue, silver and white can help you create a beachy Christmas and netted blue glass buoys can add some coastal charm to the final look.
