*updated November 7, 2020

A little unknown fact about me is that I get absolutely beside myself with anxiety over hosting dinner guests. Some of my closest friends are the most incredible hosts, but the crowd I run with does not influence my hostess with the mostest skills. I love to cook and I love to decorate, but putting those two things together with an audience makes me so nervous. I just can’t do it. What I can do is offer you a few ideas for Simple Thanksgiving Tablescapes for the event you host in your home. You know what they say, those who can, do; those who can’t, teach. So I’m here to teach you that even Minimalists, like myself, can set a Thanksgiving tablescape that will be as drool worthy as Grandma’s sweet potato pie.

When I created this post (orginally a couple of years ago) the intent was to help my friends accomplish peace and happiness in their home by evaluating which of their belongings fulfilled a need or want and letting go of the rest. For myself, I so desperately wanted life to be more simple than the chaos I felt consumed with during the early childhood raising years. I found the answer to all of my problems was that I was putting myself in charge of too many things; physically, mentally, and emotionally. When I learned how to let go of the things in my life that didn’t provide a positive outcome, I was finally able to breathe, relax, and spend time on the things that truly mattered. Talk about thankfulness. You can bet, sister, I am full of gratitude. Now, I have the simple life that I so craved. And I can appreciate all its beauty and reflect that in my home by creating simple beautiful spaces. As such, here are ways to create Simple Thanksgiving Tablescapes.

Simple Thanksgiving Tablescape | The Blue Gourd

Of all of the tablescapes I created for this post, this one is probably my favorite. Closely ranked with the next one and the one after that and so on and so forth. This one seems to be the most easy going. With a bit of a monochromatic scheme supported by the blue gourd, the blueish gray ticking cloth, and the blue-green greenery, this table draws your eye from one end of the table and back again never finding anything unsettling.

My antique library table is 8 feet long and with the small chairs, I can (not that I’ve ever tried) fit 8 guests. So, for the purpose of this post I chose to dress the table with eight settings. For the Blue Gourd setting however, I was not able to find eight chargers, but no worry. If you find yourself without enough chargers, simply stagger them instead.

To recreate this look you’ll need:

Butcher paper

A strip of ticking cloth (like this runner from Hobby Lobby)

4 (if you can find 8…great) bronze charger plates

A 6ft piece of greenery of your choice

8 silver lined dinner plates

8 silver lined salad Plates

Set of 8: knife, dinner fork, and salad fork

8 water goblets

8 tumblers

1 blue gourd

Simple Thanksgiving Tablescape | The Butcher and the Baker

This Simple Thanksgiving Tablescape is the best option for amateurs. The centerpiece decor can be put together from your own backyard, pantry, or grocer. I love all of the pops of color that this tablescape provides. From the green branches to the bright red apples to the black serving bowl.

To recreate this Simple Thanksgiving Tablescape you need:

“Gather” Lazy Susan from Hobby Lobby

Black serving bowl

A large bag of apples of choice (eat them later)

A set of 3 black candelabras to tie in to the “gather”and bowl

3 white candle sticks of varying sizes

8 silver lined salad plates

8 silver lined dinner plates

Set of 8: knife, dinner fork, salad fork

8 water goblets

8 tumblers

Butcher paper

Simple Thanksgiving Tablescape | The Farmhouse Spread

This Simple Thanksgiving Tablescape is for my farmhouse loving friends. What screams farmhouse more than plaid? Galvanized tin? Reclaimed furniture? You tell me. I had you in mind, Fixer Upper Lovers when I created this tablescape.

To recreate the Simple Thanksgiving Tablescape you need:

A plaid tablecloth (like this one I found in bright orange)

A wooden boat (sorry are these called boats?)

8 creamy white charger plates

4 white candles (or as many as you choose for your “boat”)

Fall pick (this is the twig that I have placed on the plates). I purchased 3 of these picks and cut them to have enough for each plate

8 gold rimmed salad plates

8 gold rimmed dinner plates

Set of 8: knife, dinner fork, salad fork

8 water goblets

8 tumblers

Butcher paper

Simple Thanksgiving Tablescape | The Driftwood

It’s easy to see that I love to use items found in nature to don my seasonal table. If you’re lucky, you could find all of the greenery or fall picks from your own backyard. With this Simple Thanksgiving Tablescape, I walked around a lake to find some pieces of driftwood with character to use as my centerpiece. The weathered logs pick up the colors of gold in my tablecloth and I love the contrast of the blue charger plates with the orange of the pumpkins.

To recreate this Simple Thanksgiving Tablescape you need:

Tablecloth (look for one with white, gold, and orange)

8 turquoise charger plates

A Bundle of the coolest twigs and branches you can find. Score double for driftwood.

Small pumpkins (I used Pie Pumpkins)

8 gold rimmed salad plates

8 gold rimmed dinner plates

Set of 8: knife, dinner fork, salad fork

8 water goblets

8 tumblers

Butcher paper

The beauty of all of these Simple Thanksgiving Tablescapes is that you can dress them up or dress them down by removing or adding the formal pieces. Feeling casual? Switch out the china for your everyday dinner dishes and skip the crystal. Need something fanicer? Add napkins, placecards, and coffee service.

How do you plan your Thanksgiving Table? How many guests are you expecting?