Choosing your Thanksgiving table decor is a big part of the holiday tradition — but it can get pricey fast! Thankfully, it’s easy to toss together DIY table centerpiece ideas that are beautiful and affordable. All you need: a few basic around-the-house craft supplies and a handful of supermarket blooms or fresh backyard finds. Here, we tapped floral and DIY pros for 10 homemade centerpiece ideas — from chic blooming pumpkins to floating floral ‘ponds’ — that are guaranteed to impress your crowd and dress up your holiday tabletop without breaking the bank. Keep reading for all the festive how-to’s and quick tips!
1. Gorgeous autumnal centerpiece
“Fall gifts us with an abundance of beautiful flowers in various textures,” says Jeannine Rose of SweetHumbleHome.com. “And creating floral accents is a simple way to dress up a Thanksgiving table! Here, a rustic crate bursts with a mix of fall florals and foliage.” To do: Place a bowl filled with soaked floral foam into a wooden crate, then cut a few handfuls of fall blooms and insert stems into foam, forming a lush base. Tuck in leaves and berries. For extra flair, pop a skewer into a lemon and press into foam.
2. Rustic-chic blooming pumpkin
For a warm seasonal welcome, think outside the vase and showcase a posy-filled pumpkin on a front porch or entry table. Holiday visitors will delight over this pretty display! “Here, blooms and berries in a surprising purple to golden color palette combine for a vibrant look with layers of textural interest,” says floral pro Beth Savidge of Beth’s Flower Boutique in Pennsylvania. “And the pumpkin ‘vase’ enhances the fall feel. It’s a lovely display for any tabletop!”
To do: Slice off the top third of a 5″-tall pumpkin; scoop out the pulp. Set a piece of cut-to-fit soaked floral foam in the pumpkin. Snip 16 yellow and purple dahlias, 6 purple roses and handfuls of berry and greenery branches to 8″ to 10″. Insert blooms into foam one by one, crisscrossing stems to form a halo shape; tuck in branches. Press skewer into pumpkin lid for support; nestle lid into center.
3. Cheery-meets-casual seasonal vignette
Clustering a couple of autumnal bouquets in kitchen pitchers and placing gourds nearby creates a farmhouse-chic Thanksgiving vignette — it’s ideal for a buffet, dining table or console! To do: First, pick up seasonal blooms (like sunflowers or mums) and any year-round floral classics in warm hues (like yellow or orange gerbera daisies) from the supermarket or farmstand. Next, fill two white pitchers with water; insert blooms, alternating colors as you go. Display vases alongside two to three petite pumpkins in orange and ecru hues. Have any broken blooms? Simply float them in ramekins or mini buckets from the craft store and place near the pitchers and gourds on the tabletop.
4. Simply stunning pumpkin posy
Elevate the elegance of your Thanksgiving feast with a surprisingly impressive pumpkin centerpiece! “Pumpkins and gourds quintessentially represent fall, harvests and Thanksgiving,” says Althea Wiles, owner of Rose of Sharon Floral Design Studio in Fayetteville, Arkansas. “You can carve a pumpkin, remove the seeds and use the pumpkin as the container.” To make this bouquet: Set a large water-filled glass inside a pumpkin with the pumpkin’s top, pulp and seeds removed. Add 12 dahlias of various colors to the glass, then tuck in colorful autumn leaves, acorns and eucalyptus leaves. Optional: Press a few small apples onto wooden kitchen skewers and insert into the glass. To finish, place pumpkin on a weaved charger and place in center of tabletop. Surround with a few gourds and berry bunches.
5. Festive floral “ponds”
Looking f table centerpiece ideas that don’t include a bouquet? Add mesmerizing movement and autumnal beauty to any surface in seconds with a simple floral water centerpiece. To do: Fill a trio of different types of glasses (like a stemless wine glass, a classic wine glass and a cordial glass) halfway with water. Place the water-filled glasses together atop a table, clustering glasses somewhat close together. Then, snip a handful of fall blooms (like mums or Gerber daises) to 2 inches and float one to five blossoms in each glass. To finish, add a trio of fresh or faux pumpkins near the glasses and voila — an instantly impressive holiday vignette! (For more table centerpiece ideas and holiday entertaining pointers, check out these Friendsgiving ideas on our sister site.)
6. Beautiful blossoming table “runner”
The key to creating a warm, festive Thanksgiving scene that offers feel-good hue harmony: pairing harvest terra-cotta tones with cool splashes of vintage cobalt blue. Here, burnt-orange blooms, petite pumpkins and rustic chargers lend a comfy contrast to the bold blue table runner, dishes and glassware. That’s all it takes to make a stylish spread that balances laid-back and lively — it’s a perfect place to give thanks! To create the runner: Arrange vintage white candy dishes (or small white pedestal bowls) down the center of the table. Fill each with bright orange mums for a stylish, deconstructed centerpiece.
7. Chic color-soaked bouquet
Even after the leaves have fallen, many bushes and trees bear pretty berries that are the perfect seasonal accent for an arrangement — and this one looks like a work of art! To do: Start by gathering snippets of berries (like Rowan) from the yard (or pick up inexpensive faux bunches from the craft store) and a few leafy branches. Next, place a soaked cut-to-fit piece of floral foam inside a stone vase. Press the stems of the berries and branches into the foam one at a time. Next, add handfuls of yellow, red and pink blooms (like dahlias, mums and roses) into the foam, creating a relaxed, fuss-free shape; display.
8. Floral-kissed pumpkin tray display
All it takes is a trio of real (or faux!) petite pumpkins, a handful of flowers and a tray to create this darling centerpiece. To do: Start by placing a serving tray on top of your dining table, buffet or entryway table. Next, place three petite pumpkins onto the tray. Next, cut the stems off a handful of yellow mums and daisies (you’ll just need the blossoms for this). Affix the blossoms around one pumpkin’s center and the second pumpkin’s stem (as shown above) using hot glue or craft-store glue dots. Glue one larger blossom on the top of the third pumpkin; display.
9. Rustic glowing focal point
Kindle good moods with a twinkling vignette composed of votive candles and woodland extras. To do: Start by clustering four fall-hued LED votive candles. Then, collect handfuls of colorful fall leaves from the yard along with a few berry clusters, pinecones and acorns. Place candles on a flat tray. Add leaves, pinecones and the like around votives on tray. To finish, stack three or four apples nearby along with three petite pumpkins.
10. So-pretty tiered pumpkin arrangement
Guests will be ooh-ing and ahh-ing when they see this dazzling DIY centerpiece featuring pumpkins and seasonal flowers! To make: Slice the bottom and top quarter off of a medium-sized fresh or faux pumpkin to create a flat surface; set on a 10-inch dinner plate. Next, stack a 6-inch dessert plate on top of the pumpkin and add a small pumpkin to the smaller plate. Pour a thin layer of water on each plate, then snip stems of red and white seasonal flowers, like dahlias, chrysanthemums and snapdragons, to 2 to 3 inches and arrange on plates until covered.
A version of this article originally appeared in our print magazine, First For Women.
