I was setting the dinner table early today, playing around for a sophisticated-witchy look for a sophisticated-cosmic friend. The guest of honour loves little details, and I wanted to try something new to suit the evening.

So if you, too, want to re-fresh your art of dining, here’s my playing journey documented:

Sophisticated

My key items on hand:

navy linen napkins
ceramic dishes as candles
long, dried grasses

Things you may have at home:

ribbons (think silk or velvet, something with shine or transparency)
keep your styling to multiples of the same thing e.g. all the same type of flower/plant
contrast works well here - pair thick dark leaves with soft light ribbons.
add a million candles.

2. Earthy, witchy

My key items on hand:

tiny salt bowl
bark
rocks

Things you may have at home:

herbs - tip out into a tiny bowl, or arrange big ones like cinnamon sticks and cloves on the table
bark
moss
leaves/vines - anything imperfect and earthy
incense - think sage/herb bundle and palo santo stick
dainty glass vials/bottles
tarot cards - splay a few like a fan on the table
mortar and pestle
old book - yellowed, or botanical

3. Fairy

My key items on hand:

mushrooms
string of fairy lights from the christmas box
lilac candles, sage tablecloth

Things you may have at home:

tiny flowers/vines/ferns
tiny anything
water lilies or nasturiums (often grows near coastal banks)
purples/greens/pinks
sparkling water
anything with butterflies on it - your kid’s hairclips, perhaps? put them on the table!
fabrics that are transluscent, blurred

4. Mediterrean

My key items on hand:

citrus
olives
baskets
shells

Things you may have at home:

grandma’s plates
tin of sardines
olive branch/leaves
blue, white, yellow is an easy colour theme here (add a blue vase, yellow hair claw, white book, for example)
anything clay/terracotta
thick stripes - add your couch cushion to the dining chair
silk scarf - drape over chair

5. Arty

My key items on hand:

rocks, smashed and ground to make coloured pigment powder
oil in container/shell/bowl (throw a herb sprig in it for extra points)
art supplies - brushes, crayons, pencils, paint
quirky mixes of weeds, flowers
coffee table books

Things you may have at home:

old sculptures - from little figurines to garden statues
anything marble
fruit - either pulled in half, cut, or whole
vegetables - funky shaped carrots?
newspaper - think broadsheet font if you want more fancy, and find a page with minimal colours
magazine
empty picture frame

I’d love to see how you interpret this

if you want to share, tag me (@natdanielart) on your preferred platform.