"There’s nothing out there right now!" My mother yelled after me as I threw on a fleece, grabbed some pruners and a plastic lettuce tub off the washing machine, and headed outside to her November garden. A last-minute family gathering demanded something special for the table, but what?

The lilies and zinnia were gone; the lavender, so over; and even in a California climate, the late roses were very late indeed – in fact, fully expired. I was possessed of three identical thrift store vases, two enthusiastic nieces, and forty-five minutes ‘till dinner hit the table. Theme: Shock and Awe. Materials: Whatever the hell I could find. Attitude: Confident.

There’s Always Something Out There

In fairness, I’d had help with my attitude. Just before I’d left to visit family on the West Coast, I’d had my creative courage fortified by an afternoon’s entertaining seminar at Glenstone Gardens, a Virginia events estate set in the rolling hills of Loudoun County, Virginia.

The creation of gorgeous tables exemplifying November gratitude and December joy was very much the point of the afternoon, but there was one major theme running through all – a foraged aesthetic.

That’s an aesthetic and attitude I adore, and one that I live by; but it’s always wonderful to get a bit of validation by designers who officially know what they’re doing.

As clear autumnal sunshine shimmered off an elegantly laid table of bone china and tag sale finds, top floral stylist Shawn Cossette of Beehive Events and Augusta Cole of Augusta Cole Weddings and Events, empowered attendees with a foraged materials approach based on a central message of self-trust. "Don’t think about each element too much, just have fun." said Cossette, as a sophisticated distillation of the surrounding countryside came together under her hands.

Bronze ninebark. Privet berries. Frothy snakeroot and colorful begonia leaves. A single green apple. The aesthetic felt fresh, rustic, and effortlessly authentic.

Of course, in December, the base textures of the palette will change. Ninebark becomes juniper, begonias give way to the clippings off your Leyland cypress, or the scavenged fir branches from Christmas tree lots – and berries, fruits, and seed heads begin to take center stage.

Allow Yourself To Play

A foraged aesthetic is a little terrifying for those who follow the rules of symmetry, perfection and luxury; but as most of us have a hard time competing in that space anyway (either creatively or financially), such rigid parameters are equally terrifying. We are likely to stare at the blank table before us like a 9th grade writing prompt, tempted to play it safe and fall back on a passable grade with traditional elements that say ‘formal’ but whisper ‘predictable.'

Instead, Cossette and Cole urge us to lean into the season’s bounty in all its imperfection. Whether it’s frost-mottled rose hips or pinecones missing a scale or two, "differences create engagement in a table" says Cole, who enjoys delighting her clients with the strategic placement of a few hero elements amongst the treasured and the familiar.

That could be brightly colored knife handles to pep up the family silver, the choice of beeswax candles over plain white, or a few purchased floral components to enhance a textured, playful vision straight from the garden.

Re-Create The Outside, Inside

At the seminar, Cossette worked quickly from a large bucket of materials harvested from her garden and a friend’s earlier that morning. She showed us how to strip the bottom leaves of vivid blueberry stems and make fresh, slanted cuts on yellowing hydrangea foliage with a small paring knife to enable more water uptake.

She turned some leaves to face in, some to face out, and added plenty of spill, aided by a grid of floral tape placed over the opening of her green ceramic vessel.

"It’s tempting to use your favorite elements first. Don’t." she advised. "Give them the best position at the end."

Having trouble seeing the possibilities? Cossette recommends comfortable clothing, a glass of wine and favorite music might be all you need to start visualizing the fabulous in foraged. During the month of December, my favorite way to play with decorations and tablescapes is with a Christmas movie marathon going on in the background.

A Happy Ending, With Little Outlay

Determined to celebrate the often-overlooked in the scrub and wild spaces of my mother’s garden, my nieces and I clipped toyon berries and smooth manzanita branches. We cut privet, sagebrush and rosemary, and gathered windfall apples.

The youngest insisted on the foxtails that had once infested my socks as a child, and her sister grabbed the pruners to cut a few sprays of spiny scrub oak foliage and the last of the blanket flowers.

Twenty-five minutes of play later, the table looked miraculous. I can’t wait to set up the movie marathon, crack open a bottle of red, and apply the philosophy to December.