11 Dec 23

A Colourful Christmas Table

I’ve never professed to being a whiz in the kitchen and so you’ll often find me setting the table instead and oh what fun you can have at Christmas! I love the excuse to bring in all the colour, using all sorts of bits you may already have lying around. From seasonal fruit and foliage, to ribbon bows, candles and fresh flowers, a festive table is a great excuse to let your creativity run wild!

I also love a foliage cloud (having made my first for Christmas in the conservatory last year) and enjoyed my second attempt using more of a dramatic floral arrangement this time.

A colourful festive tablescape. Ribbed Hanging Pendant by Emma Gurner, House Of.Com; Tableware by Spode; Napkins in fabric by Sophie Robinson x Harlequin; Dining Table, Lisbon by Heals; Dining Chairs, Raw Oak Bow Back by Cox and Cox.

The tableware is design classic, The Christmas Tree dinner set by Spode (received as part of an ad/collaboration) which I think is the perfect mix of sophisticated kitsch we all want for Christmas. What do you think?!

The napkins are made from a selection of my fabrics in the Sophie Robinson x Harlequin Collection and I love that these can be used all year round as they are not traditionally ‘festive’. I love using colourful fruit like seasonal clementines and pomegranates in my tablescapes, which can then be used up in salads and desserts later on. Perfect for when you’re craving something light and fresh in those delightfully lazy days between Christmas and New Year!

We host a lot at Christmas, so I make a point of scooping up any unwanted packaging and ribbons from people’s presents, to add to my growing collection. I love decorating the chairs with foliage from the garden and a colourful ribbon to tie in with the pops of colour elsewhere. If you don’t have enough ribbons to go on every chair, you could always tie a few round some candle sticks to make them festive, or even a jug handle or simple vase to give it some extra glam.

Green glasses, Neptune; Cutlery, Heals; Colourful Candlesticks, Pooky.

One of the best things about going for a non-traditional festive table is that you can just use what you already have. Christmas table settings do not have to just be green, reds and golds, so if you don’t want to, there’s no need to go and buy lots of Christmassy decor bits that can only be used once a year. I love using all the bright colours and the candlestick holders and other decorative bits will be used at birthday parties, dinner parties and garden parties throughout the year. The flowers will last in their vases for a while and can be moved elsewhere throughout the house and all I need to store away is the Christmas tableware.

Let me know what your planning for your Christmas table this year!