What a day! This morning I woke up early enough. Enjoyed my morning cup of cawfee then got dressed and gathered.
No warm and fuzzy plaid today. I’m dressed for ironing! At lease my tee has a “red” theme!
I gathered all the cloth napkins, a few tablecloths and table runners that I plan to use for the Holiday meals. The tree skirt and an apron were also thrown into the mix.
This is just a sampling of the wrinkled mess that confronted me!
And I went downstairs and ironed. And ironed. And ironed.
Doesn’t everyone iron cloth napkins?
In fact, I spent three hours ironing.
And while I ironed, Chippy watched morning TV as comfortable as ever. There is something so wrong about this..
When he looked down at the remote, it meant I had to change the channel for him. He’s a big fan of The View!
I managed to iron all of this…
…and this…
….and this.
And when the ironing was finished, Chippy allowed me a bit of time to sit down and watch The Chew!
Despite the worst title you can give a TV show, The Chew is surprisingly great TV!!!
It’s all part of the Holiday preparations. The house will be full. The kids will be here and Oona’s boyfriend will be arriving the day after Christmas and stay through the week.
Christmas dinner’s table will be set with places for my kids, Bonaparte’s daughter, her husband and their daughter and my ex-husband and his girlfriend will be joining us.
I need to get as much done as possible. I’ve got cookie dough, cream puffs, pound cake and gougères that I’ve prepared in the freezer.
Alain Ducasse’s Gougeres Recipe is the bomb! These little nuggets of choux pastry and cheese are in the freezer!
Shortbread has been wrapped in plastic and in the cabinet as well as candied nuts. The Buche de Noel and Nougatine can be made a few days before Christmas but the biscotti will be baked on Saturday or Sunday.
Candied nuts. Thank God for Trader Joe’s–the price on nuts is the cheapest ever!!
And part of that preparation is making sure that the table linens are cleaned and pressed. It isn’t a task that should be put off until the last minute. By taking care of this now—it’ll mean no stress when the table is to be set.
Look how nice and unwrinkled. I wish my face was that smooth!
I’m not a formal person by nature. My vibe, even during the Holidays, is casual and welcoming. It’s really important for anyone coming into my home to be comfortable and that comes through in the way I dress the table.
My casual table. This is how it looks now. We eat dinner here every night.
Luckily, I love the color red—and red being a Christmas color, means that I don’t need to go out and purchase anything more to dress the table. I like that. And it sets the tone.
Some of this year’s Poinsettias. I gotta go get me some more!
See how pretty this little round table off the kitchen looks? I’m glad I saw this pic. I need to steam the wrinkles out of the burlap tablecloth! I’m ashamed!
The tone being familiarity and comfort. I don’t spend a ton of money on my tableware. Much of it comes from thrift and discount stores. The good stuff to me, is the company and the food that’s made with love. Trust me, I try to make everyone feel special and I love a wonderfully set table—it’s just that I keep it incredibly casual.
Plates break. I come from that home where spilled milk is a major cause for drama so you can just imagine the drama that occurred over any broken china.
This is how I grew up when milk spilled.
And during the Holidays, my mother served food on the good china. And every year someone broke a plate or a bowl. It wasn’t a good scene.
God forbid someone break a plate…
The drama that ensued was incredible. Someone always ended up in tears! This is my childhood Christmas memory.
Perhaps that’s why I keep it underdressed and casual.
My plates, for the most part are solid. Either white, cream or red. I do have good china—sort of, that I purchased many, many years ago at my favorite thrift store in New Jersey, The Red, White, and Blue Store. And the money spent was so minimal that it doesn’t matter if a few plates break.
My “good” American Limoges from the Red White and Blue store. I must have 100 pieces of assorted plates, bowls, serving dishes, cups, saucers, cream and sugar bowls and gravy boats in this pattern. I paid like twenty five bucks for it all–and nothing has ever broken. Yet.
Besides, it’s fun to mix and match—so here’s a few ideas!
My favorite tablecloth is the Moroccan-inspired trellis print. A white plate with a red soup bowl and a red-dotted napkin look cheerful!
All white against the same cloth. Those soup bowls are so old that the inside looks a bit wonky but it doesn’t matter. It’ll be filled with soup! And I have a huge white soup terrine!
A Rooster bowl atop white plates. This bowl will be great for gumbo!
Looks fancy–the thrifted china against a cream tablecloth. This may be good for Christmas Eve. I dunno yet.
Lunch time! Soup, a sandwich and a cuppa tea–Holiday Style!
I love the red, white red on the bare table. This wooden table is great because I really don’t need a tablecloth. I LOVE these paisley napkins! They are so versatile. Holiday and non-holiday dinners and these napkins always look festive! The napkins are Ralph Lauren and I know that I picked them up at Home Goods for next to nothing!
Same napkin, cream and white plates.
An every-day placemat, white and cream plates and a plaid (weren’t you expecting that from me?) napkin look very Christmasy!
Red napkin, a small rooster plate and another meal has a different look…
…and the same look can be changed with a different color napkin!
Other touches include this great Lazy Susan I picked up at Home Goods a while ago. It’ll make things move easier on the table!
And not only does this work well on the table, but…
This will work so well in the Living Room as we have out aperitifs and appetizers.
This’ll make my hostess duties a lot easier!
Little wine glass markers are also a necessity for holiday entertaining!
They may be slightly kitchy, but these Christmas tree salt and pepper shakers serve a purpose. With 10 people at the table, multiple shakers come in handy!
These rooster shakers are so cute..and if anyone has too much to drink..
They can see what shaker holds salt and which one holds pepper. It’s on the back!
And now the napkins and tablecloths are stored in the antique dresser in the living room. Everything is close at hand!
Waiting to make an appearance on Christmas Eve!
Well, that’s about it. What do you think? What’s your Holiday style? Relaxed? Formal? Casual? Do tell!! It’ll be fun to hear what everyone likes! Do you have a prep-ahead thing that you do? I’m listening?
Yes. A gentle reminder of what happens AFTER Christmas dinner!!!
And while I’m polishing my silverware, have a listen to Dino singing about Sliver Bells!
