A Casual Thanksgiving Picnic

Happy Thanksgiving to all! Each year I style a table and try to make it both elaborate and fun. This year at my house, Thanksgiving looks a lot different. Some of you know that I welcomed a second child this summer, and life has been beautiful. Free time is scarce, though, so being thankful has been all about little moments of joy.

On a day when my older daughter was home sick and my parents were kind enough to watch the baby, I set up a casual Thanksgiving picnic in my living room, and this photo shoot is the result. We’d painted the pumpkins weeks earlier. Mine was inspired by ’80s fabrics, as seen in one of my favorite books: 1980s Fashion Prints by Marnie Fogg.

Painting pumpkins is a fun activity to do with kids, which is great for parents who want to explore their creativity while providing their children with opportunities for art. I love how free and vibrant my daughter’s design is (shown above)!

Bright colors and thriving plants took center stage in this spread, with dried foliage and warm tones taking a back seat this year. Definitely not a traditional fall table setting, but it was perfect for this moment in time! I hope you enjoy the snapshots I managed to capture with my phone.

We surrounded ourselves with favorite greenery, including some cut fern fronds, which work nicely in a vase. The lavender CB2 plates held cucumbers covered in herbed goat cheese and topped with crushed pink peppercorns. Pumpkin cookies added something sweet.

The blue glasses are genuinely retro ’80s, with a wavy pattern that resembles the design of a 1980s Deco vase, and the blanket is an older design from Kip&Co. The flip side features a clementine orange pattern!

Wishing you and yours a beautiful Thanksgiving, filled with little moments of happiness and calm amidst the hustle and bustle. Thanks for reading!