Colorful Christmas Table Setting Ideas That Go Beyond Red + Green

A pretty-in-pink Christmas table setting? Sure, why not? There are no set rules about which colors you must use when setting the table for Christmas celebrations. Get creative this year to make your tablescape one that holiday guests won't soon forget.

This blue + pink table setting is a merry match to the adjacent tree that's decked out in shades of blue and the stockings that are filled with pink-wrapped gifts. Picking a palette, then using variations of those same colors again and again, is the easiest way to create a cohesive design.

From the mini blush porcelain trees to the rosy-striped napkins and fuchsia foil-wrapped chocolates, this table's pink palette starts with the place setting, but the happy hue is spread around the table via color-coordinated decor.

Got a past-its-prime Bundt or tube-cake pan taking up space in your cabinet? In just a few steps, you can upcycle it into a cheery Christmas centerpiece to brighten up your holiday table all season long. It's easy! Our tutorial, below, walks you through each step.

For a sweet finishing touch, place an ornament on each place setting. These vintage, candy-striped, spun-satin ornaments from the '60s were a mass-produced, inexpensive option at the time, making them super easy to source today at estate sales, garage sales, thrift shops and online vintage sites. And, thanks to their foam-and-thread construction, they were also one of the first shatterproof ornaments, so many families stocked up on boxes in a wide range of colors to match that year's decor.

I inherited these sweet midcentury pinecone plates from my grandmother. Too pretty to keep hidden away in a china cabinet, the vintage salad plates make a charming topper to a pink melamine dinner plate and gold star-clad luncheon plate. Putting the pinecone plates to work each Christmas, just as my grandmother did, ensures these decades-old pieces are still used as they were intended and is my way of honoring her memory.

The perfect combo of bite-sized and colorful, macarons are a pretty, petite treat to stack on a footed server within easy reach of hungry guests. They're also available in a range of pastel shades, so if pink isn't your pick, just select macarons in your color of choice.

Oversized chocolate bars, wrapped in gold paper, make a sweet party favor that's sure to delight any holiday guest — but slide on a vintage pin in a coordinating color and the festive favors double as table decor.

Perfect for casting a golden glow at each place setting, mercury-glass votives can be pricey. No worries — our tutorial, below, will show you how to give plain glass candleholders the timeworn, mirrored effect for less.

In part thanks to Elvis's chart-topping song, blue has been a popular alternative Christmas color over the years. Blue is also consistently ranked as the favorite color of people the world over, ensuring that finding both holiday decor and everyday tableware in a variety of blues is easy to do.

Got a plaid winter scarf that matches your table's color palette? Run it through the washer and dryer, then put it to work. Oversized scarves work best to provide a wide band of color and pattern to liven up the center of your table.

Highly collectible, salt-glazed Santas are predominantly in shades of blue and cream, gray or tan. Thought to have originated in Germany in the 14th century, salt-glazed pottery begins with a durable, stoneware body that's then fired at high temperatures with ordinary salt thrown into the kiln. The salt vaporizes, forms a gas, then attaches itself to the pottery's glazed surface, creating the signature mottled appearance and orange-peel texture of salt-glazed pieces. While the process itself is centuries old, the blue Santas are a more recent invention and take their cobalt-blue color from Dutch potters. Salt-glazed Santas are still in production today and vintage pieces are easy to find on online shopping sites. Collectible makers to look for are Eldreth Pottery Works, Rowe Pottery and Beaumont Brothers.

This is a party, after all, so pull those vintage Christmas dishes out of the china cabinet and put them to work to give your table setting a timeless holiday touch. In production since 1908, Royal Copenhagen plates, seen here, are collected by many purely for decoration, but these blue, bas-relief porcelain plates are, in fact, intended to be used as regular dinnerware. Their sturdy construction and high-fired glaze mean that even inherited, decades-old plates can go in the dishwasher and are perfectly usable as a salad or dessert plate.

Just as choosing blue as the dominant hue for your Christmas table makes it easy to reuse your everyday tablecloth or dinner dishes, a blue palette also makes it easy to swap in gingham napkins from Easter or Fourth of July celebrations.

The warm glow of patinated brass is the perfect complement to a cool blue table setting. I found this hand-hammered pencil cup as part of a desk set at an estate sale. I purchased all the pieces but have found that the pencil cup is my favorite, making the perfect small vase. To prevent water damage, I slide a small water-filled container inside the brass before adding blooms.

If your idea of a holiday table begins and ends with red and green, give it a go — but in a new way this year. Swap in living plants for a standard centerpiece and fill the table with a mix of new and old decorations.

Proud of your green thumb? Show it off by repurposing some of your prettiest plants as a living centerpiece. Here, I mixed potted anthurium and a pair of 'Fluffy Ruffle' ferns with small flower-filled vases to fill the center of the table with color and foliage.

Mix-and-match place settings aren't just super trendy, they're also the easiest way to display your favorite hand-me-down pieces or vintage finds, especially if you only have a few dishes from a particular set. For a pleasing pairing, combine plates with a highly detailed pattern with others featuring more open, less-busy designs.

Most likely from the '60s or '70s, this sweet wee Santa started life as a Christmas tree ornament but, along with a few mini vintage glass baubles, the jolly old elf adds a playful bit of decoration. Adding a vintage ornament to the table like this allows you to showcase sentimental, hand-me-down decorations that might get visually lost on the tree.

Gift exchange surprises have never looked so good. Give a plainly wrapped gift a touch of holiday magic by sliding on a vintage pin. Easy to source at estate sales, church bazaars and thrift stores, these Christmas cuties can typically be found for a few dollars or less (I paid just 50 cents for this adorable enamel and rhinestone brooch!).