Tomorrow is Christmas Eve and I will be on a flight. Today I am hosting a pre-Christmas dinner for a few friends. Getting a group together for chat and smiles is one of the big bonuses of the festive season, everyone feels jolly enough to make the time in their hectic schedules.
Knowing I would be here today, gone tomorrow! I wanted to set up an attractive but Christmas-sy table setting trying to use as much tableware I already had, to avoid waste of perishable items.
All I purchased for the table setting was:
1. A Bag of Fresh Cranberries £2.49
2. 6 Giant Gold Chocolate Coins @ £1.49 each
All from
Waitrose.com
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| I strategically only used Italian glass tumblers on the table, leaving the wine glasses in the kitchen to serve wine as the guests arrived. |
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| I used ribbon as napkin rings around starched linen napkins and garnished the "whiteness" of the plate setting with a gold bauble. |
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| I like layering up a table setting, 1. Red raffia mat, 2, Gold Charger, 3.White bone china dinner late, 4. Porcelain heart shaped bowl all finished off with softer looking gold touches. |
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| I decorated the desk in the dining room with a very large, chunky, porcelain bowl filled with fur cones (usually meant for the fire!) and red nutmegs. |
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| The cake is a celebration cake ordered in advance from Waitrose.com Entertaining, Vanilla Sponge Celebration Cake 25cm £16.00 (a light sponge sandwich with a buttercream and jam centre, covered with smooth white icing). The Christmas decorations are from my store cupboard purchased a few years ago and re-used each year. The other items (Liberty snow globe, crystal jug, glass ice bucket etc. were gifts given to me in years gone by that I love and re-use each Christmas. |
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Giant gold chocolate coins are fun as coasters and party favours for guests to take home.
I purchased these fab hallmark crackers in the sale last year with 75% off! |
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| The centre piece layered from the bottom up 1. A piece of slate, 2. A red raffia mat, 3. Lots of gold baubles, 4. A hurricane lamp, 5. A candle & 6. A bag of fresh cranberries. |
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| I love to combine red and white at Christmas. This raisied white porcelain dish looks very festive with Lindor shiney red truffles in an enticing pile. |
And by candlelight...
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| Including gold glittery elements to the table setting added a glisten here and there when the candles were lit. |
I kept the food simple too, I wanted to spend time with my guests. I roasted a turkey crown - made easy by
Waitrose.com - I ordered it online a couple of weeks ago, it was £23.19. Not only was the collection in-store seamless from handing over my order number to seeing the bird arrive on a tray in the lift! for me to take away, but I was overjoyed to see the turkey crown had been pre-weighed, the cooking time calculated and printed on the front, and it was supplied in a handy roasting bag! I proudly made
Delia Smith's Pork, Sage & Onion Stuffing, with roast potatoes, a selection steamed vegetables and gravy of course.
Knowing that all guests would be pretty stuffed after the main course, we spent some time chatting. Then I then served a small piece of cake with coffee and cream instead of a rich Christmas pudding.
