Decking the halls this time of year can be a thrilling experience that transforms your living space into a storybook landscape of holiday trappings.
Next, having decided that you will invite friends and family to your home for a graceful reception can cause a ripple effect of concerns over how to best make the event memorable while also being manageable. Unfortunately these two ideals are often at odds with each other.
Let’s tip the scales in your favor and allow you to create an evening that your guests thoroughly enjoy and one that fills you with pride without putting you through the proverbial ringer. Everyone at your elegant holiday party should be full of comfort and joy, including the hosts.
In preparation for the event you may have searched through your collection of servingware and found it woefully underrepresented. While an elegant look can be achieved both by a tastefully eclectic collection of pieces or and by simply having multiples of similar stalwart pieces, for the party you wish to throw, a larger volume of serving vessels will only serve you well.
Weston Table has curated a wonderful collection of serving platters from heirloom-quality handmade pewter to rustic antique wooden boards. Why not get some of each and pair them together on your table to give a sense of whimsy while also giving you the flexibility to set up different serving stations for food, beverages, or just decor that easily moves in and out of position as needed.
Just as setting the table a few days prior to Thanksgiving gives the host some breathing room while checking a big to-do item off the very large list, laying out all your serving platters beforehand is an expert tip that gives you an idea of how the party will flow, allows you to gauge the amount of food and beverage you need to amass for the evening, and gives you the opportunity to make changes to your layout before guests arrive.
Think of each platter, serving board and tray as a portable part of your party that can be filled and refilled with ease as needed without disturbing the rest of your presentation. Elegance in ease and simplicity.
An elegant evening may be evocative of varied moods for different hosts but this is the chance for you to present your ideal staging for your guests and create that mood with intention and aplomb.
While having a string quartet positioned in an acoustically advantageous corner will certainly set a certain tone for the evening, a carefully crafted playlist sweeping through the event space will work just as well to provoke the feeling you wish to impart on your guests with more control and less hassle.
Speaking of limiting the amount of hassle on the hosts, it is recommended that you choose an existing playlist from a robust online library such as Spotify or Amazon Music rather than building one yourself – you’ll thank yourself for doing so.
Now you just need to spread the audible good cheer around the event so that everyone gets a taste. Sonos has a system that works as well on a small environment as a large scale since units can be added that all connect over WiFI.
Get started with their Sonos One speaker that is voice activated, works with their mobile app or Apple AirPlay – elegantly versatile.
Another way to infuse your evening with elegance is with your decor. As these are the holidays, bringing a bit of the outside, then gilding it with lighting – whether candles or strings of lights – gives your space a hearty, welcoming, festive feel. Don’t get fooled into thinking that garlands are just for mantle pieces and wreaths are just for doors. Both arrangements bring so much to a tablescape to infuse the presentation area with texture, scent, and varying heights. Food52 carries a beautiful selection of boughs from Creekside Farms that distributed throughout your event space will surely evoke smiles of joy from your guests.
Have the bravado to deconstruct any of the wreaths or garlands you select to infuse smaller sprays of flora onto your serving boards, into vases of differing heights and arrangements or even make unexpected boutonnieres or corsages for your guests – they’ll be thrilled. And look elegant as they become moveable pieces of your festive decor.
Evoking elegance at your holiday should be a joyous adventure that, yes, will take a good amount of work to pull together.
Making your guests comfortable while giving them hours in which to be entertained is most certainly elegant. Having an evening that goes along smoothly – allowing the hosts to engage with and not just serve their guests – gives the event an air of elegance.
You’re deciding to give your friends and family the gift of your home, delicious food and beverage, and each other’s company is elegant in and of itself. Even more exquisite than your guests’ ensembles, the memories your party creates will undoubtedly only grow in elegance as they are retold again and again.
