I often get the question “Which garland should I use for my table?” from my customers. When it comes to this time of year, there are three questions we always ask back to help guide customers to the right garland for their table.
Are you setting the table for Thanksgiving or Christmas?
Are you wanting to create a fall table or holiday table?
We are excited that, for the first year ever, we have both a Fall Collection and a Holiday Collection to differentiate your look.
I designed the Fall Collection to embody tones and themes of the harvest season - muted greens in eucalyptus, lots of caramel and velvet from backing of the magnolia leaves and olive leaves which encompass the meaning of peace and friendship.
The Holiday Collection is full of evergreens of many natures. If you are someone who likes the “traditional Christmas look”, typically that means you want to decorate with our products that have “Christmas tree” in the them… this green would be Fraser Fir. Our products that are made with fraser fir include products from The Fraser Fir Collection, The Tri-Mix Collection or The Ultimate Holiday Mix Collection. If you like more of a minimal, organic look, we recommend products from The White Pine Collection or The Leyland Cypress Collection. And, if you are into upcycling your greenery for sustainable practices, we recommend garland from The Boxwood Collection or The Magnolia Collection because if these products are kept and dried properly, you can use them again for seasons to come - read up here on how to upcycle your greens!
How long is your table?
For The Fall Collection, the garlands come in 5’, 10’, 15’, 25’ - you have several options in lengths. The Holiday Collection is a bit different. Most of our Holiday Collection garlands come in only 25’ lengths. For both collections, we recommend that you can buy a larger quantity and cut the garland with garden shears and use the garland in many different places, like above a doorway, on your mantle, on a sideboard, on your bar cart or on a railing.
If you have a rectangular table, we love the look of our garlands with candles. Even if that is all you add to your table, this is a simple and elevated look packed with beauty and charm.
If you have a smaller table, we recommend one of our swags or centerpieces that come in 24”-36” from our collection here.
If you have a round table, you we recommend the look of a wreath packed full of candlesticks or pillar candles in the middle. Or, our smaller swags are perfect touches to a round table. For a large round table, one versatile use of our versatile swags is to use two of them and create an X with both in the center of your table. Because these particular swags are pliable, the are very easy to stack for this look.
If you have a rectangular table - are you planning to add place settings to the ends of your table?
If your answer to this question is yes, we have an easy equation you can use to calculate how much greenery you'll need, considering that a typical place setting is about 14" - 16" wide. Estimated length of garland needed = length of table in inches - (15" x 2) For example.. if you have an 8' table, this would be your calculation. (8 x 12) - (15 x 2) = 66" or 5.5' For this size table, you would need 5' - 6' of garland. We would recommend buying a 5' garland from our Fall Collection or cutting a 5' segment from any of our Holiday Collection garlands. If your answer to this question is no, we absolutely LOVE the look of garland cascading off the ends of tables and drooping to the floor. If you plan to do this, we recommend 3 extra feet per table end. Here's an easy equation to determine the length you'll need if you want the look of greenery cascading to the ground off the ends of your table. Estimated length of garland needed = length of table in feet + (3' x 2) If you have an 8' table, this would be your calculation. 8 + (3 x 2) = 14' For this size table, you would need 14' of garland. We would recommend buying a 15' garland from our Fall Collection or cutting a 15' segment from any of our Holiday Collection garlands.
If you have any questions about seasonal greenery, or need help calculating what you need, feel free to reach out to us! Email us at info@graciousgarlands.com, or reach out to us on Instagram @graciousgarlands.
