5 Zero-Waste and Stunning Ideas for a Festive Holiday Tablescape

Easy tips for setting a beautiful table this Thanksgiving, with everyday items that could be eaten, composted, or upcycled.

Holiday Tablescape

By Becky Duffett

As the days grow dark, it’s time to get cozy for the holidays, and maybe even create your own candle light. Bi-Rite holiday shoppers are looking forward to Thanksgiving, and putting in those preorders for turkeys and all the trimmings. You can also create joy this season by setting that feast on a beautiful table, but that doesn’t mean you have to do extra shopping for decorations, or feel guilty about throwing them away at the end of the season. For a local, seasonal, and sustainable holiday tablescape this year, we decided to get some sage advice from a designer friend. 

Angela Douglas is a local floral designer, who was a former florist at Bi-Rite Market, before launching her own business with Follow the Westward Wind. This time of year, she’s busier than an elf, from fluffing the garlands at Michelin-starred restaurants, to trimming the trees in five-star hotels. Although she also kindly carves out some time to craft these super cute succulent pumpkins for Bi-Rite. True to her roots at Bi-Rite, Douglas believes in local and sustainable florals, which means sourcing from nearby farms, avoiding unnecessary pesticides, and upcycling as much as possible. Here are her top tips for how to create a beautiful holiday tablescape this season — without any waste. 

Seasonal Produce

“One easy way to do it — and Bi-Rite is amazing for it — is shop the produce section!” Douglas says. This time of year, she loves featuring citrus, pomegranates, and persimmons, in all those autumnal red and orange tones. She likes to cluster several persimmons together, pile lots of them into bowls, or lay down kumquat branches with the fruit still attached. And with edible elements, of course you can eat them later. 

Persimmons Tablescape

Persimmons bring bright autumnal colors to the holiday table | Becky Duffet

Forest Foraging

“I would also focus on bringing the forest indoors,” Douglas says. She reaches for eucalyptus, evergreen branches, and pine cones. Whenever she picks up Christmas trees, she asks to keep the branches trimmed from the bottom, and often collects pine cones while walking in the park. Try laying branches down a table runner, and letting them mingle with clusters of pine cones. Then at the end of the season, simply compost them. “Or if you have a fireplace, burn it, baby!”

Backyard Herbs

Still need a little more greenery? Never forget fragrant fresh herbs. “I have rosemary in my backyard, and I’m a sucker for sage,” Douglas says. Which might already be in your shopping cart this season, if you’re roasting a turkey. Douglas recommends bundling longer stems into packets, using a small piece of wire, and tying or tucking them together to create garlands.

Holiday Tablescape

Add fresh herbs to the table for beauty and fragrance | Becky Duffet

Flea Market Treasures

Douglas avoids using plastic or foam, anything that’s not biodegradable. She loves to support local artisans, so for handcrafted ceramics, she shops at Heath Ceramics, which happens to have a great resell site for vintage and pre-owned items, as well as West Coast Craft. But even on a budget, there’s no need to splurge — she scours flea markets for Art Nouveau and Art Deco style vases. “If you’re in a pinch, a Mason jar is just fine,” Douglas says, especially when they’re tinted in pretty colors, like amber for autumn. 

Holiday Tablescape

Utilize upcycled mason jars for floral arrangements | Becky Duffet

Add a little glow 

Finally, if you want to give a holiday tablescape warmth, she recommends weaving in candles. You could play with height with tall taper candles, or tuck tea lights into cute jam jars, and let them accompany and illuminate those clusters of fruit.  

Prefer to leave it to the floral pros? You can always pick up one of Douglas’s succulent pumpkins! Featuring a mini white pumpkin from Half Moon Bay, decorated with moss, dried flowers, and succulent trimmings. (Kept dry and indoors, they should last for several weeks, then you could plant the pumpkin in a pot of soil, and let the succulents continue to grow.) Or of course, the Bi-Rite floral team is here to help with any holiday needs, wrapping up seasonal bouquets and wreaths, featuring favorite farms like Fully Belly and JSM Organics.

Becky Duffett is a food writer living and eating in San Francisco. Follow her on Instagram at @beckyduffettopens a new window.

Holiday Tablescape

A zero-waste tablescape complete with seasonal fruit, floral arrangements, and candles for added warmth | Angela Douglas