A Pottery Barn Thanksgiving

I am finally getting around to this post, and just in time. In the middle of October Katie and I went to a free class at Pottery Barn (they have lots of these year round) and the theme of the class was how to decorate your Thanksgiving table-- Pottery Barn style.

Bonus: we got 10% off anything we purchased because we attended the class. I ended up with two candle-holders and napkins.

Here are some tips that I learned:

Glassware is placed above the plate to the right. A water goblet is placed directly above the knife and any other stemware is set to its right.

Flatware is placed in order of usage from the outside in. Place forks to the left of the plate, and knife and spoons to the right.

A formal place setting requires three plates: bread, salad and dinner

A casual place setting requires just a dinner plate

This was their formal table and there clearly was a lot going on here. I really like the candles that look like birch trees. They also layered table runners for a cool effect.

Here was what they recommended for a buffet station. The two keys with this are keep the silverware at the end (if its not already on the table) and create different heights for visual interest. They also labeled all of the food-- which is a great idea. Although at my house I don't we need a label for mashed potatoes!

Here was the drink station. They kept it very simple and had an ice bucket and glassware. You can add or take away from this as much as you want. How cute are the towels!!

This was the casual table setting. The candle display took up a lot of space and they recommend you move it during the actual meal so you can encourage conversation.

Overall the class was a lot of fun and Katie and I were the only ones taking pictures (they encouraged the picture taking!!). I plan on making my first attempt at designing the Thanksgiving table. There will definitely be a posting with my results!

Happy Almost Thanksgiving