Thanksgiving Table Recap

Hello my friends!

I hope everyone who celebrates Thanksgiving

 had a lovely holiday.

We certainly did here!

My husband and daughter love doing all the cooking

which means

 my time goes into creating 

the tablescape!

Last Christmas  I started doing holiday recaps

 as notes to myself 

and a way to share

 what worked for the holiday

and

notes on what I wanted to do different next year.

So in continuing that tradition

I'm sharing my Thanksgiving table recap!

I was so happy with not only the outcome of my table

but the process to get there as well!

I first reviewed my last few Thanksgiving tables

to remind myself of what worked and what I have done before.

Then I visited some wonderful blogs

for inspiration

as well as a quick jaunt through Pinterest.

When I had decided on the feeling I wanted this year

I then just started pulling pieces from my collections that conveyed the vibe I was after.

I decided with our unseasonably warm weather

(even for SoCal)

I wanted to celebrate the sunny weather

with a big nod to our SoCal area.

The best way to do that …

using  tiny citrus from my garden!

I also knew I wanted to keep the table feeling fresh 

and

uncluttered.

Candles are always a must on my tablescapes.

So I chose to put together a couple of rustic holders

in which I used small canning jars as votes.

To add a little quirk to the arrangement

I simply swapped out one candle 

for a lovely sculptural succulent.

My center was clean, simple and dramatic

just exactly the feeling I was after!

I worked in  kumquats to each place setting

by juxtaposing 

this natural element and twine

with washed 'silk' feel napkins

that I made out of remnant material from the fabric store.

I made the table cloth the same way.

I wanted to work in some fresh 

natural stripe

to pull in the color of the citrus leaves

and dress up our farm table for the occasion.

I just love the playing off  of rustic and the glam of the napkin's sheen

mixed with a big punch of citrus!

Using my slate tiles as placemats

was something I just loved from my last year's table!

I love the texture and the grounding effect of the stone tile.

Especially seeing the composition repeated 

for each pacesetting.

I loved the whimsy the different salt and pepper sets brought to the table.

I also once again used my repurposed milk bottles

at every other  place setting 

to have extra water on the table.

I hate breaking up good conversations to get up for waters.

My easel collection

with tiny chalk board place cards

also made a  lovely reappearance this year.

My favorite new addition this year

Take home boxes for leftovers!

I searched high and low for craft colored boxes

on Tuesday.

I never found any.

But I did find some white bakery boxes at Surfas

and

simply folded them inside out 

for the perfect boxes I was looking for!

I finished them off with Thanksgiving stickers 

from Cost Plus.

I will definitely be repeating this idea next year!

It's one of those ideas that 

I can't believe we never did before!

The boxes were a huge hit

and

there was no more mad scramble to package up

leftovers.

Next year I think I will finish off the boxes

by tying them with twine and slipping in the citrus from the places settings

That way I will be sending home the people I love

with a beautifully wrapped gift

filled with the gift of a meal shared!

As always my friends

I wish you love and joy

as you style your life