go casual with your holiday table. With earthy
colors and nature-inspired embellishments,
this table maintains an easygoing attitude with
square and rectangular plates and decorations.
DASHING DETAILS.
Let fabrics launch the look
and set the m ood of your table,
opposite.
The
place mats’ rough-and-tumble burlaplike fabric
is gussied up w ith a velvety design and w as a
license to mix rugged with refined. If you’re
pinching pennies (and who isn’t at the holidays?),
shop the rem nant piles at fabrics stores.
CENTER OF ATTENTION.
You can enjoy this
showstopping centerpiece,
opposite,
all season.
G roup pillar candles (we used nine) in the
center of the table. Add fake snow to visually
soften the area around the candles. Create a
w reath base by removing the stems from fake
berries with twiggy branches, available at crafts
stores, and loosely braiding the twigs around
the candles. Place a layer of red berries (we
used fresh hypericum ) in the wreath, framing
the candles. Wrap a wide ribbon around the
candle grouping and secure with a straight pin.
NO-SEW SOLUTION.
Easy -make linens,
opposite
and
above left,
drape the table to soften hard
edges w ithout the formality of a tablecloth.
Cut decorator fabric into 18-inch squares. Use
double-stick fusible w eb to hem two opposite
edges of each place mat, and then use it to
embellish the remaining two edges with
lhi-inch-w ide ribbon. The table runner is
a 4-inch-wide w hite satin ribbon.
COVERING YOUR BACK.
Dangling chair-back
wreaths,
above right,
answer the call for casual
holiday cheer. The 3-inch wreaths are a scaled-
dow n version of the centerpiece. Mold real
or fake berry twigs into the desired shape,
or w rap them around a miniature grapevine
wreath. Wrap a ribbon around the top of the
chair several times, securing one loose end
with tape, and tie the w reath to the remaining
loose end.
Best of Christmas Ideas
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