Thanksgiving can be a joyful time of year, looking forward to reconnecting with family and friends, and giving thanks for all that we have. But let’s be honest. It can be stressful. This year, let’s try not to set impossibly high standards for ourselves, and keep things simple. To help you achieve this, we’ve pulled together a variety of budget-friendly Thanksgiving centerpieces, with easy instructions, that will allow you to keep your focus on family and gratitude.
Burnished Copper and Blue
Copper is a perfect fall color. For this arrangement, I used a copper kitchen bowl, and filled it with copper-colored flowers, including burnished hydrangea, faded pink roses, and filled in with other pinky-brown blossoms. Oh, the flowers are all silk, and I pulled them from an old arrangement.
Not all centerpieces have to sit on your dining table. The arrangement above sits on the dining room sideboard, and it’s simplicity itself. Copper is a neutral, which means it works with all colors, including the Spode Blue Room dishes.
How To:
- Place floral foam in the base of your container if you’re using faux flowers, or a frog if you’re using real flowers. Insert the largest blossoms first, in my case, I placed three large hydrangea blossoms. Be sure they are the same height. If you’re using a bowl like I did, you’ll want to achieve a domed effect.
- Fill in spaces with smaller blossoms or sage green foliage, covering the lip of the bowl. Remember, you’re going for a rounded shape.
- Loosely place seeded eucalyptus on the sideboard to soften the base of the arrangement.
- Place votives among the eucalyptus.
Blue, White, and Orange
Whenever possible, you should use what you have on hand. Since I recently inherited a set of Imari dishes (thanks, mom) and already had the orange plaid blanket, I used both in an orange, blue, and white scheme, a perfect fall color combination.
I foraged in my yard for fallen oak leaves and used mini pumpkins and squash leftover from Halloween decorations.
How To:
- Turn the blanket into a runner by folding it in thirds and placing it down the center of your table.
- Place a large white pumpkin in the center of the runner. Set large blue squash in a loose zigzag pattern on each side, decreasing in size as you move away from the center.
- Scatter white mini pumpkins randomly down the length of the runner.
- Fill in with votives; I placed pewter pheasants toward the ends of the arrangement because their silver-grey color worked with the theme.
- Scatter oak or other leaves among the squash in a loose zigzag pattern.
Simple, Soft Blues
Natural, elegant, and inexpensive, the centerpiece above can be achieved with almost no effort. This look is perfect if you want to draw attention to your china, and keep the rest of the table simple.
How To:
- Purchase floral seeded eucalyptus or forage other soft blue-green foliage. Lay it in a loose zigzag pattern down the middle of the table.
- Place a white pumpkin in the center of the table. Set blue squash in decreasing size down the middle of the table.
- Fill in with votive candles.
Harvest Cornucopia
For the last centerpiece, I was inspired by the cornucopias my mother used to create when I was a child. This was a super easy centerpiece to make.
A tiny confession: I did run to the grocery for some of the produce. Most I already had in my kitchen.
Cornucopias can contain anything you wish. I styled mine after the holiday gift baskets that my parents used to give and receive. Remember them? They came wrapped in colored cellophane, bursting with citrus fruit, apples, pears, nuts, pomegranate, and other seasonal foods. I added artichoke to mine because of its amazing texture, and eggplant for it’s rich color.
Remember how I said that centerpieces didn’t have to be on the dining table? This one is a bit more elaborate, larger in size, and I wanted to place it where it would set a luxurious tone for the whole house. The piano makes a perfect base, and the bookcase creates a background of rich color and texture. The result is a still life that’s very pleasing.
How To:
- Select a tray for the base so your cornucopia will overflow with fruit and vegetables. You’re going for abundance, so you need more produce than will fit neatly inside of the cornucopia.
- Load fruit into the back of the cornucopia, reserving the most special pieces for display on top. If you can find tangerines with leaves attached, grab them for their just-picked appeal.
- Place produce so that it spills out of the cornucopia onto the tray.
- Tuck bunches of wheat randomly among the produce, and place richly detailed candlesticks around the tray.
- If you want to use this centerpiece on your dining table, eliminate the tray and let the fruit spill onto the table. Intermix votive candles with the fruit.
One of my best hostess tricks is to place a drinks tray in my bookcase. Guests can serve themselves wine or simple mixed drinks in a place that’s well apart from my busy kitchen. This centerpiece draws guests’ attention right to the drinks!
More Resources
Check our our Pinterest boards where we’ve pulled together ideas for easy Thanksgiving side dishes. And you’ll see tons more ideas for setting a spectacular Thanksgiving table.
Regardless of whether you host Thanksgiving dinner, create a special centerpiece to hail the season. It will elevate weeknight dinners, make dinner parties special, and put you in a holiday spirit. Happy Thanksgiving!
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