This edgy Christmas tablescape was a fun one to bring together this season. We decided to break away from the norm of a traditional holiday table setting and mix things up a bit, Akin style! By incorporating a fine balance of dark and light, sharp and smooth, glossy and matte, and natural and man made, we were able to execute a tablescape fit for any hip gathering this holiday season.

Here are a few tips and little sneak peek into our thought process putting this funky setting together!

When decorating any tablescape, it's always a good idea to start with some sort of inspiration; whether that's a favorite object, image, or texture. By doing so, you're settinga precedence for every piece you pick for the table setting, knowing that it needs to fall in line with your inspiration. Even if it's your favorite owl plate set or gold tipped crystal glassware, but doesn't fit your inspiration, you're better off saving it for your next Harry Potter get together. Our inspiration for this table was the large triangular center piece. When shopping at a local store and came across it, we knew we couldn't pass it up! (Let's be honest, we've all been there)

SO! With our inspiration piece selected, the rest of our tablescape started to come together. The gold tipped triangles helped us select my mothers antique gold flatware and water pitcher. A "traditional Christmas tablescape" choice? Perhaps so, but not this round! Balanced with the clean lines of our very favorite minimal ikea white plates and clear glass goblets, that flatware settled into its surroundings quite nicely if I do say so myself.

Every Christmas tablescape... no, EVERY tablescape is not complete without some sort of greenery or living organism (the black and blue steak you're eating does not count). To balance out all of the harsh angles in our inspiration and center piece, we decided to pick a greenery of the season to soften things down a bit. Silver dollar eucalyptus is a favorite of ours. With the eucalyptus serving as our base layer and rich dark linen table runners, we were feeling pretty good about the situation.

After our main pieces and base layers were selected, we incorporated the smaller details of the table that really gave it its unique and hip character.

Golden spikes on your plate? Thanks Target! (Seriously our favorite find of this whole shindig) Something like this could be used as a gift for your guests, or purely for decoration, we'll let you decide on that one.

Steph made the dotted ink name tags which turned out really fun and made sure the whole scene didn't get too serious. We first considered doing a triangular pattern or harsh line pattern on the cards to tie in the centerpiece, but in the end we decided the dots looked best! Plus, who doesn't love a good mix of pattern? Not this guy. With crystal accents in the candlesticks and name card holders for a little flare, this tablescape is ready for dining!

We hope you enjoyed these images and tips, and be sure to look for a new tablescape from us each season, Akin Style ;)

an edgy christmas tablescape