christmas table centerpiece

I thought long and hard about how I wanted to decorate this vintage tray for Christmas.  It is the centerpiece for my dining room table and main focus of the room.  Because it is rather deep for a tray, it was a bit more of a challenge.

I decided to follow Miss Mustard Seed’s idea of using these little papier mache boxes.  They were purchased at Hobby Lobby and come as a set of 3 boxes that fit inside each other.  I painted mine in greens and beige to coordinate with the colors of the dining room decor.  They are easy to paint and dry very quickly, and then it’s just a matter of using pretty ribbon to dress them up.

I started with the largest box and painted it a dark green.  I used a lovely pine ribbon from JoAnn Fabrics, faux pine, and pine cones.

The second box I painted beige and used a skinny cardinal-themed ribbon (also from JoAnn Fabrics this year).

And the smallest box, I painted a soft pale green.  Instead of using ribbon, I decided to add a different texture and made a pom pom to top it off.

I was planning on using beige yarn for the pom pom, but changed my mind when I found this natural variegated colored yarn that played so well with all the other woodsy colors of the arrangement.

Because the tray is so deep, I elevated the two smaller boxes by propping them up underneath.  Then I added some sprays of faux pine with pine cones that I already had to fill out the empty spaces.

I love the icy look of these pines.

Lastly, I propped a little “let it snow” sign in front of the tray for a final touch.

My living room, dining room, and kitchen are all decorated in shades of green, white, and wood tones, so these little boxes can easily be moved around and used in any of these rooms.  I used leftover paint I already had on hand and ribbon was purchased at 70% off, making this an inexpensive centerpiece.  They would also make a thoughtful and darling way to wrap a small gift for someone special.