An Exotic Thanksgiving Table Setting

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I love creating a different Thanksgiving table setting each year. In the past I have shared traditional fall table settings with gourds and mini pumpkins, but this year I wanted to do something completely different – especially since this year I cooked global recipes inspired by travel. I wanted the table design to be just as unexpected as some of the food I was preparing, and I was thrilled with the final result.

Flowers are one of the most important elements of a Thanksgiving table setting, and this year I was inspired by the table settings at my friends’ wedding. Instead of placing florals in vases, they were beautifully arranged directly on the table. I loved how modern it looked and decided to do something similar for my Thanksgiving table. I used a combination of amaranth (the big pinkish purple flowers), lisianthus (the greenish white flowers), black calla lilies, and greens to create a centerpiece directly on top of the table.

The bold green and cranberry colors of the flowers were also present in the food on the table. The jewel toned colors seemed fitting for fall, and the unusual flowers and modern style of arranging them were a nice match for a globally inspired menu.

I went to my local florist, A New Leaf, on a mission to find exotic looking florals. Specifically, I loved the idea of replacing charger plates with large leaves. The florist had monstera leaves which worked perfectly as chargers.

I added a few of the lisianthus in small silver votives too. The leaves of the flower have an ombre quality with the color changing from green to white. They were so pretty I wanted show them off.

This year I quickly printed up little menus that I designed using Canva. I had been to an event earlier in the week where they had small menus at each place setting and I thought it would be a nice touch at this Thanksgiving meal because I was serving some nontraditional dishes. It took me just about 15 minutes to type up and print the menus. I didn’t make place cards this year, but you could easily print names on the menus.

What do you think? I think that the table setting is formal yet playful and modern and I had a fun time creating it!

If you want some more inspiration for your Thanksgiving table setting, here are links to previous posts: Gold and White Thanksgiving Tablescape, Succulent and Air Plant Thanksgiving Tablescape, and Easy and Elegant Thanksgiving Tablescape.