One Table, Three Seasons: A Fall to Christmas to Winter Table Setting

Most holiday tables get set up two or three times: once for Thanksgiving, again for Christmas, and again around New Year's when the tree comes down and we're celebrating new beginnings. That's three sets of linens to buy, store and iron. But it doesn't have to work that way.

I designed my new Gather + Glow collection so you can set the table once and change just one piece as the season turns. The placemats and napkins stay put from fall through February. Only the runner changes.

Rendering. The same Charcoal placemats and napkins all season. Only the runner changes.

The base: toile placemats and check napkins

The base is the part you buy just once.

Woodland Toile placemats in Charcoal are my hand-drawn deer, fox, chickadees, squirrels and pinecones, printed in soft gray on a warm cream ground. Toile reads as busy from across a room, but at the table it sits under a plate and acts more like a texture. You catch a fox peeking out from under the bread plate, and that's about it.

Cabin Check napkins in Charcoal are a classic buffalo check. Two patterns this different only work together when they share a color, and these share the same soft gray. That's what lets almost any plaid go down the middle without the table looking busy.

Placemats measure 14 by 20 inches and napkins are 20 by 20 inches, both sold in sets of 2. Choose Luxe Cotton Sateen for a smooth, polished table or Linen-Cotton Canvas for a matte, relaxed one. Pick the same fabric for both so they match.

Charcoal or Cranberry? Charcoal works all season long. If you want to go all-out for Christmas, Cranberry toile with red check napkins is lovely and festive. If you want one set for the whole stretch, go with charcoal for placemats and napkins. They work great for any time of the year!

Rendering. The all-Christmas version: Woodland Toile in Cranberry with Cabin Check napkins in Cranberry Red.

Thanksgiving table setting: start with the Autumn Spice table runner

For Thanksgiving, lay the Homestead Plaid table runner in Autumn Spice down the middle. It's a warm rust, sage and cream tartan that sits easily next to the charcoal toile and check. Run a loose garland of eucalyptus and pine along it and set a bowl of pears and apples in the middle.

Rendering. The fall table: Autumn Spice runner with the same Charcoal placemats and napkins.

Shop the fall table

Want it for Thanksgiving? Runners and Cotton Sateen pieces arrive in about 5 to 6 weeks, so order those by October 15. Linen-Cotton placemats and napkins arrive sooner, in about 3 to 4 weeks.

Christmas: swap out to my Holiday Berry table runner

After Thanksgiving, fold up Autumn Spice and lay the Homestead Plaid runner in Holiday Berry down the middle. It's a cranberry, sage and charcoal tartan, so it picks up the napkins and warms up the whole table. Fill the bowl with clementines and a few sprigs of red berries and you're done. The placemats and napkins don't move. You can even use the same garland all season.

Rendering. The Christmas table: Holiday Berry runner with the same Charcoal placemats and napkins.

Shop the Christmas runner

Winter: swap to my Winter Hearth table runner

When the tree comes down, fold up Holiday Berry and lay the Homestead Plaid runner in Winter Hearth in its place. It's charcoal and gray with golden stripes and a thin cranberry thread, so it still ties to the napkins, but it reads as winter instead of Christmas. Fill the bowl with winter citrus and the table works for New Year's dinner and every wintery Sunday supper through February.

Rendering. The same placemats and napkins, with the Winter Hearth runner.

Shop the winter runner

How long should a table runner be?

A table runner should hang 6 to 12 inches past each end of the table. Measure your table's length, add 12 to 24 inches, and choose the closest runner size. Every runner here is 16 inches wide.

• 72 inches ($74): tables about 48 to 60 inches long, 4 to 6 seats
• 90 inches ($89): tables about 66 to 78 inches long, 6 to 8 seats
• 108 inches ($99): tables about 84 to 96 inches long, 8 to 10 seats

Between sizes? Go longer.

What a whole table costs

Placemats are $59 and napkins are $54 for a set of 2. Here's the base plus the Christmas runner, in either fabric:

• Table for 4: a 72 inch runner, 2 sets of placemats and 2 sets of napkins, $300
• Table for 6: a 90 inch runner and 3 sets of each, $428
• Table for 8: a 108 inch runner and 4 sets of each, $551

Add the other two runners and save. Every extra runner in the same order is $10 off, up to two. That brings all three seasons to $428 for a table of 4, $586 for 6 and $729 for 8. Three tables from one set of linens! The savings show up automatically in your cart, and the Build your table tool on the collection page does the math for you and adds everything to your cart in one click.

Shipping is always free

Standard shipping is free on every order anywhere in the US, with no minimum. One set of napkins ships free, and so does a full table for eight with all three runners. The total you see when you build your table is what you pay, plus any sales tax.

Because every piece is printed and sewn just for you after you order, shipping is standard only and can't be expedited. Runners, placemats and napkins are made separately, so a full table may arrive in more than one package.

A few things that make it work

Keep the plates plain. Simple white plates let the toile show around the edges. Patterned china fights it.

Keep the flatware simple. Silver or gold both work. Gold picks up the golden stripes in Winter Hearth.

Let the centerpiece change with the runner. Greenery stays all season. Add pears and apples in fall, clementines and berries at Christmas, and citrus in winter. It costs almost nothing and the table looks freshly set each time.

Store the off-season runner flat or rolled. It's one runner instead of a whole table's worth of linens, so it fits in a drawer.

Quick answers

What size table runner do I need for a 6-foot table? A 6-foot table is 72 inches long, so choose the 90 inch runner. It leaves about 9 inches hanging at each end.

What size table runner for an 8-foot table? An 8-foot table is 96 inches long. The 108 inch runner leaves about 6 inches at each end.

Can I use the same placemats and napkins from Thanksgiving through winter? Yes. That's how Gather + Glow is designed. The charcoal toile placemats and buffalo check napkins stay on the table from fall through February, and you swap only the runner: Autumn Spice for Thanksgiving, Holiday Berry for Christmas and Winter Hearth after the holidays.

When should I order for Thanksgiving or Christmas? Everything is made to order in the USA. Order runners and Cotton Sateen pieces by October 15 for Thanksgiving and by November 11 for Christmas. Linen-Cotton placemats and napkins arrive sooner, in about 3 to 4 weeks.

Is shipping free? Yes. Standard shipping is free on every order in the US, with no minimum.

Is there a discount for buying more than one runner? Yes. Buy two or more runners in the same order and each extra runner is $10 off, up to two. It applies automatically in your cart.

Hosting at an inn or lodge?

The same idea works for a dining room that serves guests all winter. I can adjust colorways, scale and quantities for hospitality projects, and these patterns are also available as custom wallpaper. Start a custom inquiry.

Every pattern in Gather + Glow is drawn by hand here at my studio in Idaho. If you set a table with it this year, I'd love to see it. Tag @pineandfeather on Instagram.