INSPIRATION FOR FESTIVE ENTERTAINING AT HOME

This year, more than ever, we should embrace and promote the holiday spirit of kindness and beauty.

Whether you celebrate Diwali, Thanksgiving, Kwanza, Hanukkah, or Christmas, we can all come together and celebrate common values, focusing on what connects us rather than what separates us.

Entourage Collection has been organizing events and parties and decorating client’s homes for over 12 years, so here are some of our favourite creative tips we would love to share with you!

COLOURS & THEME

Entourage Events, Barker Evans

Wild About Flower, Holly Clark

Hayford & Rhodes

Look around your home and pull out anything you think could work on the table:

Table runner / strip of fabric or hessian

Tablecloths, placemats, coasters, napkins, and napkin rings

Ribbons

China, glassware, and cutlery

Festive ornaments - this could be crackers, spare baubles or figurines

Candles, candlesticks, and vases

Edible items like figs, plums, pomegranates, berries, oranges, apples, cinnamon sticks,
walnuts, decorative biscuits, and sweets

Branches, greenery like rosemary, holly or ferns, and fir cones - involve the children and
get them out in the garden (be careful with spiky holly!)

Lay everything out next to each other and pick out colours and themes you like, helping
you to decide on the overall look

Pack away the items you are not using so you keep your working area as uncluttered as possible.

ASSEMBLING & LAYERING

If you are using a tablecloth and/or runner, start by laying these out first.
Do they need to be ironed and are they centrally positioned?

Next add any placemats, charger plates, china, or coasters

We like to add the napkins next, normally placed on top of the china – if you can, use
fabric napkins as they are more tactile and are re-usable after washing

Polish your cutlery and glassware and position at each place setting

You now have the bare bones of the tablescape and can start to add your decorative
items, being mindful of space for serving dishes

Begin with the central feature; this could be one main arrangement, perhaps a vase
filled with branches and foliage hung with baubles, or maybe a runner you created from garden foliage

Take a step back - if using a vase/large arrangement, are site lines blocked for seated
guests? If you’ve opted for a runner or lots of different-sized arrangements of flowers
and greenery, are there any gaps?

Place your candle holders and candles on the table. Ideally, you want the twinkling flame
of candlelight at different heights on the table. Coloured candles are an inexpensive
way of including an accent colour; the long, tapered style look particularly elegant

Add your ornaments, fruits, nuts, sweets, etc. to complete the look. Gold spray paint is a
really easy way to give these items a festive makeover!

To finish, return to your napkins. Add some decoration and/or place cards. Our favourite place cards are from
The Punctilious Mr. P’s Place Card Co. but you can also make your own from:

Bits of coloured card you’ve cut out and then written names in metallic pen on
Pomegranates / larger fruits onto which you’ve pinned labelled cards. Fruits
could be plain or sprayed in metallic paint
Mini-wreaths using sprigs of rosemary, tied with ribbon or string and a name card
Ribbon wrapped around the napkin, strung with mini baubles and a name card
Napkins with guests names monogrammed
A simple, but effective, solitary candy cane set at each place!

THE LAST TOUCHES

About an hour before showtime, set the scene with classic holiday music and lightly scented candles to stimulate all the senses. Some people are anti-scented candles whilst eating, but we are festive maximalists, so more is more for us!

After all that hard work and creativity, you’ve earned a glass of Champagne - so take a minute to sit down, feel proud of your festive handy work, and breathe before your guests arrive!

From all of us at Entourage Collection, Happy Holidaying!