It’s almost Christmas, a time when the budget is running out but entertainment expectations are not. This chic and fun table decoration will impress your guests without the financial bitterness.
If you’re having a Christmas lunch these days, don’t spend a fortune on Christmas table decorations in an effort to impress your guests.
You can create a rustic Christmas centerpiece from just $ 50 (depending on what you have at home), never going over $ 100.
Watch the video above for our step-by-step guide to creating the perfect Christmas table decorations – table decor that you can adapt and reuse for many occasions.
The perfect table decorations for an Australian Christmas
What you will need:
- White sheet ($ 13)
- Butcher paper ($ 4)
- Jute squares ($ 10)
- Crockery, cutlery, glassware, towels (clean)
- LED wire lights ($ 8)
- Greenery (free)
- Candles and Hurricanes ($ 38)
- Balls, coupons ($ 22)
- Rosemary sprigs ($ 4)
- Optional: flowers
Total = $ 99
EDITOR’S NOTE: If you already have a few of these items in the house, then you are looking only $ 52 to create the whole.
This takes into account the use of an existing leaf, last year’s balls, and any pots or vases in the house (instead of buying hurricanes).
Do you like the house? You can stay there and other unique homes via Airbnb.
First step: set the table
This style hack is courtesy of Renovation Queen and former Blockhead, Georgia Caceres: Use a white sheet for the tablecloth. It might sound odd, but white makes a perfect base for any color scheme you choose, and linens are much more economical than tablecloths.
If you’d rather not use a used one at home, buy one from Spotlight, Big W, or Target for as little as $ 13.
Then place brown butcher paper in the center as a rustic table runner. You can easily buy rolls at any craft store for around $ 4 a roll.
Make sure you measure enough so that your butcher’s paper falls to the floor, which helps create some drama.
Advice: If the budget isn’t strict, you can buy a roll of burlap to use as a treadmill, which looks tightly knotted at each end close to the floor. If you do this, in step two, use alternative doilies (like linen or rattan).
Step two: add your settings
Laying out burlap squares as place mats adds to the rustic feel, works wonderfully with greenery, and provides a neutral base for any color.
It also means you don’t have to worry about finding matching crockery, cutlery, and glassware – use what you have at home. Rustic means looking great without needing to be streamlined and polished.
Step three: turn it on
Arranging copper wire LED lights along the runner as a sort of sparkling base will provide nice little pockets of light through the greenery.
You can add extra lights later if you want a super glittery effect; just thread carefully and work your way through the greenery and candles with the malleable yarn, where you want the points of light.
Fourth step: greenery
Add greenery as a base for Christmas decorations. Save money by using what you have in the backyard or garden, or ask the neighbors!
If you have to buy, then party with magnolia leaves, but our choice is to use the beautiful natives of Australia, like eucalyptus.
Advice: Local markets usually have fresh greenery at a lower price than florists.
Fifth step: height and more light
It’s not Christmas without candles.
This is where you’ll add layers of height, with hurricanes and candles – we used a 12 pack of glass candles for just $ 6, plus a few pillar candles for the height (the medium ones cost $ 2 each, and a larger one is $ 4).
The brass hurricanes were madness at $ 12 each, but if you have jars of varying heights around the house or two medium-sized glass vases, they would work just as well – and wouldn’t cost you a dime.
Sixth step: festive add-ons
Now is the time for festive and fun decorations like candies, balls and napkins with sprigs of rosemary (we bought two for $ 4 at Woolies).
Advice: A nifty trick is to remove the strings from the burlap squares and use them as ties around the bottom of the rosemary.
Pick Your Christmas Color Palette: We love a tone-on-tone look, so we’ve kept the hues of our gold, silver, and brass candy and baubles.
Silver and metallic tones pair beautifully with eucalyptus, as the leaves of the plant shed a bit of silvery gray.
Advice: Add pops of color with the flowers you love. We used native, kangaroo paws, which have pops of Christmas yellow and red, to complement the native greenery.
You can work in colorful balls in a color similar to the flowers you choose to create a cohesive, tonal look.
For example, if you want rose gold and champagne balls, pair them with flowers in pink tones like proteas.
All that’s left to do?
-Light all your candles and enjoy your manual work.
– Gladly accept all praise once guests have arrived.
The best part is that this setting can be used for any special occasion – just change the add-ons in step six depending on the event or celebration.
The beautiful house in the video was found through Airbnb in Sydney which is the best place to find unique stays in any destination.
