christmas inspired by nature

Happy Thursday! I’m thrilled you stopped by the blog today because I have something really special to share. Six of my favorite bloggers and I are uniting to show some of our favorite ways to decorate for Christmas by using a natural approach to our décor. 

 

Sort of an old-fashioned idea, but, oh so homey for the holidays! 

 

We were free to choose any part of our homes to decorate for today, so you know it’ll be a day filled with lots of inspiration!  For my “Christmas Inspired by Nature” story I chose to set a Christmas morning table. 

 

This is a breakfast table that the family will be happy to wake up to. After a few of gifts have been opened, this is the perfect place to sit down and have coffee, juice, muffins and a holiday omelet. 

 

Now I’ll let you in on the inspiration behind this table setting... 

 

Cranberries and ferns were the two things that got me started in setting this tablescape. A few weeks ago, I saw Martha Stewart, my queen, on QVC for a few minutes, and she was selling faux fern wreaths and garlands that were covered in pretty glitter. I thought, hmmmm... ferns at Christmas... what a lovely idea! 

 

I’ve got a huge fern growing in a corner of my front yard. I’m not sure of the variety, but it’s got a very stiff frond, with lots of smaller ferns growing on each “branch”. These would be perfect for the table.  

 

The cranberries were the easy part. I had a bag of fresh cranberries left over from Thanksgiving, so they were perfect for adding that lovely rich red color to the table. 

 

In the background of my breakfast room, you can see the grouping of paperwhites, amaryllis, and faux Christmas trees. I love how they all create a serene green and white backdrop. 

 

A “Merry Christmas” ribbon is draped on the front of the table for fun. I’ve had this cream-colored burlap runner on the table since October. I just love it!  

   

Now for the details of each place setting... white plates and neutral tableware are like the “little black dress” of table décor. You can dress it up or down depending on the accessories you use. 

 

Little twig wreaths are so charming when their decorated a bit with fresh greenery. I’ve had these wreaths for ages, and I simply started by tucking two small sprigs of rosemary at the bottom of each one.  

 

Then, in keeping with the theme of the table, I hot-glued a tiny fern, a cranberry and a fir cone to each wreath. These little wreaths sort of remind me of a fairy garden, which I just love. 

 

In addition, I stamped a vintage looking gift tag with a jolly holiday greeting for each guest. All these items are things that were in my craft drawer. You can see that I used the stamp last year to create these fun Christmas packages for Country Sampler Farmhouse Style magazine. 

 

Looking across the table, you can see the full effect of the place setting, and also catch a glimpse of the vintage cranberry filled tin molds used for tiny votives. 

To start the centerpiece of the table, I set each votive in place to create some movement in direction. I then went in with each individual fern and laid them down all going in the same direction, except for at the front of the table, where I wanted them to drape over the edge a bit. 

 

I rarely make a garland for the table. I like the free-form look of just placing branches or leaves down and filling in as we go along. I also tucked a few pine branches in for a little bit of added texture. The final touch was just to sprinkle some of those tiny pinecones along the top of the greenery. 

 

Here you can see all my paperwhites starting to pop. Hopefully, they’ll be blooming for Christmas! 

 

This huge white tureen is a new find from the thrift store. On one of my few outings to a small thrift store near my house, I spotted this beauty and new it would look amazing potted with paperwhites this winter. Best of all, it was marked ½ price! 

 

A couple more thrift shop finds are filled with paperwhites here. This hand-knit towel by Miss G Handmade is another one of my new favorite finds. 

 

My favorite kinds of tables are high-low tables. I find it so interesting to mix high end pieces with interesting vintage finds or heirloom family pieces.  

 

Here at this table, the “fancy” elements are these pretty linen Eloquence napkins by Fete Home, the Serena & Lily round raffia placemats, and the La Rochere glasses. 

 

The black bamboo flatware was a Laguna Beach estate sale find last December. I just love this set! 

 

Expensive candles often come in interesting glass vessels, and it’s a pity throwing them away, so here I’ve repurposed two clear glass ones and filled them with cranberries and  tiny votives.  

 

These large rusty star charms were a recent find on Amazon. I just knew they’d add that next level of texture and patina to this year’s Christmas. Just use jute twine to tie them on.

 

These fun little vintage tin molds are an ebay find.

A fun and festive burlap “Merry Christmas” ribbon is draped across the front of the table. It can be found here, on Amazon.

Nature is always a pleasant addition to any home at Christmastime. You don't need to look far for inspiration. A few branches from your yard or an evergreen bundle from the grocery store are great starts to something special that you can create!  

So that completes my tour of my nature inspired Christmas tablescape. Please join my friends Annie, Cindy, Mary Ann, Kelly, Kelley and Debra for a look at their lovely holiday décor. 

Follow along with us on instagram today with the hashtag   #christmasinspiredbynature   

ciao! fabiana   

 

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