34 Picture-Perfect Place Settings for Your Holiday Table

This winter sun soiree calls on Slim Aarons's iconic photography for inspiration. French reds and blues popping up across the tablescape stand out against the Alpine views.

The gold accents extend off the walls of this Philip Vergeylen-designed dining room and onto the table. Vintage Italian china and scalloped table linens set the scene for a glamorous holiday get-together.

Interior designer Anne Hepfer loves to work with seasonal yet not-so-cliche colors when setting a table for a chic holiday party. “I like to make small yet impactful updates with color," says Hepfer. "There is such luxury in harvest-inspired hues like cranberry and pumpkin, hunter greens and earthy browns. Accenting with warm metallics is a good way to add a bit of glamor as well."

Every year, tastemaker Lucy Cuneo and her son lay their Christmas table together, always ensuring there's an element of whimsy included. Pink floral plates and glowing votives inside etched hurricanes bring a traditional note to the table as snail figurines and tangerines filled with prizes keep things playful.

In the courtyard of their San Miguel retreat, designers Jeffry Weisman and Andrew Fisher set out a series of bronze-tone nesting tables for animated holiday parties. Red candles embellished by Oaxacan artists and pale green Talavera pottery highlight the traditional Christmas colors in an elevated way.

For designer Richard Keith Langham, the holidays are the perfect excuse to get a little theatrical when it comes to decorating. An oversized taper candle surrounded by roses serves as the centerpiece of the holiday dining table. Pristine white plates allow the red crystal goblets and shimmering gold party favors to shine on the table.

At her townhouse in Chicago, designer Alessandra Branca celebrates Christmas with a family dinner that's warm, lively, and full of cheer. A black and red plaid tablecloth provides a festive foundation for additional red accents, found in her china, glassware, and her amaryllis-studded centerpiece. Branca even ties her napkins with a red velvet ribbon and sprig of greenery.

At his home in upstate New York, floral designer Lewis Miller sets his Christmas table with seasonal bounty featuring a centerpiece of lemons and oranges with springs of holiday greenery tucked in. The rest of his Christmas table setting picks up that palette with a golden tablecloth and velvet ribbon tying the napkin with a star. French blue glassware, dinner plates, and checked napkins complete the wintry look.

At her New York loft, designer Joy Moyler hosts a music-filled Christmas party in keeping with those her parents hosted during her childhood in Harlem. For a festive, seasonal vibe that feels ultra-sophisticated, Moyler opts for a table setting palette of deep reds and purples accented with crisp black and white china (her own pattern) and sparkly silver and mercury glass.

At her Southampton home, fashion force Tory Burch sets an all-green table for Christmas, featuring her own collection of green pressed glassware, lettuceware, and spongeware and bird-patterned china. A centerpiece comprising natural winter elements, from pine cones to white flowers.

More is more when it comes to setting the table at Rebecca Gardner’s whimsical holiday parties. The renowned event planner layers bold chintz tablecloths with colorful Murano wine glasses and bowls and playful paper crackers for a quirky twist.

"Everything fancy requires a mischievous wink,” says Gardner. “This could be a collection of tiny Chinese figurines peeking from behind floppy poppy petals or a provocative game of Would You Rather... calligraphed on the back of the menu. A little twist goes a long way.”

This classic yet laid-back tablescape blends natural elements—the cedar, balsam, and white pine garland and historic table—with classic accents and dinnerware. The blue-and-gold-rimmed chargers (Vista Alegre) and emerald-lined napkins pop against the wooden details and porcelain plates (Royal Copenhagen).

Over the traditional red-and-green scheme? Take a note from lawyer-turned-tastemaker Riche Homes Grant, who embraces rich sapphire tones that still manage to feel wintry. At this tablescape, Lipper International bark-edge servers are used as chargers and paired with organic reactive glass plates from World Market.

Designer Alex Papachristidis proves silver and gold decorations belong on so much more than your Christmas tree. The New York-based decorator set the table at his sister’s dazzling Hamptons home with a glitzy mix of antique glass salad plates (Salviati) layered over a porcelain dinner servers (Kelly Wearstler).

It’s fair to say that jewels belong not just on your wrist but on your table too with this tablescape dripping in rich, sumptuous shades. A Phoenix dinner plate by de Gournay is paired with a charger from Mottahedeh’s Lexington collection. The flatware and goblet are by Christofle, and the napkin is from Silver Peacock. The tablecloth is in a Manuel Canovas fabric.

Vivacious floral patterns have never felt so polished than when paired with lavish linens and gleaming flatware. The pumpkin charger from Herend compliments the Chelsea Garden accent plate from Royal Crown Derby and a Mottahedeh dessert plate. The Vera Wang tableware sits atop a placemat from Deborah Sharpe with a napkin from Leontine Linens and tablecloth in a Dedar fabric.

An audacious blend of statement-making patterns does all the talking at this dinner table. The clean Babos charger from Herend puts all the spotlight on the striking Old Imari dinner plate from Royal Crown Derby. Alain Saint-Joanis's Berlin gold flatware sits on top of a Deborah Rhodes napkin. The wine glass and goblet are both from William Yeoward, and the tablecloth is in a Travers fabric.

Whimsical china and vibrant details, such as this Ming Dragon salad plate from Meissen, spark a playful mood perfect for any party during the most wonderful time of the year. Delicate hand-stitching by Sharyn Blond Linens on the napkin and placemat mimics the floral pattern on the William Yeoward dinner plate. The gold-plated silverware is from Silver Peacock. The tablecloth is in a Vestini fabric, and the lattice wine glass is by Vietri.

This vibrant place setting proves it’s time to retire the simple red-and-green palette and welcome in a sumptuous array of gold, purple, blue, and pink. The decorative edges of the Bernardaud salad plate and the Baccarat wine glass accent the violet tones of a Le Manach tablecloth and Leontine Linens napkin. The dinner plate is from Royal Crown Derby, and the charger is from Hermès. The flatware is from Blue Pheasant.

Channel charming mountaintop allure on your table setting with rich hues of loden and chestnut and riots of plaid. An Alpine dinner plate from La Tuile à Loup takes center stage in this layered display of rustic silver pieces, like the English mug from Vagabond House and ornate textiles from East Coast Trimming and Jim Thompson Fabrics.