My Christmas House: Christmas Tables on a Budget

Family Christmas Table

Truth be told, our family would probably be happy eating off paper plates, but I believe a beautiful table elevates the occasion to something extra special. But who says all your china has to match? Jackie Kennedy was famous for mixing old pieces together at state dinners, and I subscribe to the practice for my Christmas tables.

My husband had eight Christmas dish settings when we married. To accomdate our growing family, I found similar pieces at a thrift store. Likewise, my first Frosty Pines stemware pieces came from buying Arby's sandwiches. The rest? Thrift stores. All combined, they make up what I call my "Family Christmas Table."

Sometimes I like to pull out all the stops for a more adult-oriented meal. Again I rely on thrifty shopping to carry it off. I bought the chair covers at an after-Christmas sale. The deer centerpieces came from a thrift shop which are surrounded with angel hair and papery silver dollar stems. The cloth napkins are tied with gold-colored rope I purchased by the yard at the fabric store..

Formal Christmas Table

​Some nice china pieces had been passed down to me, but I was missing dinner plates. I found inexpensive gold-rimmed plates at...say it with me...a thrift shop. (Just once I had a guest turn her plate over to inspect its maker. Need I explain why she will not be invited back?) The gold rims on the Frosty Pines stemware coordinate beautifully too. 

So my point is, if you take what you have and display it as if it's something special, you'll be pleased and surprised at the results, and so will your guests.

from Home of the Heart, Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays.
Linda