A Rustic, Elegant Thanksgiving

Thank you for stopping by to visit me today for the Styled + Set Holiday Entertaining Blog Tour, hosted by the lovely Lory of DesignThusiasm!  As a fairly new blogger I couldn’t be more excited to be participating in this tour sharing my Rustic, Elegant Thanksgiving Table along with a total of 30 incredibly talented bloggers offering up their best ideas for holiday table styling and entertaining.  I’m so glad you are here and I hope you will take an opportunity to visit the full lineup of participating bloggers today or sometime this week for the best inspiration available for entertaining during this season of thanksgiving.  You will be able to link over to their blogs at the end of my post so get ready to indulge in some beautiful Thanksgiving table goodness today!

Table scapes are so fun to me because they are like decorating for the day and then you can do something fresh and new all over again for the next event!  I love to pull out my fancy dishes and get super creative in assembling a table to share a meal with family and friends, and this particular meal is the most important of the year to me when we gather together to give thanks.  Because I hate to cover our table completely since I love it’s finish, I like to start with just a simple runner as my base for a table scape and this year I chose to use a simple, white linen eyelet runner that goes well with our rustic elegant theme.  Our table is a gray-washed wood and the juxtaposition of the rustic wood and the dainty white linen go well together to create a warm yet elegant setting.  Additionally, I put equal thought into the flower choices for my table setting this year and knew that I wanted to stick with our fall color scheme of using plum accents throughout the home for a Fresh Approach to Fall that I talked about in my main fall home tour this year.  I hope you will visit that post here if you haven’t seen it yet.

When I went flower shopping (one of my favorite things to do these days) I saw these plum colored lilies and knew they would be perfect paired with white hydrangeas arranged simply and organically and placed atop my white linen runner.  Additionally, a simple smoked glass vase with an elegant gold band was used for my florals.

To add some shine, texture, and warmth to the table I used votive candles in varying heights in metallic gold with a scatter of acorns, some of which were found in my yard under the oaks (that were spray painted in my favorite gold spray paint I recently wrote about here) combined with a store bought scatter mix (found here).

There is nothing quite like the golden glow of a candle be it small or large to help create and set the mood for a table setting!  It displays a big hello and welcome to your family and guests for the holiday as they take their seat at the table.

This plum colored votive (similar here) was perfect for this table setting as a nod to the color of the lilies and again to stay in keeping with my Fresh Approach to Fall Home Tour this year.

For this table setting I had two vases full of gorgeous, aromatic lilies and hydrangeas, which flanked a stunning brass candle stick at the very center of our table.  This brass beauty held a metallic candle that again set the mood for our rustic elegant theme.

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For china I used my wedding china that I have completely fallen back in love with all over again with the strong reemergence of brass and gold lately (I talk more about brass making a comeback in my Fall Living Room Tour here).  The white dishes that sport a dainty gold band just make my heart flutter and are perfect for this formal, special occasion of giving thanks (similar here).  The flatware is silver with gold accents (found here) and ties in perfectly with our table, china, and crystal.

You may have also noticed the lovely velvet pumpkins in shades of white and gray that I layered atop my place setting .  I knew I wanted to use my charcoal linen napkins  for this setting of grays, whites, and plum, and I also knew that the white pumpkins would pop beautifully placed on top of my linens and place setting.  These velvet beauties by Sue of Perky Pumpkins were perfect, well made, and after my table scape is all packed up and put away I can use these around my home for decoration this year and for years to come.

For our crystal this year I used my wedding crystal.  I love it more than I can explain with it’s elegant curves and ball to rest your fingers upon while drinking a glass of southern sweet iced tea.  These glasses have a bold elegance about them in person that is hard to put into words. I paired them with these metallic banded coupe glasses for a sip of champagne to celebrate this most joyous occasion of thanksgiving!  You will notice that I have a common theme going amongst my dishes by repeating the gold band which is important in any design in order to create flow (I talk more about repeating patterns and objects in my Shelf & Console Table Styling 101 post found here & in my Transitional Master Bath Tour/Reveal post found here).

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I also added to my table ensemble a little something soft and beautiful with these vining velvet pillows added to the captain’s chairs.  They give this scene a little more personality and are quite pretty to look at.

When setting a table for a crowd or for a special occasion I also like to dress up my bar cabinet area with necessities appropriate for the festivities, and to add some color and texture to that side of the room.  You can see it here peeking out behind all of the flowers and brass on the table.

I had so much fun decorating the serving area with pumpkins, more metallic candles in some of my favorite old candle holders, and with food!

This year to my dish collection I added these lovely plates I plan to use for dessert (or they could be used for salad as well), each with a different sentiment about the season.  My favorite ones are always be thankful and count your blessings (not pictured).  They are white with the letters inscribed in gold metallic and perfect for this favorite holiday of mine.  Aren’t they just darling?!  I’ll be using my favorite simple gold flatware with our dessert this year as well.

I also used some brass pinecone candle holders I’ve had for years.  I love to pull out old items and mix them with new ones like this brass and glass tiered tray (similar here) I used for fruit and cheese.

Not only is this area fun to look at now but it’s super functional for overflow dishes, dessert, and extra food for the occasion.

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To recap my table for this year,  let’s go over some simple tips for setting your own table using some of the elements I’ve incorporated into mine.

1. Start your table scape with a runner that will create contrast against your table and hence make everything you place on top of the runner pop and come to life.
2. Use metallics and/or gold for sparkle and interest like I did with my votives and taper candle.
3. Use a scatter of something pertaining to the holiday like I did with my acorn scatter.  This adds texture and intestest and allows your eye to float around the table while taking in all of the beautiful bounty.
4. Use an oversized centerpiece like I did with my large brass candle holder to bring your eye into the center of your table.  This will cause the eye to go up and float around the room to see your festive table in full.
5. Use fresh florals, greenery, or fruit to make your table really come to life (this is my favorite tip!).  Even if you just gather something from your yard this tip will make your table really sing (and will be even more special than something store bought)!
6. Layer your plates for height and interest.
7. Use something fun and interesting in the center of your place setting like I did with my velvet pumpkins.  This creates a fun conversation piece and will have your guest talking about it until next year.
8. Set your table early so you can enjoy looking at it in the weeks prior to the occasion.
9. Play seasonal music during your meal to give your setting that warm Thanksgiving holiday vibe we all want.

I hope you enjoyed the tour of our rustic, elegant Thanksgiving table and that you will check out all of the other talented bloggers in this amazing holiday entertaining blog tour.  We will all be back soon for a Christmas entertaining blog post as well (so stay tuned for that) but for now, you can link below to any or all of them to be inspired and to soak up all of the beauty.  I do however want to leave you with one last peak at our our Styled + Set table for this year and I look forward to having you back to my home for Christmas!

This has been an all week tour but starting today (Wednesday) please check out the following inspiring bloggers for more tips and ideas on entertaining for the day:

Monday’s posts:

Designthusiasm | French Country Cottage | Cedar Hill Farmhouse
Kelley Nan | Bless’er House | Maison de Pax

Tuesday’s posts:

Town and Country Living | CitrineLiving | Sand and Sisal
Zevy Joy | Life on Virginia Street | Design, Dining and Diapers

Wednesday’s posts:

Decor Gold Designs | ZDesign At Home | Randi Garrett Design
Ella Claire | So Much Better With Age | My Soulful Home

Thursday’s posts:

Shabbyfufu | StoneGable | Savvy Southern Style
Maison Decor | On Sutton Place | The Enchanted Home

Friday’s Posts:

Sunny Side Up | Finding Home Farms | The Wood Grain Cottage
Setting for Four | Becky Cunningham

Decor Gold Designs

ZDesign At Home

Randi Garrett Design

Ella Claire

So Much Better With Age

My Soulful Home

*Affiliate links used ~ some items similar*

Shop my Table & Bar Cabinet Area

Linens & Candles (some similar):

 

Dishes & Flatware (some similar):

 

Pumpkins & Fall Scatter:

 

Shop Furniture, Lighting & Textiles

Furniture:

 

Drapery, Rug & Lighting:

 

Mirrors & Art:

 

**For a comprehensive shopping list of items for this space please click HERE

You can link over to my other fall tours here:

A Cozy Chic Fall Living Room Tour

A Fresh Approach to Fall

3o Tips for Fabulous Fall Decor

5 Tips for a Beautiful Fall Front Porch + Tips