Controversial, I know, but I’m not a big fan of red. I look at the way other people use it and I can see the beauty in it, but if I am surrounded by red, it makes me feel a bit anxious and seems to jar with the other colours in my home. So when it comes to Christmas, I end up filling my home with a colour that doesn’t make me happy, which is a bit of a shame. This year, I have decided not to let a single red decoration through the door and instead I am embracing the pastel pinks, blues and greens that I love, as well as my favourite white and a few hints of black. The only worry that I have is how to make that look Christmassy but as long as it looks beautiful and special, what does it matter?

I am very lucky to be sponsored this month by the wonderful Occa-Home and what I love most about this online store is that there is so much to choose from, no matter what your style, which is perfect for me because I am always combining different styles in my home. When I started to look for products to use for my Christmas table, I got lost in the all of the beautiful traditional tableware but then I was totally seduced by the gorgeous Scandinavian inspired designs that fit perfectly with my favourite pastel colours.

So, without further ado, here is my Christmas table, styled using lots of lovely goodies from Occa-Home and a few homemade bits by me…

I selected the striking Design House Stockholm Nordic Light as the centrepiece for the table and instead of choosing white dinner candles I chose Eau de Nil coloured ones, which tie in with the other colours I have used. This candelabra is foldable and you can adjust it to create different shapes – I absolutely love it and it’s perfect for my alternative Christmas table.

The Bloomingville Olivia plates are blue and green and the Bloomingville Alberte plates are pink and yellow.

Whilst browsing Occa-Home I came across the Bloomingville Olivia plates and they are the perfect colours for my pastel theme. They can also be used on any other day of the year, which is an added bonus, but by placing these beautiful Linen Works napkins on them, a piece of Eucalyptus and the bowl, it instantly makes it look far more special than your average dinner time. There is so much beauty in the simplicity of this place setting and the soft colours.

The candelabra is a Design House Stockholm Nordic Light.

I hung these co-ordinating baubles and a big pom pom from the ceiling to make the table feel more special and celebratory. I also made the octahedrons (just the technical name for the pretty 3D diamond shapes) from white card.

I love the soft blues, pinks, greens of my Christmas table.

I wanted to make some special name settings and I decided to make a personalised bauble, that could be taken away by guests after the meal – a bit like a wedding favour. The baubles fit perfectly in these gorgeous Design House Stockholm Dot bowls.

The napkins are beautiful classic linen made by Linen Works and the bowls are Design House Stockholm Blond Dot bowls.

I strung up the baubles, pom pom and diamonds with very fine white cotton and I love how it appears as though they are floating above the table.

I hung baubles and handmade diamonds from the ceiling.

To make my decorations:

1. Baubles:

If you’d like to have a go at making these personalised baubles, that I have used as name settings, all you have to do is buy a set of clear baubles and pour a very small amount of paint into them. Swirl the paint around to about half way up the bauble. Make sure you use a quick drying paint or chalk paint, as they do take a long time to dry. The key is to use as little paint as possible, and once you have swirled the paint to where you want it to be, place the bauble on an egg cup or glass and leave it there for about 48 hours – don’t disturb it (or put it on the radiator as I did which creates condensation and ruins the crisp line – very annoying mistake!). I used a Dymo tape machine to create the name labels, which just stick onto the bauble.

Place a piece of Eucalyptus and a personalised bauble on each place setting to make it special.

2. Octahedrons (diamonds)

The octahedrons are really easy to make. Jules very kindly drew out the shape for me on the computer and you can download the PDF here:  diamond octahedron. We have an A3 printer so printed them onto white card and used double sided tape to stick them together. I attached white cotton with tape inside the shape before I stuck them together.

I really hope you like my different take on a Christmas table. I had so much fun putting it together and not a bit of red in sight! I also love how using a specific colour palette can unify so many different styles – from mid-century dining chairs and a Victorian dining table to modern Scandinavian tableware.

What are you planning for your Christmas table?

Katy x

I’ve got a bit of a thing about tiles. My friend, Agnes, bought me a set of old blue and white tiles from San Telmo market in Buenos Aires (if you are ever lucky enough to go there, you will never want to leave) and I absolutely love them. I never wanted to tile a wall with them, even though they would look gorgeous behind the bathroom or kitchen sink, because if I leave my home I’d have to leave them too, or go to all the effort of re-tiling. Instead, I’ve always used them as coasters either on the dining table for hot pots, or on the coffee table for cups and candles. A friend came over the other day and noticed the tiles and couldn’t believe she hadn’t thought of using pretty tiles as coasters herself – she has just finished tiling her bathroom floor with the most beautiful Fired Earth tiles and she has a few left over. So, I thought I’d share a few pics of how I use my tiles just in case you hadn’t thought of using them either. However, I have swapped my lovely Argentinean tiles and a couple of tiles from Morocco, for some cheap tiles from the local tile shop, to show you that inexpensive, new tiles can look nice, too, as I know not everybody has a vintage collection;)

All you need to do is buy some surface protectors and add them to each corner of the tiles. That way they won’t scratch your dining table, coffee table, bedside table, kitchen worktop or sideboard. The surface protector pads only cost a couple of pounds.

Add surface protectors to the bottom of your tiles to use them as coasters.

Dot the tiles around your home and not only do they serve a practical purpose but they also add decorative detail that lifts any surface. I have them on my coffee table for drinks and candles, dining table for hot pots, bedside table for candles and on my dressing table for my hair straighteners (the best use for them!!).

I always have a few tiles on my coffee table (my mum’s old school trunk) to protect it from candles and hot drinks. This is the Tangier Blue tile that you can buy here.

BEST use of a tile EVER!

Have a couple of tiles on your dining table for hot pots.

Antic Blanco Delft tile that you can buy here.

Looking to give some inexpensive gifts this Christmas? What about a stack of tile coasters? This stack cost £4 and took about three seconds to add the surface protector pads…

A stack of tiles would make a lovely, inexpensive Christmas present.

Or, what about these beautiful Mexican tiles from Milagros, which cost 46p or 75p each! What a perfect present instead of another box of boring chocolates…

Katy x