A Bare-Bones Halloween Tablescape

One of the first Halloween tablescapes that I created ten years ago had a skull theme. Looking at photos of that tablescape and comparing them with this one really shows how my tablescaping style has evolved over the years. From time to time I browse some of my favorite shops online and when I saw these skeleton candle holders I knew that I had found one of the themes for one of this year’s Halloween tablescapes. I found this Antique Skeletons in Black and White tablecloth on sale on Spoonflower online.

I found these Rory Dobner Skeleton Appetizer Plates at Williams Sonoma online a few months ago. They came in a set of four with four different designs and I used two of them on this tablecape.

Because the tablecloth has a white background, I wanted this plate stack to be black, white, black, then white ending with these plates so I added another plate to the plate stack.

I bought these black melamine salad plates online at Home Depot three years ago to use on Halloween tablescapes. They were part of their Home Decorator Collection and they were made by Trenblay. An unusual plate design that is appearing more often now. I have noticed that plate designers are changing the shape of the edges of plates more and more often now.

This is one of my basic white dinner plates and I use it when I need a simple white plate. These dinner plates were made by Ralph Lauren and I found them at HomeGoods several years ago when I first started tablescaping. The back is labeled Ralph Lauren Club Porcelain. You definitely need a simple white dinner plate for your tablescaping collection if you plan to start this hobby. You can read my blog post about what to consider when you are buying dinner plates here.

These black glass Starburst chargers are called Charge It and they were made by Jay. I bought them several years ago on Amazon. They are heavy glass and they work well with many different color schemes.

This flatware was made by D & D Inox in Italy and the pattern was called Roma. I bought them at Neiman Marcus or Bloomingdales during a major sale several years ago. I really like the marbleized design on the handles. You can read my blog post about what to consider when you are buying flatware here.

I found these burgundy polyester napkins on Amazon a few years ago. I knew that I wanted to add an accent color to this black and white tablescape and I decided to use burgundy as an accent color. These black skull ceramic napkin rings came from DII and I bought them on Amazon five years ago. They were silver but I finally decided to have Hubby paint them black for me because I knew that I would use them more often if they were black.

To read about the what, where and how of napkin rings please click here.

While I was creating this tablescape this week I suddenly realized that I wanted to use black skulls as place card holders and I didn’t have any. I immediately checked Amazon and lucky for me I found these black resin skull place card holders. They were made by Marspark and they came in a set of 12 for a good price. How I love the fact that Amazon can ship some items in one day, and because we are Prime members, shipping is free! I often need the speed! I set the skulls on a dark bronze metal place card holder that I already had.

To read about the What, Where and When of place card holders, please click here.

I bought these tall black glass goblets on sale at Z Gallerie many years ago when I first started tablescaping. They are the tallest goblets I have in my goblet collection. I sometimes use them on Halloween tablescapes and on New Years Day tablescapes. Because the candlesticks with candles on this table are so tall I knew that I could use these tall goblets. You can read my blog post about what to consider when you are buying goblets for your tablescaping collection including the colors that I use most often here.

I bought two of these wonderful black skull candles at Z Gallerie many years ago. It features a solid matte black finish with intricate patterns in its deep recessed areas. The cranium, eye sockets, and jawline are covered in highly detailed, embossed mandala and filigree patterns. These include stylized hearts, floral geometric motifs, and lace-like engravings inspired by classic Day of the Dead (Calavera) artwork. I really love this unique design.

These two tall black skeleton candlesticks are so tall that with the candles added it is difficult to take a good photo of it all. I found them at Pottery Barn online and I probably bought the candles on Amazon. The candlesticks are handcrafted of aluminum with an Antique Bronze finish.

I really like the bright crisp black and white on this table with the deed red accents.

More Halloween tablescapes are coming!

To see over 300 different tablescapes that I have created please click here. If you are on Facebook, join my Table Settings and Tablescape Ideas Facebook group (4,400+ members) for lots of tablescaping inspiration! Just click on the Facebook Search box at the top of the page and type in Table Settings and Tablescape Ideas or click here: https://www.facebook.com/groups/2553689988183392

If you live in Southern California join our Facebook tablescaping group Southern California Tablescapers BTS Group (300 members) https://www.facebook.com/groups/440356398581157 . We had a gathering in January 2025 and we are having another one in November.

Don’t miss the Tablescape How-To tab at the top of my blog for DIY tips and tricks or click here: https://www.whispersoftheheart.com/tablescapehowto

I put a new tablescape on my blog every week, please check back!