The Table Top and Party Tips

In decorating our Table Top for a dinner party this Spring, I found inspiration from the time of year. A small bird figurine, tiny glass eggs, a couple of nests along with fake (but real looking) greenery mingle with the candlelight and the outdoor lights hanging on the fence outside to give a soft, glowing, etheral effect.

Party Tip #1 Use what you have to set your table. This china pattern, handed down from my great Aunt, was service for eight. It was impossible to find more pieces at the price I wanted to pay, so I searched high and low for a different pattern that I could mix with my collection. And believe it or not, I found a simple china set at Target! The basic white plate is rimmed with a tan edge and it works really well with the olive green and gray pattern from my Aunt. And since olive green and gray don't seem to work for a Spring pallete, I added white battenburg lace napkins for a lighter look.

Party Tip #2
Find ways to use flowers from your garden! The gardenias growing in my back yard were so fragrant and beautiful the day of our party and they matched my color scheme as well! I did not have many to start with, but I found that even one gardenia adds a wonderful fragrance. Hint: don't cut gardenias more than a day before your party, they turn pretty quickly, even though their fragrance lingers for many days.

Party Tip #3: Fill your water glasses with ice (just ice, no water) before your guests arrive--it's one less thing you have to do after everyone has arrived, giving you more time to mingle. By the time you are ready to start serving, the ice will have melted part way so that all you need to do is add is a little water or maybe none at all. Voila! Very Icy Cold Water!