Create a simple and elegant, old world inspired Christmas candle ring centerpiece using greenery, fresh and dried fruits, nuts and cinnamon sticks.

Christmas is just days away, but there’s still time to do a little holiday decorating to enjoy throughout Christmas and New Year’s Day. Today some blogging friends and I are getting together to share some last minute ideas and inspiration for the holidays.

You will find links to each lovely post full of holiday  ideas at the end of this post.

Over the last few years I have been craving simplicity when it comes to Christmas decorating, using more  vintage-traditional elements reminiscent of old world Christmases with English country, European or even early American colonial vibes. Dried fruits, fresh fruits, candles, nuts, and lots of velvet ribbon are easy ways to create this aesthetic. Don’t forget plaid!!!!!!

A Simple and Elegant Holiday Candle Wreath Centerpiece

This year on the farm table I put together a simple candle wreath with mixed faux evergreens, fruits, nuts and cinnamon sticks. It was so quick and easy to create and perfectly captures the simplicity and elegance of old world Christmases. I haven’t even finished my tablescape yet (still need to set napkins, utensils, and glasses) but I just love the way the table looks so far!

Instead of my large dough bowl filled with greenery and fruits as the farm table centerpiece, I simply made a wreath out of a shorter piece of realistic faux evergreen garland and wrapped it around the base of a pretty hurricane glass candle holder. I then tucked in additional “sprigs” of various faux evergreens, juniper berries, nuts, apples, clementines, dried orange and lime slices, and cinnamon sticks.

The dining room is right off from the kitchen, where I also used  an old world, simple and elegant greenery and fruits as a theme this year.

Since I might want to use the garland again in a different way I chose not to hot glue the items to the wreath. All the goodies on the wreath have have stayed put, but floral wire could be used to keep the dried fruits, cinnamon sticks and nuts in place instead of hot glue so the garland could be reusued.

To give the wreath an on trend look for less, I took apart a faux branch of Norfolk pine and tucked individual pieces around the pine and cedar wreath. N0rfolk pine garlands and wreaths are pricey, but the branch was only $8.oo at a local decorating shop. I love the combination of the various textures of the greenery in the wreath.

Of course you could always use a real wreath or mixed greens to create a candle ring centerpiece. I am certainly going to repeat this centerpiece next year and I might add in some foraged greenery.

I also made little candle rings for my faux taper candles out of the same faux juniper picks in the candle ring wreath. 

I used mixed nuts and cranberries I had dried in the oven as a filler around the candle.

I am really loving the greenery adn fruits centerpiece along with some of the other simple English country and traditional accents in the dining room like this pretty equestrian pillow in lieu of Santas, snowmen or kitschy items (Nothing wrong with those treasures, I have plenty in the kitchen and elsewhere around the house this Christmas!)

A Very Merry and Bright Vintage Christmas Kitchen 

The equestrian pillow on the church pew and the hunting horn on the mirror above the vintage chest work beautifully with the colonial fruits holiday theme in the dining room. The old world clementine tower topiary is faux, but I plan to make a real one.

I kept my flocked tree simple this year too, using only orange slices, a few vintage style gold ornaments, battery operated candles and green velvet ribbon. An elegant, sacred Christmas vignette with French vibes on top of the vintage chest continues the old world Christmas theme in the dining room.

A simple and elegant Christmas cloche with the holy family and small lights reminds us that Jesus is the reason for the season. I will be sharing one last post with more photos of this cloche and the dining room on Friday. 

I hope you have been inspired by my simple and elegant, old world Christmas Centerpiece! Now it’s time to continue with some last minute holiday inspo over at Common Ground. Debra’s Christmas mantel is gorgeous! Don’t forget to visit the other blogs on today’s hop via the links below.

Merry Christmas to all!

Amber