If you have just finished adjusting your dining table and meticulously arranging it in place in your home, only to have that nagging feeling that the décor is somehow incomplete, it is because the space needs a centrepiece.
You could do as one does and just let clutter accumulate just to see what happens, the random assortment of items will eventually speak of your personality and lifestyle, but it may not blend well with the rest of the space – that and most would regard that as an unintended mess. We let our panel of decorators into our homes to help us figure out centrepieces, and arrived at the following Top 7 ideas that will help you get ahead of the curve by tailoring your dining table decorations to suit your interior and to project the ambiance you design.
Designer: Konan Design
7. Classic Candlelight
The original dining table centrepiece – the archetypal candle and candle-holder combination has been a pervasive decorative element, providing a form of lighting especially suited for intimate moods, and appearing in everything from classical art to modern fine dining experiences. Candle-holders serve as pieces of art in themselves, ranging from ostentatious candelabra gilded in precious metals to utilitarian glassware.
Designer: SQFT Space Design Management
6. Edible Art
Food invariably gets left on the dining table in some way or another – especially with large households in constant flux, where mealtimes tend to overlap. Embrace the familial chaos while encouraging healthy eating by displaying brightly coloured fruit or snacks in attractive containers to provide an additional decorative element. To take it a step further, unleash the inner epicurean and artist by experimenting with pickled or dried edibles in jars to produce a few splashes of colour.
Designer: Surface R Interior Design
5. Rotating Trays
A mainstay of oriental-styled interiors, the turntable – known in some circles as the “Lazy Susan”, is a rotating tray made of wood or stone. Typically found in the centre of large Chinese dinners, the turntable adds a functional and elegant layer to round dining tables that serves equally well as a pedestal for art or dining accessories – while providing diners with Arthurian access to the dishes placed on it.
Designer: Jashen Interior Design
4. Sculptures
On the other end of the function-form spectrum are gratuitous objects of art to inject some glam and glitter into a scene and turn a dining table into a display space. A curated sculpture with interesting reliefs on all sides provides luxurious views from any angle in combination with a rotating tray.
Designer: Gusto Design
3. Literary Pursuits
In lieu of spending the time combing galleries and markets for “that ideal piece”, go the way of the literary artist by shaping an impromptu sculpture out of books to accent a loft-like décor. Especially in small spaces where coffee table space is scarce, books that were intended for the seating lounge can be piled up on the dining table instead, freeing up living room space and providing a set of spontaneous talking points while dining.
Designer: M Innovative Builders
2. Living Embellishments
A simple and immediately rewarding centrepiece element comes from our own lush backyards. All that is needed is a few stalks of freshly-cut flowers, or sprigs of herbs, thrown into a container – anything from an old tea tin to an intricate glass vase would do the job. While these living centrepieces can only be expected to last little more than a few days, an extra “wow” could be elicited with a contained ecosystem of live fish and water plants in the centre of the dining table.
Designer: Q1 Interior
1. Clutter Trays
To keep that assortment of decorative and functional items in check, consider using a tray in wood or metal to neatly present dining table accessories, and to add another layer of texture to dining surfaces. Aside from the obvious practical application, clutter trays can also be used to frame other decorative elements, or even create a mini Zen garden with appropriately deep trays filled with sand.
Designer: X-Two Concept
If you haven’t already, click here to take a look at our definitive guide for selecting the right kind of dining table to suit your interior.
