Christmas Table Setting for Santa Claus

I absolutely adore looking at tablescapes. I don’t know what it is but there’s just something incredibly beautiful in the perfect, creative table setting. The thing is, that I don’t have much experience in putting them together myself and so, creating this Christmas Table Setting for Santa Claus was a challenge for me. 

Welcome to the third annual 12 Days of Christmas Blog Hop!

Stop by every day from December first through the twelfth for new ideas you can use to make your season brighter! Today we are all sharing holiday table settings. 

Meet Your Hosts

They have all been busy as Elves creating, decorating, cooking and crafting tons of new ideas for you to try this holiday season!

Shirley~Intelligent Domestications I Alli~An Alli Event I Michelle~Our Crafty Mom I Marie~DIY Adulation 

Erlene~My Pinterventures I Beverly~Across The Blvd. I Debra~Shoppe No. 5 I Victoria~Dazzle While Frazzled

Megan~C’mon Get Crafty I Michelle~Michelle James Designs I Amanda~Domestically Creative

Deborah~Salvage Sister & Mister I Jeanie~Create & Babble I Sherry~Olives & Okra

Jenny~Cookies Coffee & Crafts I Emily~Domestic Deadline I Bonbon~Farmhouse 40 I Susanne~Pearl Street Designs 

Leanna~Of Faeries & Fauna I Pam Larmore~P.S. I Love You Crafts I Kelly~North Country Nest I Marie~The Inspiration Vault

Gail~Purple Hues and Me I Lynne~My Family Thyme I Karen~Dragonfly and Lily Pads I Trisha~Blowing Away Out West

Tomika~Life In Pumps I Rachee~Say it, “Rah-Shay” I Ra’Nesha~Queen Thrifty I Lorrin~Embrace The Perfect Mess 

Jaime~Love Jaime I Serena~The Weekend Jaunts I Terri~Christmas Tree Lane I Jessica~A Southern Mother 

Sam~Raggedy Bits I Rachel~Smart Mom Smart Ideas I Surya~The Busy Mom Club  I Cyn~Creative Cynchronicity

Valeria~Val Event Gal I Yami~The Latino Next Door I Jeannee~Centsably Creative I Tania~Little Vintage Cottage

 Lauren~Wonderfully Made I Vanessa~DIY 180 I Kimberly~A Wonderful Thought I Kim~Everyday Parties I Erica~Erica Ever After

Christmas Table Setting for Santa Claus

My first issue with creating a tablescape is that I just have too many ideas swimming around in my brain. I have a really tough time narrowing them down!! In this case, I came up with about 12 different ideas that I really loved and for a while, I just couldn’t choose between them. But then, the idea of creating a tablescape just for Santa Claus as he takes a break from his long, long journey really spoke to me.

It started with the cookie jar.

That Santa face cookie jar is a prized possession of mine. It has been in my family much longer than I have. The original hat was porcelain to match the jar but it broke several years ago, so I have substituted a cloth cap instead. As I was pulling things out of our Christmas boxes, I saw the cookie jar and knew that it needed to be the centerpiece of my table. 

That jar symbolizes so much for me.

It represents my family and our family history. The cookie jar makes me think of our traditions. Every Christmas Eve, I would put that jar out as my expression of love for Santa Claus. Along with a mug of milk (later, I switched it up and gave him eggnog so he could have something different), he could choose any of the Christmas cookies he liked from the jar. I was convinced that his favourites were shortbread just like mine. 

The jar takes me back to my childhood.

It reminds me of all the magical moments my parents created for me. How much effort they put into all of it and how much love they showed me by doing so – it’s all there in that jar. I think about the time spent with my mom learning to bake those cookies. We worked side by side as she showed me the steps for creating the dough and baking the perfect sweet treats. As we worked, we often chatted. It was in the innocence of the act of making cookies together that I would open up and share with my mom. In turn, she would tell me stories of her own childhood, and I would learn so much more about her. The Santa Claus cookie jar brought us closer together. 

The cookie jar reminds me of the first time I put it out, knowing that I was actually leaving those cookies and that eggnog for my dad.

I had begun to question Santa’s very existence. I wrote him a letter telling him so and my dad answered it. He could have simply said that Santa wasn’t real and left it at that. Instead, he wrote me a beautiful letter. You can read it here. Please do. I learned so much from it and it really touched me. Basically, it told me that we were all Santa for each other (and that Santa was a representation of us all being God for each other). It opened my eyes again to the depth of love my parents had for me. And it also opened my eyes to my responsibility to be Santa (and God) for others. 

So, the act of putting out cookies and eggnog for Santa Claus on Christmas Eve, even at my ripe old age is still an important one to me.

Over the years, I have added to my Santa collection with several Santa mugs, the cute milk bottle, the cheeky sign, and more. For this place setting, I began with my Pioneer Woman dishes. These dishes are something I allow myself to add to, simply because I find them beautiful. I added the green felt runner to give the table a little colour, but wanted much of the natural beauty of the wood to show through. This table has a story behind it too!

Between the Pioneer Woman plates, I used a tea towel in place of a standard napkin. I started doing this when my daughter was a child. I was often able to find cuter tea towels than napkins and it was practical too. The towels tend to be larger and more absorbent! In this case though, it was simply because it added to my Santa theme. Instead of my typical Santa face mug, I found this sassy Santa, the original bearded hipster one that I thought injected an element of the modern into the more traditional scene.

Two little plates, one for Santa’s cookie selection and one to hold some carrots for the reindeer, round out the display. It was always important to me to remember the reindeer when I was little and I often told Santa to take extra cookies home for Mrs. Claus and the elves too. Finally, you might see tucked right into the middle of the display, my little Mortimer Mouse in his Santa suit. You’ll never see me celebrate a Christmas Eve without a mouse! After all, not a creature was stirring, not even a …..well, you get the idea. Another nod to another tradition of reading T’was the Night Before Christmas every single December 24th since I was born.

This may not be the fanciest of table settings. It may not be the most perfectly put together either. What it is though, is a story-teller. It turns the memories in my heart and soul into tangible objects that can be seen and touched. It weaves a tale of the love of my parents, the joy of my family, and of the presence of God in our lives. That, for me, makes it the most beautiful tablescape ever. 

Be sure to visit our fellow 12 Days of Christmas Bloggers below for even more creative ideas this holiday season!