Beautiful French Table Settings Learn About L’Art de la Table

In France, you don’t just set a table for a meal. You create a “stage” for food and conversation, and it’s called l’Art de la Table.

It’s no secret that France is a leader in fashion design (names such as Christian Dior, Coco Channel, Pierre Cardin, and Yves Saint Laurent), luxury goods (LVMH), and home décor. French style sense goes beyond clothing to home décor and specifically to table settings; after all, the Michelin rating guide for restaurants began in France. A country of self-professed gourmets expects good quality, reasonably priced, and beautifully presented food.

What is L’Art de la Table?

As the phrase suggests, l’Art de la Table or the ‘art of the table’ is considered a form of artistic expression. It’s a canvas for creativity, allowing you to create a beautiful, elegant, thematic, or seasonal table. Like a recipe, many table-setting ingredients exist, including linens, plates, cutlery, and glassware. Depending on your creativity level, the final product’s possibilities are endless. However, respecting a few rules will enhance your guest’s dining experience. While you want your company to express pleasure with the tablescape, you do not wish to have a tabletop that is too ornate or impacts food service or conversation.

Critical Elements of a French Table Setting

Linens and Things: Cover the tabletop with a cloth or use placemats. Both options are perfectly acceptable. In either case, tablecloths or placements must be clean, stain-free, and, if necessary, ironed. Add matching or complementary cloth napkins. An excellent, long-lasting fabric is linen. Place napkins to the left of the place setting unless you are folding serviettes into exciting shapes. As a note, traditional table settings trend towards neutral tones and limited patterns. Bright colours and bold patterns are suitable for more casual settings.

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Spinning Plates: The number of plates you require depends on the number of courses in your meal. A charger plate (sous-plat) adds a decorative touch to the table. However, my husband would say it serves no purpose and might add to the washing. Stack the dinner and salad plates on top of the charger in the order of the courses. What about the bread? The bread plate (assiette à pain) is always on your left, which is good to know if your neighbour starts eating your bread roll.

Are you confused by Cutlery?: The positioning of silverware begs you not to mess with success and confuse your guests. The cutlery placement should follow the order of courses, with the flatware on the outside used first. Unless you are serving a meal that does not require cutlery, forks (fourchettes) belong on the lefthand side of the plate, with knives (couteaux) and soup spoons (cuillères de soupe) to the right. Dessert spoons and forks are typically placed horizontally above the plate. This beautiful cake server is perfect for serving pie or a cake.

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Glassware: Admittedly, some restaurants overdo it with the number of glasses. The rule (assuming it’s followed) is that the water glass is positioned first, above the knife, followed by white and red wine glasses.

Time to Get Artistic

Once you have the basics covered, it’s time to have fun with your creative side. Add an eye-catching centrepiece using any possible items, such as flowers, candles, leaves, seashells, pretty stones, etc. Regardless of your choice, the centrepiece should be low-profile so that your tablemates can converse without distraction from a branch, candle, or other things. If you want to go all out or if it’s a formal occasion, add place cards and menus at each setting.

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What Matters Most

Your goal with l’art de la table is to create an enjoyable dining experience. The typical French tablescape is elegant in its simplicity and follows specific rules. It’s about setting a table and engaging guests in a memorable dining experience. However, there is much room to make this ‘art form’ your own.

Provencal Fabrics les Indiennes

Visiting a market in Provence is almost impossible without seeing sellers of tablecloths, napkins, and other home decor items. As a warning, beware of quality and place of origin; not everything you see is made-in-Provence. The original printed Provencal fabrics were called les Indiennes.

Today’s bright Provencal prints originated from imports from East India in the 16th century. Jean-Baptiste Colbert (Minster of Finance under King Louis XIV) allowed free access into the Port of Marseille, and trade activity increased as imported goods arrived from the Indies. Among them were cotton fabrics with bright floral patterns and colourfast dyes. These so-called Indiennes gained immediate success with the local population.

Several brands make cotton products in Provencal prints for clothing and decoration. Among them are Souleiado, Les Indiennes de Nimes, and Les Olivades, the last company to print the indiennes in Saint Etienne du Gres in the Alpilles. Established in Provence in 1948, Marat d’Avignon® is still making beautiful fabrics. Today, the company creates a line of products for table décor from their stock of traditional and figurative motifs. Striving to rejuvenate old Provencal patterns imported from India, Marat d’Avignon® produces technical tableware and home decoration fabrics.

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Recipe Ideas for Your Next Dinner Party

Carolyne Kauser-Abbott

With her camera and laptop close at hand, Carolyne has traded in her business suits for the world of freelance writing and blogging. Her first airplane ride at six months of age was her introduction to the exciting world of travel.

While in Provence, Carolyne can be found hiking with friends, riding the hills around the Alpilles or tackling Mont Ventoux. Her attachment to the region resonates in Perfectly Provence this digital magazine that she launched in 2014. This website is an opportunity to explore the best of the Mediterranean lifestyle (food & wine, places to stay, expat stories, books on the region, travel tips, real estate tips and more), through our contributors' articles.

Carolyne writes a food and travel blog Ginger and Nutmeg. Carolyne’s freelance articles can be found in Global Living Magazine, Avenue Magazine and City Palate (Published Travel Articles).