If
you will have a houseful on Thanksgiving Day, you could wow them all with a
tablescape that calls them to their seat almost as easily as the feast
itself.
Play
up the fruits and veggies of the season and give those pumpkins of yours their
last hay day for the year. Run a
staggered line of pumpkins, real or faux, down the middle of the table. Accent them with anything from mesquite
branches to pinecones, acorn squash, gourds, and berries. Your pumpkins could be painted to spell out
“Thanks” or another seasonal message.
And your accents could be scattered about or in glass pillar or square
vases.
If
you have a good collection of glass vases and/or apothecary jars in varying
heights, sizes, and shapes, fill them with layers as you would a trifle
bowl. Use nuts in their shell like
pecans, walnuts, macadamias, pistachios, and Brazil nuts. Mix in things like dried black, kidney, or
pinto beans, dried cranberries, and deer corn.
Accent your collection with fall leaves or small pinecones. For a different sweet spin with lots of color,
fill them with candy corn, M&Ms® in yellow, orange, and white, plus mini
candy pumpkins, gumballs in orange, red, and green, and other mainstream candy
that offers a fall twist. If someone
sneaks a little treat before or after the meal, even better.
To
keep things really simple, involve the kids in a little centerpiece art project
by spelling out a phrase like “Give Thanks” or “Thanksgiving” or something of
your choosing in individual decorative letters on craft paper or
cardstock. Hang each letter with twine
or ribbon run through a hole-punched spot from thin branches you stake in a
series of jars or vases down the table’s center. The glassware could be filled with any of the
above mentioned fillers to hold your lightweight branches in place. Those branches could come from the craft
store or simply the mesquite tree in your yard.
Another
creative, modern concept I have seen on television is to cover the entire table
with black bulletin board paper in place of a tablecloth, and give your guests
chalk to use for a little mealtime fun.
You could pre-write your own messages, including writing a scripted name
over each place setting instead of a place card or adding conversation starters
like “I am thankful for . . .” You could
mark spots for butter or salt and pepper, or you could write parts of the menu
spread around the table. When you turn
them loose with chalk right in line with their silverware or in little mason
jars around the table, you could have quite the masterpiece by the end of the
meal.
Gather
the family around the table, whether beautiful, whimsical, or unique, and come
away with full tummies and big smiles.
Happy Thanksgiving to you and your family!
DesignInMind column; appeared in the Valley Morning Star November 24th.
