A Gatherer's Christmas Table

For Christmas dinner with my step-dad, I decided to go with a more traditional and masculine theme than the candy-theme I had done for my mother last week.

I envisioned something with traditional reds and golds mixed with plaid, and natural elements to add fragrance and texture.

Unfortunately, with the car and dishwasher needing to be replaced at the same time we were buying all the Christmas presents, my budget was ZERO!

So, I got creative, grabbed the wood saw and clippers and hit the back yard!

I started setting the room up with some pine and yew branches in these pots that held tomato plants over the summer.


Then I added some greenery (faux) to the window and buffet. It contrasted well with the red curtains and runner I'd used last week.


To add the green to the french door side of the room I hung this wreath from the curtain rod.


And in the corner I swapped out the usual silver branches in the vase for some white pine branches. You may also recognize the tiered server in the corner as last week's centerpiece!


I am VERY pleased with the way the centerpiece turned out.


My foray into lumber-jack-hood resulted in this lovely broken down pile of logs:


Which I cleaned off a bit, piled up, screwed together and drilled some 1 1/2 inch holes into...
And VOILA! Lovely rustic centerpiece!


To find an appropriate runner, I once again ransacked the closets, and came up with these two plaid wool scarves. (One covers almost the whole length of the table, the other- which is very close in color- is just under the last place setting.)


I would have preferred a red linen cloth to keep with the natural look, but you know, workin' with what I've got!

I kept the place settings simple since we really only needed dinner plates for the shepherd's pie, spiced carrots, salad and biscuits. (I know, could have used salad plates and bread and butter plates, but with 8 people that would have gotten a little crowded!)


The plates are Holly Holiday (from my sister, not sure where they were purchased.) Napkins are from Target last year (after Christmas sale!), and the gold flatware was a wedding gift. On top I placed the festive green crackers to add a little more green to the red-heavy table. I left glasses off since I planned to hand out beverages with the appetizers in the kitchen.


Gold sparkle came in with my trusty mosaic candles from Christmas Tree Shop, the foil on the poinsettias (they're faux, for the cats' safety!), and that fun gold reindeer on the buffet from TJMaxx.

All in all I was incredibly pleased with how it all came out. This was definitely one of those rare instances when the results more than met that ever-elusive picture in my head!

And the best part of all?

Seeing everyone sitting at it looking so happy!

Happy Holiday and Fortuitous New Year to everyone over a Susan's Tablescape Thursday!