Create a cosy autumn tablescape

With autumn and leisurely weekends at home ahead of us, let your styling skills run wild and dress your table for Friday-night ‘fakeaways’ or dinner with your household’s bubble. Think ‘more is more’, layering shades, shapes and textures to create a warm, cosy space – and don’t forget to play with height, mixing vases and candlesticks to create an informal yet impressive centrepiece.

‘There’s a big emphasis on artisan-style tableware pieces this season,’ says Fionnuala Johnston, Partner & Senior Designer, Home Design Studio. ‘Where the glaze, colour and shape of each piece has its own lovely almost hand-crafted feel.’

There’s been a shift recently in the shape of tableware. Look out for rimless plates, which offer a more relaxed, artisan feel, while large platters and sharing bowls are perfect for creating a more casual dining experience with friends. Layering your table, setting each place with a dinner plate, side plate or bowl, gives plenty of opportunity to mix and match shapes, glazes and colours. Choose pieces you love – whether for their unusual pattern, the way they feel or their shape/size. This relaxed approach to setting allows you to mix rather than match, so you can keep adding to your crockery collection.

Just as tableware has seen a shift, there are some shapely pieces of glass that will help transform your autumn table. Look for bottle- or narrow-shaped vases in deep, inky shades, which are ideal for housing a display of pampas grass and fresh foliage. Rather than go for one hero arrangement, pop a few smaller vases down the middle of your table. Add a few votives and candlesticks, choosing something more interesting, such as textured glass. Finally, treat your table to some new wine glasses and tumblers. Look for shapely designs that guests will notice, appreciating the craftsmanship… and your eye for detail.

If your dining table has seen more school work and Zoom calls than posh dinner parties this year, why not ring the changes with a new tablecloth to break its working from home image? Linen – thanks to our obsession with relaxed, Scandi-style living – has soared over recent seasons, and tablecloths, runners and napkins are very much part of our tablescape kit. Look for certified GOTS (Global Organic Textile Standard) organic linen, which is responsibly produced to strict environmental and social standards, and iron while slightly damp… although the slightly creased look plays to the relaxed feel. Add a few new chair cushions or soften a bench with cosy sheepskins, creating a place that encourages lingering and a sense of slowing things down.