I’m a Canadian girl and so I celebrate Thanksgiving the second Sunday in October every year. I often feel like Thanksgiving sneaks up on me in the middle of fall, but either way, I love when the Canadian holiday arrives! Thanksgiving always arrives when the leaves have changed, but not yet fallen to the ground and we’ve only had a few frosts (okay, usually – sometimes we’ve had snow by now!).

My Simple Thanksgiving Table

I don’t love a fussy table and I seldom use a tablecloth (maybe for Christmas?). I have a live-edge dining room table and the holidays offer a time to use it as a natural backdrop for décor. Here’s how I decorated my Thanksgiving table this year:

Limited Linens

I used a simple table runner rather than a tablecloth or placemats. The warmth of the off-white and the soft grey border with hints of silver thread throughout add a touch of warmth and elegance to the table. I find that a runner gives me a defined space to work with. I also found some great wood-patterned napkins that play off of the natural theme as well.

Fresh Flowers & Natural Elements

I put a bouquet of sunflowers in a ceramic pitcher to add a casual farmhouse touch. After all, Thanksgiving is really a harvest celebration! I don’t like to get too fussy with floral arrangements or have anything too tall that blocks the view of my guests.

These mini white pumpkins were sourced from a local grocery store, as was the bouquet of coloured corn that can be seen on the buffet cabinet that houses the bar. I wasn’t ready for the orange hued pumpkins that we see around Halloween, so these white ones were the perfect find! They’re natural, low profile, and easily re-useable in my Halloween decor in a few weeks!

Simple Dishes & Serving Platters

I always use white dishes. I love a clean a simple backdrop for a meal and I love that the white dishes let the other table elements shine. These plates and flatware are actually our everyday-use items. I see no need to store and save items for special occasions only.

For large meals I always include a salad plate to give guests some extra space for greens and breads. If you’re serving soup to start, you can just stack that bowl right on top of the plates! Just like my plates, I love white serving dishes, too. I love how “fall” this stoneware serving dish feels, and it’s large lip keep sauces from dripping.

Keep It Simple

I like to keep my holiday décor simple whenever I can. Keep in mind that if you have too many “seasonal” items, you are going to have to have somewhere to store them all. The only additions I made to my regular dishes, flatware and serveware to make this feel like a Thanksgiving table are the live flowers and mini pumpkins. I love to add fresh items where I can and these work for multiple holidays and are compostable so they create little to no waste.

Happy Thanksgiving!!! xoxo

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