'Tis the Season to Sparkle (Holiday Tablescape)

A big chunk of my happy childhood memories are those associated with festive celebrations. Maybe it was because we had family and friends over.....extra attention was paid to decor......there was shopping for clothes involved.......or the simple fact that good food and a special spread was the order of the day. When it came to Christmas and food, my mom and nani would make the most delicious Christmas  delicacies, starting with the fruit cake, mazipans, cookies and kal kals to just name a few of my absolute favorites. While mom and nani would toil it out in the kitchen, my sister and I would be incharge of the holiday decorating. We would have fun experimenting and decorating the place to our hearts content.  Oh ! How I wish I could turn back time.......

Fast forward to today.....I do indulge in baking but nothing as fancy as back then. It's hard not to get caught up in the Christmas spirit around you. I try to make it special for my family in my own little way. I always prepare a special home cooked meal and enjoy it in a festive setting with my loved ones. The effort is so worthwhile when I see that my son is busy building his set of happy memories.......

But given today's time constraints, it does seem like a huge effort to be able to pull off something like this. My luxe tablescape looks like a lot of effort went into it but there lies the catch. 

Looking at your holiday decor through a new set of eyes always helps.....finding innovative ways to use what you have is the name of the game. This year my holiday seasonal swag found a new place to decorate. No, not the mantel above the fireplace or my stairway. It was placed along the length of my formal dining table to add to my Christmas Tablescape. I decided on working with the cream and brown color palette with gold and red thrown in for the luxe effect.  

You'll are familiar with my festive table runner. Like I've said before, investing in a neutral table runner always helps as you can change the other design elements and have a whole new look every single time. Neutral colored placemats sporting an almost herring bone like pattern in gold were pulled out from storage. Mixed it with my everyday plates and boom, things started to look good. A few special touches like the jeweled ornate candleholder with its antique gold finish and airy quality adds a timeless elegance to the setting....The new addition to my home this Christmas were these gorgeous looking colored crystal stemware. In shades of red, they bring in the much needed punch of color to the tablescape and break up the neutral color palette. 

Seasonal sprays find a whole new innovative use. Fresh flowers were swapped for a few light gold and antique pearl berry spray picks that were tucked into a crystal vase. I love how it turned out. Little boxes of my favorite chocolates have been gift wrapped and placed on each place setting to add that extra special touch.

And now for one final look:

Wishing you a wonderful and fun filled Christmas !!!

Images: Clicked by Sruthi Singh. Please do not use without prior written permission. 

Images are the property of Sruthi Singh and subject to copyright.