For many people, today will be a frenzy of last minute holiday dinner preparations. With this chaos in mind, I have 3 strategies for entertaining at home. I'll demonstrate by showcasing a recent holiday party =)
Spread Out!
Avoid congestion by creating party zones. For example, serve cocktails and a few appetizers in the family room; create a food buffet in the kitchen; and offer dinner seating in your dining room and adjacent [living] rooms. After dinner, swap out wine and apps for coffee and dessert.
For my client's party, we set up a bar a desk (above left) and created a food buffet on the kitchen table. Dinner tables were set up in the living room and in another cozy room as well as the dining room.
Go Semi-Homemade!
I'm a huge fan of semi-homemade strategies! For example, my quick and affordable solution for table decor is to deconstruct beautiful bouquets of flowers into smaller centerpieces for the dinner tables and food buffet as well as foyer tables and powder rooms.
For my client's party, I purchased 3 floral bouquets to fill 4 small vases plus 1 large container. To enhance the look, I filled the containers with faux snow and added snippets of evergreen and holly from my yard, silver ting from my client's pantry and seasonal ribbon.
Light Up!
Candles transform rooms and convey warmth! For my client's party, I placed a few red votive candles on the dinner tables, food buffet and kitchen island. It was just enough accent without going over the top!
Need more ideas? Recently, I suggested a few napkin folding ideas as well as a quick and easy recipe for Peppermint Cookie Bark (which is a great hostess gift, too!).
These are just a few of my strategies for successful entertaining at home. We'll explore more ideas in 2011! Until then, I wish everyone a Merry Christmas full of love, laughter and many memories!
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