Living in Australia, particularly in the Northern Territory where our Darwin climate in the Christmas season can be so humid, it’s difficult to decorate our homes and Christmas tables for a holiday that is so heavily influenced by the English and European northern hemisphere climate!
Outdoors it might be 40 degrees, so songs about roasting chestnuts on an open fire (much less the open fire itself!) are certainly not something we’ll be entertaining. But, at the same time we don’t want to resort to ‘typical’ Australian Christmas décor like an ultra-kitsch surfing Santa!
The Christmas tree is the décor piece that first comes to mind for just about everyone when we think about decorating for Christmas. With good reason too, after all it’s where the family gathers to open our carefully wrapped gifts, where children shriek with delight as they open package after package, where the parents frantically scramble to find that gift card that the kiddies have carelessly tossed into the pile of discarded wrapping paper. The Christmas tree is Christmas!
But, what about our other most visible area for Christmas decorating – the Christmas dining table?!
It is possible to have a stylish Australian Christmas table, by looking beyond the traditional snow and white Christmas that is all so familiar to us all (and yes, absolutely very pretty!) but not very ‘summer in Australia’. I thought this month I might take a look at some beautiful Christmas tables that are perfect for a hot summer’s Christmas Day!
Whimsical and fun
I love this table setting that Eva of Build House Home has created! It’s so simple, so clever, and so absolutely divine! Eva used a simple white/off white cloth, topped with fresh eucalyptus foliage, gold touches in charger plates and trimmings, and the pièce de resistance: plastic Australian native animal toys spray painted gold! How amazing does this look?!
Linen and natives
Soft washed linen napkins (tablecloth optional) paired with fresh native flowers as a garland or in glass vases (or jars) are perfect for your very own Aussie Bush Christmas table!
I love the iced biscuit and handwritten eucalyptus leaf place card in Jess Viscarde of Eclectic Creative’s setting! It adds a lovely personal touch!
Christmas by the water
There are no rules that say your Christmas meal has to be inside your house! Whether you head riverside or to the beach a picnic is just about as relaxed a Christmas dinner as you can get! But, a picnic can certainly be dressed up – the important thing to remember is that everything needs to be portable so give each guest responsibility for carrying their own seating (cushion) and grab a couple of beach trolleys to carry the food and table pieces!
Alfresco dining
We are so lucky here in Australia that we can (usually) plan our Christmas table on our decks or verandahs. Outdoor dining is so much more relaxed than indoor dining, don’t you think? And of course, with outdoor dining comes more relaxed table settings. We always find brighter colours outdoors and there are lots of option to bring your colours together, for example a monotone colour scheme like To Have To Host’s have used monotone blue and white, and Bed Bath n Table have gone with brighter fun summer colours. The trick is to choose your colours and stick to them.
Christmas decorations as…. decorations
Bring the tree to the table. This tablescape is possibly the simplest to create, yet it shouts ‘Christmas, Christmas, Christmas’! Grab a bunch of mini-Christmas trees in various sizes (and even material) all in the same colourway, a packet of baubles and you’re set! Super quick to set up, which is especially important if you’ve got multiple meals to cater for on the same day!
Merry Christmas!
I hope that your Christmas will be filled with lots of good foods, fun and laughter, and time spent with loved ones. I thought I’d share with you one of my favourite photos of me with my children at Christmas. It was taken quite a few years ago (they’re all grown up now), and it does hold some very special memories for me.
Peace and blessings, Jan-Marie x
I would absolutely LOVE to see your Australian Christmas table! Email your beautiful Christmas tables to me when you get a chance!
