From stylish serveware to easy yet artful foliage displays and personal touches, here’s how to decorate your table with plenty of festive spirit

So much of the festive period is about feasting, the joyful sharing of dishes with family and friends, from a luxury breakfast, accompanied by a cheeky glass (or two) of fizz, to the lavish main event, followed by tempting treats for the evening.

All of which means that the table takes centre stage. Beautifully decorated, it sets the tone for the meal to come. A visual statement of the day’s importance, generating excitement and a sense of occasion even before the starter is served. But how do you ring in the changes to the way it looks so that each meal feels special and isn’t just a continuation of the one before?

“The key is to make each of your looks very different to the others,” says tablescaping expert Eleanor Cording-Booth (@aconsideredspace). “Go absolutely maximalist with one tablescape, for example, and then be quite minimal with another.”

Inspired by the Christmas breakfast scene in the film Little Women by director-of-the-moment Greta Gerwig, Cording-Booth loves the idea of going all out for breakfast.

“The scene when the March family arrive home on Christmas morning to a table laden with food and decorated with lit candelabras is such a sumptuous one and feels so special and different to the norm,” she says. “Christmas Day is a day to be extravagant and that includes breakfast! But if that doesn’t fit with your Christmas Day hosting, then go maximalist for lunch with a more pared-back look for breakfast.”

Minimal doesn’t mean dull, though. “I like the idea of a Scandi-style vibe,” says Cording-Booth. “Start with a white tablecloth and then add in the sparkle – silver in particular looks so good against white, so use lots of it.

“Berry tones complement crisp white very well, too – introduce it with festive foliage, fruits or wrapped sweets on display and coloured taper candles.”

She advises to add layers to your set-up, so set placemats on top of the tablecloth and then add the crockery.

“For the main meal, I would always set a dinner plate, followed by a side plate and bowl. For breakfast, a single plate and then an unexpected piece of serveware – a stainless-steel ice-cream coupe for the yoghurt, for instance – that elevates the tablescape.

“I would then simply knot napkins in the middle, and place them by the plates alongside stainless steel cutlery. Of course, champagne coupes are a must for something festively fizzy and elevate orange juice by decanting it into an elegant carafe with a coordinating tumbler at each place setting. Decorate the rest of the table with just a few tealights in tealight holders and small sprigs of foliage or a single stem of the same flower in bud vases,” says Cording-Booth.

She divulges that one of her favourite table styling tricks is to use ordinary items in multiples for visual impact.

For a maximalist tablescape, don’t hold back.

“The table needs to look utterly extravagant, a feast for the eyes,” says Cording-Booth. “Choose plates that are visually interesting, which can be through their shape rather than obvious patterns, and set them on glittering silver placemats. An abundance of glassware creates a luxurious look so place wine glasses and coordinating tumblers for each place, setting them directly onto the tablecloth.”

Make guests feel special with thoughtful touches is her next tip.

“Fold each napkin and place it next to the plate with cutlery laid on top of it; then set a small present, the type you would find in a stocking, wrapped up in paper or even fabric, on the napkin,” says Cording-Booth. “Add more shine with silver place card holders, or, what I also love to do is place a bauble on the napkin and then ask my guests to guess where they sit from the bauble I have chosen for them. It’s a lovely way of showing that you have really thought about each of them.”

When decorating the rest of the table, use a pedestal or footed bowl topped with fruit such as tangerines, or a vase or glass bowl filled with brightly wrapped sweets or walnuts.

“Candles always create atmosphere so use lots of them,” continues Cording-Booth. “A cluster of candles in candleholders in the centre of the table is always effective. Or, liberally sprinkle the table with a variety of tea-light holders.

“Fill large vases with an abundance of foliage – the great thing about Christmas is that it doesn’t have to be about flowers, and a mix of evergreens looks stunning set against silver and white. Even green foliage laid down the centre of the table will look beautiful.”

For end-of-day nibbles, change the feel completely by going buffet-style.

“Make this table look special by playing with height,” says Cording-Booth. “Use tall vases and place just a single flower stem in each and add tall candlesticks. As well as pretty bowls, serve food in dishes that have height too – fill a trifle bowl with sweets, arrange a cake on a cake stand and fill a trug with ice for bottles of wine or fizz. Stack plates at one end of the table and place your cutlery in attractive vessels, a different one for each type of cutlery.”

Finally, says Cording-Booth, don’t forget the space above your table.

“It’s an interesting way to use space, especially if you prefer not to, or can’t fit, greenery on the Christmas table,” she says. “Hang a display made with foliage or a faux garland, but you will need to screw hooks into the ceiling because of the weight.

“Another decorative option, which can complement a table display, is to simply hang paper stars or paper chains – keep them light and stick-on hooks that can be easily removed afterwards will do the trick!”

This content was first published as part of a partnership with Telegraph Media Group and published on telegraph.co.uk.