colorful holiday tablescapes

Christmas is a time of year when adults actually get to behave like kids.
it's completely socially acceptable to love cute decor and cute wrapping paper
and watch all kinds of cute, animated movies and tv specials.

let's just take that idea and use it to fuel our imaginations
when it comes to creating a merry and bright tablescape!

it doesn't take much work - and the results are like Candyland...

continue reading to see two versions of a colorful tablescape,
along with a few 'table tips'...

with a riot of rainbow-bright color in all of my holiday decor this year,
there was no doubt that the table would be just as happy!

first, i'll show you how the table looks set with individual place settings -
whether you have two or ten, it's an easy task:

a table runner made from repurposed paint chip strips and freezer paper
creates a bright background that livens up the table.

 

mix and match assortments of colorful dishes made each place setting unique -
some of these are plastic, some ceramic. (yep, my white china is in there!)
and ah, if you have kids at the table - maybe skip the ornament in the bowl.
my kids woulda' turned those into airborne weapons in just seconds.

each place setting gets a cute decorated mini stocking,
which holds flatware here - and could also hold the napkin.

 a gift wrapped box and a paper ornament both serve as place markers
(except when i was editing these photos, i forgot to add names to them.... ah, well!)

with the decorated mantel and tree in the background,
the table becomes part of the theme.

now for the second version of this tablescape: a buffet table

the same paint chip runner forms the base of the design.
on the back side, there are paper honeycomb globes and a large plastic ornament,
plus a glass pedestal with a big glass jar filled with vintage ornaments.
honestly, it's just a bunch of colorful stuff i grabbed from my studio!

i didn't load this up with serving dishes, but quite a few could fit.

all of the plates, flatware, napkins, and glasses stay on the front part of the table
to make dishing up and getting everything you need a simple process.

mini stockings serve up flatware perfectly on a buffet -
and a colorful assortment of napkins sport bright napkin rings, made from paint chips.

make it easy for guests to grab n' go!

cute paint chip tags for wine/punch glasses (made like the gift tags were)
help keep drinks in the right hands.

as a serving suggestion for this theme, i used white ceramic platters
that are rectangular with sections...
filling each section with a different color evokes the look of paint chips!
(ornaments stand in for food here - i'm trying not to use edible props LOL) 

speaking of which:

another absolutely over the top idea for this theme is to make paint chip cookies...
something i would totally do IF i had more time. i don't.
so i grabbed these images from Pinterest, with credit to:

upper left & right: if it ship its here blog
lower left: bake at 350 blog
lower right: holly fox on bored panda

yeah, you could just set up a table like this for the kids' table this Christmas,

but don't you think the adults might get a little jealous?! 
have some fun and go for it!

in my next post, i'll share the simple how-to for the paint chip table runner...

links to previous related posts:

colorful gift wrap & tags

rainbow colorized Christmas tree

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