Fancy yet Functional: Mother's Day Table

by Rachael Claybourn May 19, 2023

Did I Deck my own table for Mother's Day? You bet I did & I enjoyed every minute of it! lol I live by the motto - do what brings you joy as much as you can. (I've shared all the product links for you at the end.) If you're a friend of ours over @deckthetable then you've probably seen the photos of my Mother's Day table. If you've been a friend of ours for a while, you may even recognize a few of the pieces from prior tables as I love to reuse and repurpose items in my collection and throughout my home to create a beautifully Decked out table. I thought it would be fun (and useful) to walk you through my table decking process and how this beautiful Mother's Day look came together. It really is a perfect Spring look - very welcoming & inviting, fancy yet functional, and a beautiful look not only for Mother's Day, but Birthdays, graduations, or simply an extra special family dinner.

Believe it or not, much to my Husband's amazement lol, there is a method to my table decking madness! It begins with three things: theme or inspiration, color pallet, and texture. When put together these three jewels ensure a perfectly DECKed table every time! This is also the same process I use to curate the Deck the Table Box.

I'm all for a good theme and believe inspiration can come from anywhere and in many forms. I love to peruse Pinterest for table inspiration. I had an idea to incorporate images of my favorite little people aka my kids into the design and it didn't take me long to stumble upon these perfect inspiration pics. I just love how they placed pictures at each place setting. What a wonderful way to add a personal touch to your table. The best part - it's super easy! Simply print out your favorites at your local printer and decide where you want to put them.

With my inspiration in hand...or mind actually lol it was time to decide on a color pallet and texture. I'm a sucker for pink so that was a given and decided to mix it up a bit with a touch of orange and green. Such a bright and inviting Spring color combo! For texture, I knew I wanted to incorporate these fabulous placemats featured in our Easter Deck the Table Box as well as these pink and white striped blankets. Yes that's right...blankets! All items are tabletop items if you want them to be. lol More on that a little later. With my inspiration, color pallet, and texture pieces chosen now it was time for the really fun part - bringing it all together!

For Christmas my sweet Hubby surprised me with an Aglow Co Base. I've been wanting one for a while now and was so excited to find it under the tree on Christmas morning. He went above and beyond and snagged a perfectly pink set of candles and a set of floral tubes to go with it! In February I turned the big 4-0 lol and let me just tell you 40 candles in this thing looked so amazing! The pictures don't begin to do it justice. I knew Mother's Day would be the perfect time to try out the floral tubes. Now, let me just clarify, in case you're thinking the same thing my Mom was when she saw the Aglow Co Base....YES you can totally DIY something like this. If you have the right tools, time, and skill - absolutely! And I love a good DIY just as much as the next person, but for me, my schedule, and my skill level lol - purchasing from Aglow Co was the best option. And I love to support other small businesses when I can. Obviously, my husband, who would've been tasked with the DIY, agreed! The Aglow Co Base is the perfect centerpiece and became the ideal spot for me to incorporate the pictures of my children. Yes! Of course, the center of my world HAD to be the center of our Mother's Day table!

If you've been around here long, you know I have a thing for florals...specifically the fake kind that I don't have to worry about killing with my not-so-green-thumb. But for Mother's Day I decided to step out of my comfort zone and splurge on the real-deal. And I am so glad I did! I hit up the local grocery store to find the perfect blooms. Now when I say store...I mean Walmart, because even though the HEB bouquets were stunning, at $75 a pop wasn't exactly in the budget. I knew this centerpiece was going to take quite a few bouquets so instead, I opted for the $15.99 Walmart bouquets. And they worked out perfectly. It did take SIX of the standard bouquets to fill our centerpiece but was worth every penny. My oldest daughter, who recently picked up some floral skills at school, volunteered to help me (and my above mentioned not-so-green-thumb) with this project. She showed me how to properly trim the blooms (cut them while submerged in water) and even shared a top-secret mixture sure to keep them alive for days! I'll let you in on it: add Sprite to the water. I can confirm the flowers love it and they are still looking beautiful days later! But for me obviously, the thing that took this whole look up a notch was the addition of the pictures of my sweet kiddos. I simply used double sided tape to adhere the 4x7 prints around the base. Keep it simple - yet make a statement is always the best way to go!

Our floral picture masterpiece set perfectly atop our table runner, aka: throw blankets that were previously on the side chairs for Easter. The light pink and white stripe pattern with fringe detailing emits a welcoming tone. You really do just want to curl up and get comfy! The White Ginger Jars, featured in our newest 4th of July Deck the Table Box, are the perfect anchor and add a beautiful feminine charm.

Like a cake, place settings are all about the layers! When we DECK the table it must not only be beautiful, but functional as well. A decked out table is meant to be used...not just adored. So that becomes the mindset behind all of my designs. A few months back I was gifted a beautiful set of handmade scallop edge napkins. They are dainty and sweet and I thought there is no way we will ever actually use them as napkins so I decided to use them here as place mats. The woven chargers, featured in our Easter Deck the Table Box, look beautiful atop them. I'm excited to use these chargers throughout Spring and into Summer as they add a chic bohemian feel. (And again...texture lol) The plates were a gift to myself lol...last year when I caught them on sale at Williams-Sonoma. I skipped the whole get-a-set-of-china back when my husband and I were first married - so these are what I consider our fancy plates. They are stunning! You may remember these napkins from our Valentines table. I love the bold colors and pattern. (and the fact that they are washable) They offset the lightness of the table runner and placemats and play up the brighter tones of the flowers. Dainty pink wine glasses coupled with woven water glasses tie in nicely and the gold flatware is the perfect finishing touch. I just realized the only thing I purchased "new" for this table were the flowers! How fun is that?! You should never feel like you're starting from scratch every time you DECK the table. Instead focus on building a collection of not-so-basic basics. (As I like to call them.) Like these plates for example, they are standard white in color, but the lacy looped borders add an elegant touch and are able to be dressed up or down to create multiple looks.

If you've made it this far...wow thank you so much! There's nothing I enjoy more than decking my own table, except of course...helping you deck yours! Life's too short for a boring table! Want more table decking ideas and inspiration? Follow @deckthetable So until next time friends...may your heart & your table always be full!