by Liz Hunter and Rebecca Lee

Tablescaping can look so impressive and with the right tips can be an inexpensive way to bring cheer to your table. We put together two different ways of presenting your table and sweet treats with Christmas decorations and props we already had and intentionally limited buying anything new.

• Draw on the nature around you, sprigs of eucalyptus, Christmas bush or cut flowers from the garden 
• Use dishes of varying heights to add a feeling of abundance to the table
• A dish that is slightly too small will also make your feast look bigger and brighter
• Scatter Christmas decorations and baubles on the table for texture 

TIP – if you keep the colour scheme to two or three similar colours it helps keep everything looking ‘pulled together’.

Another way of presenting your desserts to your guests is on a bookshelf or sideboard. As strange as it sounds, it’s a lovely way to show off all your time in the kitchen baking away.
Here we decorated the bookshelf using some pom-pom string (available at any craft store) and used the same decorations scattered, and the same dishes and stands.

Presenting your table doesn’t have to cost a fortune, just remember to use different height dishes and platters, add some fresh flowers, keep colours to two or three, and think outside the box about where (and on what) in your home to present your display.