This story is part of Ensemble’s colour week, presented by Resene

When you feed your family and friends, it is said, you also feed their souls. Nothing is more nourishing than coming together for a shared meal – where plates are passed around with purpose, drinks are poured over halfway full, and your elbows brush with your nearest and dearest. 

Adding to the scene, a delectable tablescape will ensure every meal is a treat. Even if you aren’t the most confident chef, the effort that goes into your table setting will ensure anything you serve will look the part – especially when it comes time for a celebration.

While it is tempting to put a mismatch of plates on the table, Meryl-Streep-in-Mamma-Mia-style, the outcome is not always as charming as an impromptu Greek Island wedding. The trick to tablescaping is creating a colour scheme, so even those mismatched plates look like they are meant to be there.

“With tablescaping, it’s all about having different points of connection through colour,” says Holly Page of Lay Me Down. As the founder of the colourful tablescape rental company and store, she knows how to set a creative yet cohesive table, whatever the occasion.

Find your feature colour theme

For Holly, tablescapes are most effective when they come in one or two colourways. To find your theme, she suggests starting with a feature piece, such as a bright and bold tablecloth, and choosing a colour to carry through to your table accessories.

Lay Me Down’s Garden Party tablecloth is imported from Jaipur, and made by the Indian technique of hand blocking, with vibrant coral and green being the dominant colours to choose from.

Settle it with petals

Flowers add a beautiful natural touch to the table. As we head into winter, and flowers fetch higher prices, Holly recommends opting for small bud vases that hold only a couple of stems each - “a fantastic way to add pops of colour”.

These can be separated out down the line of the table for an effective look. Pro tip: They pair particularly well with tapered candles. Depending on your setting, you might even be able to forage in the garden for striking foliage centrepieces.

Use colour unexpectedly

A tablescape needn’t be all about the tablecloth, all the time. An international trend that Holly sees coming to New Zealand tables is coloured candles. If you are working with a white tablecloth, or a “naked” table, vibrant pink candles and plates are a playful way to add character.

Most tapered dinner candles allow for around 12 hours of burn time, so (depending on how long your guests stay) you can use them a few times and enjoy them to their full. Another way to delight your guests is by mixing and matching coloured cutlery sets. And for colour that truly shines, reach for coloured glassware too.

You can keep it tonal

If you are new to tablescaping, focusing on one colour – and its family of shades – will ensure your table setting is always sophisticated. The Amalfi tablecloth from Lay Me Down brings together cobalt, navy and baby blues, offset by crisp white.

Don’t forget the food

There are countless ways to add colour to your table through the food on your plates – but not all of it has to be intended for eating. If you’re not feeling flowers and foliage, another great way to add a natural touch to your table is through in-season fruit. For Holly, citrus fruits like lemons, oranges and limes are most striking.

Dress up what you already have

Of course, when setting the table, you need to consider what you already have in your kitchen. Add some drama to your somewhat standard plates with colourful napkins, or place charger plates underneath them to add a colourful layer of framing. Tie a long satin or grosgrain ribbon around your cutlery set, and place them on top of your napkin for a final flourish. Ravishing.