Fall Thanksgiving Tablescape On A Budget

Come Fall and into the holiday months we start dolling out money left and right…or so it seems! That got me thinking, what are some ways to host thanksgiving dinner…on a budget? In this post you’ll find some tips I use to host our annual Thanksgiving dinner while keeping cost low and budget-friendly!

Growing up my family didn’t have dinners at the table, not even on holidays. Well, it was usually everyone at the table but my father, who ate in the living room watching television. We also didn’t have nice dishes and decorations, nor did my mother fret about setting the table.

As a young adult my role model was always Martha Stewart for all things home. Unfortunately I was the only one who felt that way which made it difficult to have the holiday tablescapes I dreamed of. Now that I have my own home, the dining room (or gathering room) is central to every entrance into our home and it has become the hub of all our gatherings.

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While my tablescapes’ may not always be Martha Stewart perfect, I do try to at least make them charming. The easiest way to do that is by using my favorite dishes, a few accessories and a simple, yet lovely, centerpiece. I just love the simple undertaking of making our table beautiful for guests to gather around.

In fact, until we remodeled our kitchen I had wall words that read “the fondest memories are when gathered around the table”. How very true that is!

My desire to have a great looking table has also led to an obsession with dinnerware. I love collecting new and different patterns, styles and colors, be it for a season or just because the price was right. But my go-to pieces are and will always be my Mikasa French Countryside collection.

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When my husband and I started hosting some holiday gatherings at our home my nieces would always get so excited about decorating and even setting the table. Once my daughter was in the picture, she too loved it…and still does. That’s because when the focus shifts from food preparation to setting the table that means all the excitement will begin soon.

Thanksgiving Tablescape Ideas

This budget-friendly Thanksgiving tablescape is a throwback to 2014 when our walls were gold and I let our daughter help decorate our Thanksgiving table that year. We clearly approached the table setting from different perspectives. But, in fairness, she was only 8 years old at the time.

1

Budget Smart Neutral Dinnerware

The reason I love the Mikasa French Countryside stoneware and glassware is because it compliments everything. The cream colored base is so subtle it’s almost white and that neutral color is the perfect base to mix with any pattern or color for holidays, birthdays or just about any occasion.

I also love the Mikasa dinnerware for its’ scalloped edges which to me have a feminine nod. So even though this was a kid friendly table setting, this beautiful dinnerware still gave it that little touch of style and gracefulness (without the price tag of real china!).

Tip #1: Be sure to get a set of neutral dinnerware that you can pair with any seasonal holiday plate or accents.

Using our Mikasa glassware always made the kids feel super special too. They were always extra careful with the glasses; but I will not lie, I did cringe a few times.

2

Budget Friendly Holiday Salad Plates

What made this table ready for Thanksgiving were these adorable turkey and pumpkin salad plates. They were the perfect solution that complemented what I already had without breaking the budget. It was actually my husband who found these salad plates on sale at Walmart. He ended up getting them for $ .25 each!

Changing out salad plates is the easiest and quickest way to update your existing dinnerware for the perfect holiday tablescape. See how effortlessly the creamy white color of our Mikasa dinnerware pairs with the autumn salad plates. That meant I didn’t need to have a whole other Thanksgiving dinnerware set that I’d have to store.

Tip #2: Find some budget-friendly holiday salad plates to pair with your existing neutral dinnerware and you’ve just save money not buying a whole new set of dinnerware!

Somehow during all my pre-holiday dinner planning, I didn’t even think of a tablecloth. So to protect the table I went super casual and pulled out our red and white rooster tablecloth. At least the color went with the season and it did have orange stripes in it. Sometimes during holidays, good enough is, well…good enough!

Looking back at these pictures I have no idea why two place settings didn’t have a dinner plate under the salad plate!

3

Get Kids Involved

For this holiday dinner my daughter, who is pretty crafty herself, decided to make everyone turkey napkin holders. Aren’t they adorable?! She also made the tom turkey napkin holder, at school I believe. We still have that napkin holder today and we still put it out at Thanksgiving.

One of the best ideas you can incorporate for a budget friendly holiday dinner gathering is to get your kids involved. Have them get crafty and make something for the table or guests.

Tip #3: Get kids involved in creating the decorations for the holiday table.

I’m reminded of another time where my daughter made a “thankful tree”. She had collected a branch from outside, used a can to hold the branch and then cut out paper leaves for everyone to write something they were grateful for. It was a great idea and I was even surprised when my father participated in the activity.

We even incorporate our dog, Lucy, in the coordinated decorations. She was represented with her own red-topped jar of dog treats. Although she did not get a paper turkey place setting at the table.

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Were you inspired by this budget friendly tablescape?

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