So I have this thing about home decor. Obviously I love for my home to look beautiful, but what’s more important to me, is for it to be practical—especially when it comes to seasonal décor. With the holidays quickly approaching I realized that this year will mark our second Thanksgiving in the Hosta House. Last November, we were majorly under construction in a home that felt a bit foreign to us. It was our first major holiday under a global pandemic, and one of our first holidays without family—and generally, everything felt off. I put very little effort into decorating our dining table, because we basically ate at a table in our family room surrounded by moving boxes. This year, not much has changed (still a pandemic, and it will likely still be just the 6 of us), however, we are now a bit more settled, so I wanted to create a beautiful, simple fall tablescape to get us ready for what will be a much more intentional Thanksgiving.
Every now and then when we have Sunday dinners, I bring out a few tapered candles and Kyle gets such a kick out of everything feeling fancy, so I wanted that memory to be engrained in him as well as in my older kids this holiday season. Walmart Home has a great selection of fall decor and dining essentials online and in store which helped me to create this simple fall tablescape, with very little effort..
Below are some steps I took to bring this table to life:
Step 1// Dressing the table
First I decided on a runner, because I think tablecloths are too fussy—unless, of course, you are using portable tables that need dressing up, I’d say skip the tablecloth. I kept things pretty simple by draping the table with this modern plaid fabric by Better Homes & Gardens. I didn’t even sew the fabric, I just folded it over and draped it across the table width-wise as a runner. This fabric is super affordable, and of great quality, and I think it’s the perfect touch to blend in seamlessly with my everyday décor.
Step 2// Decor
Once I had my runner in place, I decided to glam things up a bit with a mix of new and some antique brass candle holders, along with my favorite Better Homes & Gardens tapered candles. I also added these beautiful gold lanterns by Better Homes & Gardens for a little extra sparkle. I’ve had a couple of these for a while now, but I picked up more to round out this tablescape. I just love how beautiful they look with a pillar candle when lit.
I really love decorating with natural elements so I wanted to add a couple of small floral arrangements, but there wasn’t enough room, because remember I was going for simple, beautiful and functional, so I opted to instead add a few mini tiger striped pumpkins to the center of the table, along with some sprigs of dried eucalyptus found in the craft section at Walmart. These are sold in mixed bouquets, so I just used the pieces that worked best with my color scheme.
Step 3// Place Settings
Typically you’d see chargers and or placemats being used in a table setting. On a larger table I might have used them, but since we have a smaller dining area and a much smaller table, I didn’t want the table to feel too busy and crowded. For my dinnerware, I decided to mix and match a few different items. Some items are new but some I already had on hand, and I think that’s the key to making a no-fuss tablescape, grabbing a few things that make it feel special, but also being creative and using what you have.
When creating this tablescape, I thought about the details that used to make Thanksgiving feel special when I was a child — and fond memories of my grandmother unboxing her China, and polishing her silver came to mind. Me, not owning any heirloom China or silver for that matter—I decided on a new dish set by Thyme and Table. It’s not China, but it’s so different from our everyday dinnerware—it’s super chic, yet playful with its polka dot design, and even a little glam with its gilded edges—-and I just love the contrast of the glam with our more rustic wood dining table.
To make sure everything didn’t look too predictable, I mixed and matched pieces from the new set, with some of my everyday plate set, and even added a few of these dark gray salad plates for contrast. I then accented it all with this beautiful brushed gold flatware. I think mixing and matching keeps things interesting: less precious and more affordable.
Step 4// Little Details
Next, I again thought of little details that made holiday dinners feel special and I thought of the cute place cards my mom always takes the time to make, and of the memories of the kids running to find their name to see who they were going to get to dine next to. So as I was leaving Walmart, I came across these green burlap leaves and figured I’d create some place cards with my own little spin on them. Using my gold wire and my needle nose pliers, I twisted them into the initials of each family member, and then hot glued them to leaves. I’ll admit, this was a bit much—but I like how they came out.
I like that the green is a little unexpected, but also not completely out of left field. You can shop this amazing selection of items from Walmart’s holiday home lookbook in store or online, below.
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To add a little extra festive décor, I made the cutest little felt wreath for my rangehood. I was inspired by some wreaths I saw on Etsy, but they cost about $45-$80 each, and I calculated that I could make it for about $10! If crafting isn’t your thing, Walmart has a ton of festive wreaths to choose from.
Felt Leaf Wreath, cost about $10
What You’ll Need:
- a few sheets of felt
- a wire wreath form
- good, sharp scissors
- some floral wire (optional, I ended up not using it)
- wire cutters
- hot glue gun and glue sticks
Step 1// Cut your felt
- Decide on the size leaves you want, I decided to go with 3” leaves for my main row, and 2″ leaves as fillers. I layered a few pieces of felt and then cut my leaf form free hand. I tried using a template made from a cereal box, but found it easier to just cut them free-hand. This took a little bit of time, but you can also purchase felt leaves precut or use a Cricut to cut your leaf shapes.
Step 2// Let Your Leaves Take Shape
- Pre-heat your hot glue gun.
- Once all your leaves are cut, drop a small bead of glue at one of the end points, and pinch the end together to give your leaf some dimension.
Step 3// Decide on a Pattern
I decided to use 4 colors: 3 main colors (ivory, beige, gray and then a mustard color as an accent.). I then decided on a pattern: gray, ivory, beige-gray, ivory beige, mustard.
Step 4// Glue
To attach the leaves to the form, I just used a line of hot glue on the back and stuck it to the wreath form. After attaching the first row of leaves, I decided to add in smaller leaves to make it more full.
Step 5// Finish it off
Cut strips of felt to glue to the back of your wreath form in case you want to hang it on a mirror or if you need to protect a surface from being scratched. (This step is optional)
And that’s it! You can find all the materials to make this cute little wreath and tons of other fall crafts at Walmart.
I hope you found this post helpful and that you have a wonderful fall season!
