Simple Thanksgiving Ideas

Easy centerpieces, fun watercolor place cards, and affordable ideas for the table. Today I’m sharing lots of simple Thanksgiving ideas to get you ready for the upcoming holiday.

We love Thanksgiving in our home and I’m really excited to enjoy this upcoming holiday with my kids, Luke, and my mom. Even though we host a very intimate Thanksgiving we recognize it as a very special holiday. It’s my mom’s favorite! Luke, coming from England, didn’t start celebrating this holiday before he dated me BUT it is one holiday he looks forward to every year. I already feel like life feels busier, more hectic, and a bit frenetic this season. I thought it would be fun to share a few simple Thanksgiving Ideas if life is feeling a bit hectic at your home, too!

To me Thanksgiving is very much about celebrating time with each other and sharing one of the most delicious meals of the year! I enjoy embracing simple decor options, lovely flowers, woven and natural textures, and easy little DIYs that don’t break the bank.

Mixing Old and New

For our tablescape this year, I’m mixing old silver with ordinary plates and placemats from Ikea. Most years I use china but using ordinary plates I can throw them in the dishwasher making Thanksgiving clean up easier.

I love using a simple woven linen runner that I picked up at a consignment shop so you can still see the reclaimed wood in our table. My husband built me this table a few years ago. You can read more about it here.

Adding Candlelight

Candlelight adds so much to a table. In our Thanksgiving table I’m using a mix of candlelight. Twisting ivory tapers in vintage brass candlesticks. I found those over the summer. I’m also using woven rattan tea light holders (made by Westend Weavers) with battery powered tea lights. I’ve also scattered some white frosted tea lights on the table.

Layering the lighting makes it feel more romantic.

Mix in Nature

I’m using fresh pears in golden hues and rose colors to tie in with my flower selection and watercolor place cards.

I love using what’s in season to set the theme and mood for our gatherings.

The pears were part of a mixed bag from Trader Joe’s which made it so easy! I also scattered some red leaves from our Burning Bushes.

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Pretty Watercolor Place Cards

You guys all know how much I love watercolor paints! I love creating stationery and artwork for our online shop. I know many of you are interested in learning more about watercolor. I’ve shared a few tutorials and I’m really trying to incorporate more and more video tutorials because I think they’re helpful and I also enjoy watching these kinds of videos.

I made this quick little video to share the process of the watercolor place cards:

If you want to make your own place cards here’s what you’ll need:

materials

Watercolor Paper
Watercolor Paint (I used Alizarin Crimson watered-down)
Water
Paint Brush
A hair dryer (to speed up drying time)
Pencil
Micron Pen
A printer (optional)

method

Rip watercolor paper into place card shaped. The deckled edge adds to the painterly effect of the table.
Add a light layer of water with your paint brush and drop in a watered down mix of Alizarin Crimson. You can do any color you like for your color scheme.
Allow to dry. I like to speed it up with a hair dryer.
Find a font you like on the computer and type the names of the people coming to your gathering.
I trace this by hanging up the type-written fonts on our sliding glass door and placing the watercolor place card on top.
Go over the penciled writing with a Micron pen. You can also use a nib, sharpie or brush pen. Really whatever you have is fine.
I recommend erasing the pencil markings after so you don’t see them. I didn’t in these photos because I was trying to capture the tablescape while the lighting was still good.

Simple place setting and watercolor place cards

Simple Thanksgiving Centerpiece

I love using flowers in all my decor! I love creating pretty centerpieces and I really enjoy using unusual vessels. For this centerpiece I’m using an ironstone bowl.

I made a little video of the process:

Materials

Ironstone Bowl or Tureen
Flower Frog
Flowers (I used an assortment from Trader Joe’s)

Protea, baby's breath, berries and eucalyptus

Method

Place clean water in a shallow bowl. I used an antique ironstone bowl.
In the center of the bowl use a flower frog. I collect these and you can find them at flea markets, antique shops or consignment stores.
Cut your stems so no greenery is touching the water (it will last longer)
For something like this, you’ll want to cut your branches fairly short.

For this floral display I’ve added quite a different mix of things – Protea, baby’s breath, berries, evergreen, and eucalyptus. This centerpiece could work for Christmas or any other holiday or gathering.

I love how soft the baby’s breath looks and feels. I’ve incorporated it on the place cards and on our Welsh dresser.

Watercolor placecards and thanksgiving decor

Isn’t it so soft! I also plan on using baby’s breath in some Christmas decorating which we’ll be doing next weekend (after Thanksgiving).

Here’s a few more images of the dining room. I’ll also leave a source list at the bottom of the post (but most of our finds are antiques / vintage).

Styling for a gathering (especially Thanksgiving). I hope you enjoyed reading this post as much as I did creating it. If you’d like more watercolor tutorials or specific styling tips let me know! I’m hoping to share a few more ideas next week for Thanksgiving!