Decorating Your Home for Thanksgiving

Every November, there is a war between people who are ready to start celebrating Christmas and those who fiercely defend the day that stands between Halloween and the official start of the Christmas season in the United States. That day, of course, is Thanksgiving – on the fourth Thursday of November. Whether you put up your tree the moment Halloween is over or can’t hear a note of Michael Buble until Black Friday begins, we can all agree that Thanksgiving is worth preserving in the midst of the yearly decorating debate. In this blog series, A Year of Decorating, we’ve walked through ideas for lots of areas of your home, but, since Thanksgiving as a holiday is centered around the meal that we share with family and friends, this post will include a special emphasis on decorating your table and share ideas for table settings. If you need some inspiration for decorating the rest of your home for fall, check out our last post, which is about just that!

Why We Celebrate Thanksgiving

Every kid in the US has probably grown up acting out the story of Thanksgiving at some point in school. This autumn holiday was first celebrated over a century before our country even officially began. In November of 1621, the small pilgrim colony in Massachusetts Bay invited a tribe of Wampanoag Native Americans to share a feast with them to celebrate the pilgrim’s first successful harvest after a brutal year of struggle. It wasn’t until 1863, however, that Thanksgiving became a national holiday on the order of President Abraham Lincoln during the height of the Civil War, and that was only after a woman named Sarah Josepha Hale had been campaigning for it and publishing articles about it for 36 years! To learn more about the history of this holiday, read this article.

Thanksgiving is known as a day for watching and playing football, eating good food with family, and remembering all the things in our lives that we are thankful for. The holiday is so important in the US that schools are out for several days so that families are able to gather together and celebrate, even though Christmas break comes not long after. Christmas may be the most wonderful time of the year, but Thanksgiving surely shouldn’t be forgotten.

A Thankful Table

If you’ve already decorated your home for autumn, there isn’t much to add when November rolls around, especially if you’re going to someone else’s house for Thanksgiving dinner. On the other hand, if this is your year for hosting, then that’s another story. For most of your house, your main concern will probably be cleanliness rather than decor, but you’re going to want your table to be set and welcoming for your guests. Here are three elements of table decor to think about this Thanksgiving!

Tablecloths or Runners

The first choice to make when it comes to decorating your table for Thanksgiving dinner is what tablecloth or table runner you will have. Tablecloths are a bit more traditional for Thanksgiving, but either will work. It is probably a good idea to choose a tablecloth that has a simple pattern or is a solid color since the table will likely be pretty full of dishes and food. A simpler print will keep the table from being too busy visually and can set the foundation for your other table decor. This red tablecloth from Williams Sonoma is a good example of an elegant pattern that isn’t too loud to look at. There is a broad range of options for Thanksgiving tablecloths, so just pick your favorite! (And remember to opt for a washable or disposable tablecloth if you have a kids table.)

Place Settings

Once you have your tablecloth or runner picked out, it’s time to set the table, and there’s a lot of room for preference and creativity here as well! Dress up your table with seasonal dishes, or take the extra time to fold your napkins in pretty designs (check out these ten ideas from HGTV!). If your Thanksgiving dinner will have assigned seating to combat some of the chaos, try diy-ing your name places by sticking name cards in the tops of dried pinecones. Or try one of these ideas from House Beautiful. (This also might be a good task to delegate to another family member or your kids!)

Centerpieces

Choosing or making a centerpiece for a big meal like Thanksgiving dinner is a lot of fun, but you’ve got to be strategic too! A centerpiece too big might block your guests’ view of one another or get in the way of dishes. An alternative to one main centerpiece is three smaller ‘centerpieces,’ set along the center line of the table. Another option is scattering small decorations along the same line, like you might see on a table runner. These options spread out the decor – still giving the impression of a well-decorated table while not taking up quite as much of your limited table space. Here’s HGTV again with a ton of fun options!

A Bonus Idea

Once your table is ready to go, here’s one additional idea for dressing up your house in a little way for the Thanksgiving season!  With the help of kids or friends, cut out colorful paper leaves and set them out on the kitchen table or somewhere that everyone will pass by frequently. Then, each day of November, write something you’re thankful for and hang up another leaf on a door or window. This is a sweet tradition for your family that doubles as decorating, because by the time you get to Thanksgiving Day, your door, window, or wherever you choose to stick up the leaves will be covered with pretty leaves and sweet reminders to give thanks! 

That’s all for Thanksgiving! The next post in this series will be the last one – Christmas. Make sure to check out that post too for more ideas for making your home as festive and welcoming as it can be!