What today’s tablescapes do, more than anything else, is eschew the formalities that have ebbed and flowed through the ages.Brandon Titaro/The Globe and Mail
When it comes to hosting in our visually driven world, the plates you put on the table are just as important as what you put on those plates. And the pressure to get creative doesn’t stop with your dishware. There are flowers, candles and linens to consider, too. Tablescaping – a snazzy term for table setting that implies high-concept flair – has become a way to share family and personal histories, idiosyncratic aesthetic inclinations and sustainably minded approaches to living well with your guests.
Ornate and thoughtful tablescapes have been captured throughout time, from paintings by Henri Matisse (The Dinner Table, 1879) and Hilary Pecis (Tulip Table, 2022) to the table-brags lifestyle influencers and ambitious hosts put on social media. These images tickle our imaginations and transport us to real or wished-for occasions during which we gather in good company – and taste.
What today’s tablescapes do, more than anything else, is eschew the formalities that have ebbed and flowed through the ages. While detailed, they’re not prescriptive and are characterized by the notion that each element is there for amusement and graciousness versus antiquated etiquette. Forget about fretting over which fork goes where and instead ponder where you can procure a blockbuster centrepiece. Contemporary tablescapers seek to emphasize what makes them, and those invited to their home, feel included and special.
“I try not to buy things every time I’m hosting,” says Calgary-based designer and textile innovator Nina Kharey. “But I do make it different, so people always come in and say, ‘Oh, my gosh, I love what you did this year.’” Here, Kharey and two fellow decor enthusiasts from Toronto, Chad Burton and Sydney Stoyan, share their tips for wowing those they welcome to their table for festive occasions.
Chad Burton uses vintage collections and colour to help guests know they have a place at his table
Chad Burton uses vintage collections and colour to help guests know they have a place at his table.Brandon Titaro/The Globe and Mail
“I’m always messing around with things for shoots,” says still life and wardrobe stylist Chad Burton about how his artistic approach to craft translates from professional to personal settings. Sometimes, he’ll cook up a charming table runner and co-ordinating slip covers for festive crackers by using leftover fabric from work projects and sewing on a simple but zippy trim. “I find most crackers are so cheap-looking with designs I’m never very into, so this way I can cover them anyway I like,” he says.
There’s certainly a personalized pulse of eclectic energy to one of Burton’s tablescapes, which typically include sculptural candles held in vessels from travels to places like Mexico City, and an array of British potter Portmeirion’s iconic Greek Key serving ware. “I started collecting it because, when I got married, my sister gave me my grandma’s pieces,” he says of how tradition creeps into the wholly unorthodox scene. Colour and texture anchor Burton’s tablescapes, with linens lusciously draped and mismatched rainbow-hued glassware commanding attention.
Burton anchors his tablescapes with touches of colour and texture.Brandon Titaro/The Globe and Mail
The real pieces de resistance are meant to put you in your place – if only for a little while. “I definitely love a name card,” he says. “You don’t have to end up there at the end of the night, but that’s where you’re going to start; and it makes it feel like you have a space to go to.”
And what better way to be introduced to your seat than by your name handwritten on a matchbook perched on a miniature chair? Burton advocates for such unusual touches to rouse maximum glee from guests. “Anytime I travel to new hotels or eat at new restaurants, I pick up matchsticks,” Burton says. “I also buy a few anytime I go somewhere like Aberfoyle Market – there’s a guy that sells them for five or 10 for a dollar, or something like that. I always love the vintage typography and colour combos. Plus having them folded shut with the name on the inside is like a surprise game of ‘Where am I sitting?’”
Small touches, such as a handwritten name on a matchbook perched on a miniature chair, are sure to rouse maximum glee from guests.Brandon Titaro/The Globe and Mail
Get the look:
Unexpected accent
For a similarly surreal scene, anchor your dining room with a wrought iron stand set with a pastel rainbow of eggs.
Gohar World egg chandelier, US$298 through gohar.world.
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Fruit forward
Available in red, green, blue or yellow, this candle holder captures the auspicious spirit of a pomegranate in clay.
Malaika pomegranate candle holder, US$55 through goodeeworld.com.
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Round off
A placemat that incorporates abstract shapes can switch up the visual rhythm of your setting. - ANDREW SARDONE
Misette colourblock embroidered linen placemats in dark green and sage, $302/set of four through misettetable.com.
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Sydney Stoyan embraces maximalist imperfection in her eclectic dining room
Sydney Stoyan embraces maximalist imperfection in her eclectic dining room.Brandon Titaro/The Globe and Mail
“Style maven Diana Vreeland famously said, ‘the eye has to travel,’ and I have always loved a room with little tableaux and assembled curiosities – quirky bits of beauty that can nourish the senses,” says writer and editor Sydney Stoyan.
A true maximalist, Stoyan highlights Lorraine Kirke’s book, Would You Like to See the House?: Unapologetic Interiors Filled With Color, Verve, Oh And There’s A Door On The Ceiling!, as a key interiors inspiration. Her tablescapes definitely invite ogling thanks to an abundance of charming pieces set against a dark wooden table. Floral-etched vintage wine glasses – “nothing too pricey,” she notes, as “breakage is a part of life” – share space with mismatched stoneware plates by Parisian label Nathalie Lété and contrasting napkins.
“The food is set out family-style on my assortment of floral platters,” Stoyan says. Some are from her late mother, while others were “bought for a few bucks at a flea market up near our cottage on Lake Huron.” She adds: “Mustards and pickles are set out in odd little bowls. Everything clashes, but I hope it’s a happy mess of colour and warmth.” To heighten the offbeat mood, she purchases loose bundles of flowers from neighbourhood spots such as Miss Pippa’s and Willem & Jools and arranges them herself to make use of her ever-growing stash of second-hand vases.
Stoyan uses an abundance of charming pieces set against a dark wooden table.Brandon Titaro/The Globe and Mail
It’s in details like this that Stoyan’s most important advice comes into play. “A friend of mine once reminded me about entertaining that people are just so happy to be there,” she says. “The one thing you mustn’t do is stress out your guests by your own fussing. Be relaxed, be warm and welcoming. People aren’t going to notice if something isn’t perfect.”
Stoyan advises the best approach is to make tablescapes 'relaxed, warm and welcoming'.Brandon Titaro/The Globe and Mail
Get the look:
Uncommon thread
Individual, cross-stitch style motifs of flamingos, peacocks and other playful animals make sure everyone can keep track of their glass.
Menagerie linen cocktail napkins, $114/set of six at Hopson Grace (hopsongrace.com).
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Giving face
Made using recycled glass, this unique vessel can do triple duty as a vase, candle holder or carafe.
La Soufflerie Tete vase, $72 through obakki.com.
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Personal brand
If you don’t know where to start with your table’s decor, a bottle with a bold label can be the jumping-off point for a dinner-party scheme. - A.S.
2021 Pure Imagination Gewürztraminer, Riesling and pinot gris, $35 at Rosewood (rosewoodwine.com).
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Nina Kharey looks to nature to create a serene backdrop for happy get-togethers
Nina Kharey looks to nature to create a serene backdrop for happy get-together.Meghan Baxter/The Globe and Mail
For Nina Kharey, founder of the fashion brand Nonie and medical techwear company Folds Wear Inc., there’s a certain serene harmony that can be cultivated on a holiday table by way of uniting nature, the old and the new.
Known for collecting vegetation and other elements like rocks plucked from the banks of Calgary’s Bow River, which is close to her home, Kharey commits to one stand-out feature and places additional elements with purpose. “I do believe less is more, so minimal is the goal,” she notes. “The runner down the middle of the table is where I start and keep it bold.”
White linens always set the stage for Kharey’s tablescapes – in this case, it’s old fabric from her fashion line’s cache. Here, she looks to local florist Amborella to provide foliage to mix with a focal point of greenery she picked herself. Sometimes, if the mood strikes, she will even add items from her jewellery collection around the table to heighten the drama.
Her subtle dishware is an assemblage of more current items she’s purchased along with silverware and some plates that belonged to her brother, which were given to her after his passing. “I always have candles,” she adds, often using the same style year after year.
White linens always set the stage for Kharey’s tablescapes.Meghan Baxter/The Globe and Mail
A frequent presence on Kharey’s festive dinner tables are small bowls filled with digestive aids such as fennel seeds. “When they’re there, people will use them,” she says of the gesture. “And then they’re happy the next day, too. It’s always about functionality with me nowadays. I always try to have little things for extra comfort, like a tea section where people can make their own chai, or hot chocolate for Christmas. Before, I used to be really into decorating and have themes and now it’s more about, how can I make people feel good?”
Kharey favours subtle dishware is an assemblage of more current items, along with silverware and some plates that belonged to her brother given to her after his passing.Meghan Baxter/The Globe and Mail
Get the look:
Fade away
Contemporary style usually demands cool metallics but the ombré effect of this flatware adds seasonally appropriate warmth.
20-piece Haze two-tone flatware set, $199 at CB2 (cb2.ca).
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Shape shift
Incorporate a bit of texture into all-white dinnerware via pieces with crimped edges or ruffled shapes.
White ruffle 16-inch platter, $59.95 at Crate & Barrel (crateandbarrel.ca).
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In neutral
Tabletop textiles with a rougher hand are a natural backdrop for found florals and other organic elements.
R+D.LAB beige hopsack linen placemats, $180/set of two at Ssense (ssense.com).
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