Kara Williams is a Pacific Northwest wife, mom and interior designer. She is passionate about gardening, DIY projects, holiday decor of all sorts and adores putting together a beautiful tablescape for her family and friends. She shares her simple steps for creating your own table worth talking about!
Autumn Al Fresco
A seasonal recipe for a transitionary tablescape
Greetings And Warm Fall Wishes!
A couple of days ago, I took a single step into my yard and heard that crispy, unmistakable crunching sound beneath my feet—the very first leaf of fall!
Autumn has always brought with it a certain romance and magic. And as the fall season saturates our world in its signature cornucopia of colors, I am filled with inspiration to create alluring autumn atmospheres for my family and friends to enjoy. And you guessed it—some of that inspiration has led me to create an autumn tablescape!
But celebrating the transition into fall is about much more than simply setting a table and making it look pretty. Fall is a season defined by togetherness, coziness, and hospitality. So it’s essential that these feelings shine through in the mood and ambience of your tablescape.
Today, I will share my “secret recipe” for an outdoor autumn tablescape where you can taste the crisp fall air and gaze upon nature’s beauty with your guests!
3 Ingredients for a Warm and Welcoming Autumn Tablescape
Step 1: Establish the base
Creating a nuanced and unique tablescape can feel intimidating, but it’s always best to start from the bottom and work your way up! The base layer will be the guide for the overall color and mood of your tablescape. Choosing table runners, placemats, and even the positioning of your table will all help you to cultivate a cozy autumn space.
I chose to use a navy blue table runner for a dark background to build my autumn colors upon, as well as some straw placemats that would later be echoed in the centerpiece.
Step 2: Adding your place settings
With your base layer established, it’s time to make some design decisions on the style of your place settings. After all, what’s an autumn tablescape without guests to sit around it and enjoy a meal together?
In this step, you’ll want to choose your dishes, glassware, flatware, and napkins—All the essentials! I chose to use a mix of both new and vintage dishes for my tablescape. Layering different styles of dishes is a fun way to create harmony among colors and design a unique fall ambience. Also, make sure to choose stemware that couples well with your dishes. In this case, I liked how my pressed glass stemware balanced with the vintage dishes.
Step 3: Complete it with your centerpiece and finishing touches
Time to take everything and pull it all together! The right centerpiece and finishes can transform an ordinary fall tablescape into a distinctive autumn scene that will give your guests all the warm, fall feels!
In this step, you’re fully licensed to exercise your creativity and use decor that resonates with you. One tip, the generous use of candles will help you create the utmost cozy fall table.
I’ve also chosen to echo the spirit of an autumn harvest by using foods and fruits for decor. The rustic Italian loaf, pears, and grapes look good enough to eat… because they are edible!
In this autumn tablescape, my centerpiece is a large wooden vintage vessel with fall stems—celebrating the first crunchy leaf that set my inspiration into motion.
A Season of Gratitude
With a Hint of Pumpkin Spice
By following this recipe, your outdoor autumn tablescape will be sure to inspire feelings of warmth and unity among your guests. It’s a time of the year to celebrate all that we have to be grateful for in our lives, and that includes each other!
I hope that your autumn season is abundant with nature’s beauty, comforting food, joyful memories with friends, and yes… even a little pumpkin spice!
From my family to yours, I wish you an autumn of awe!
Warm regards,
-Kara
To see more of Kara’s creativity visit her on Instagram.
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