Celebrations are sometimes planned way in advance. In those situations it is very easy to spend time making sure everything is perfect before guests arrive. But sometimes holiday and party preparations are an impulsive thing. One thing that can make a spur of the moment party memorable is a great set of table decorations.

A good place to start is with the flowers. Good floral arrangements can brighten up any table. All you have to do is find a suitable container for them. The good news is if you have a kitchen, you have a whole room full of containers for just about everything. How about some coffee cans with the labels removed? If you can find some pastel or metallic paint, a set of coffee cans can make great ad-hoc vases for your floral decorations.

If you are scheduling a dinner party, cloth napkins will give the meal class. Slick looking napkin holders will make the table look distinguished. How about a bow? If a nice gift can be presented with a festive bow, so can your holiday table’s cloth napkins. If you take the time to make sure the colors complement the rest of the decorations, this idea can really make your table shine.

With a little time and planning, you can take wreaths, hurricane vases and candles and turn your centerpiece into a conversation piece. A green wreath and pine cones surrounding shining clean vases containing large wide red candles will put your guests in a festive mood without putting much stress on your holiday preparations. These kinds of decorations combined with poinsettias, red ribbons as napkin holders and a suitably patterned tablecloth will put your design over the top.

Decorating is far more an art than a science, and that means the results matter much more than the tools utilized to achieve them. Almost anything can be marshaled into a well-presented decorative design, provided you see the table as a place to express your celebratory spirit and make sure your decorations are combined with your overall party preparations to match. Less is very often more, and when decorations work, they make everything more fun.