≡ Menu

Best Ever Elegant Holiday Entertaining Tips


Tip: Add nature to your guest list this holiday. Table: Hooker Furniture

Tip: Simple touches create a festive mood.

’Tis the season to make merry and bright with family and friends. Make your holiday gathering one they’ll remember long after the last eggnog toast with these elegant entertaining tips. A mix of pretty, practical and positively wow, each will help you impress -without duress- because they’re also easy to do.

Tip: Glam is good. Hooker Furniture.

The subtle champagne shimmer finish of the Arabella Round Dining Table and Arabella side dining chairs sparkles with a rich luster that reflects the festive tone of the season we’re celebrating. Slender, softly curved legs create an aura of romance as fretwork-carved chair backs, with Arabesque motifs, add architectural interest.

This lovely tablescape celebrates nature with fragrant mini wreaths made of snipped rosemary and a centerpiece of natural greenery.

Infusing interiors with layers of scent is a popular trend and is so easy to do during the holidays. Just take a quick stroll outdoors. This lovely tablescape features a mini wreath made with snipped rosemary, and a nature-inspired centerpiece fashioned from fresh evergreen branches, pomegranates and colorful glass pine cones.

Tip: Couture comfort = happy, stylin’ guests. Settee by Sam Moore.

An on-trend, versatile seating option, the Houlihan settee works the room in style. As a standalone in a small space, it create a fashion focal point. By flanking the fireplace with a pair of settees, you’ll create a cozy conversation zone. Or invite this plush settee to the table as an elegant spot for guests to sit and linger longer after the meal ends.

Tip: Layer in double-duty decor. Hooker Furniture.

The narrow footprint and double shelf design of the Melange Rivata Hall Console will make it a host’s best friend. In the living room, it can serve as a mini bar for cocktails by the Christmas tree. Dress up a narrow passageway by displaying holiday decor on this skinny mini table or place it in your foyer to give guests a place to stash bags and phones when they come through the door.

Tip: Tiny tables pay off big. Hooker Furniture

With portable nesting tables like these, guests can better relax. They’ll have a place to perch drinks and snacks—no more juggling with both hands all night long. And as a design bonus, the dark painted glass tops and silver metal bases of these space-saver tables are so chic they’re bound to make heads turn.

Tip: Comfy seating is a guest’s dream come true. Hooker Furniture.

Family and friends will enjoy your gathering and stay longer with a comfy place to sit and relax. Meticulously hand-crafted in luxe leather with deep plush cushions and arms, the Sydney Club Chair fits the bill and is destined to be the most popular seat in the room.

Tip: Limit trips to and from the kitchen. Hooker Furniture.

Although you’re the host, you are not a maid and should enjoy the party, too. Sized right for holding extra food or dining essentials, or to work as a self-serve salad station or dessert bar, the Miramar Aventura Maricopa Buffet will keep you more in the party scene than away from it. There’s spacious storage below, too, including a removable silverware tray and felt liner.

Tip: Send guests on their way with a sweet treat. Ed Anderson.

Offer the tastebuds of your guests a decadent end to the night. This recipe for semisweet hot fudge sauce is easy to make ahead and is wonderful served over ice cream, brownies or cake.  Make an extra batch and treat guests to a jar wrapped in festive paper and ribbon as a take-home party favor. They’ll remember your gathering as extra-sweet and special.

SEMISWEET HOT FUDGE

from

The Perfect Scoop Revised and Updated by David Lebovitz

Makes 3 cups (750ml) 

This sauce is very rich and very thick. If you prefer your hot fudge on the sweeter side, this is the one for you. 

1 cup (250ml) heavy cream 

6 tablespoons (85g) unsalted butter, cut into pieces 

2 tablespoons light corn syrup 

2⁄3 cup (130g) sugar 

8 ounces (230g) bittersweet or semisweet chocolate, chopped 

1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract 

  1. Heat the cream, butter, corn syrup, and sugar in a large saucepan until the mixture begins to boil. Boil for 3 minutes, stirring occasionally, making sure it doesn’t boil over. 
  1. Remove from the heat and add the chopped chocolate, stirring until melted and smooth. Stir in the vanilla. Serve warm. 

STORAGE: This sauce can be stored in the refrigerator for up to 2 weeks. Rewarm it gently in a microwave or by stirring in a saucepan over very low heat.

Reprinted with permission from The Perfect Scoop Revised and Updated , copyright © 2018 by David Lebovitz. Published by Ten Speed Press, an imprint of Penguin Random House LLC. Photograph copyright © 2018 by Ed Anderson. 

{ 0 comments… add one }

Leave a Comment