A Casual Weeknight Get Together

Usually blogging is a priority with me, but this week has been a different story. I'm focusing on a few impending deadlines for work as well as a mad rush to get ready for my trip to Brussels next week (more on that later). I was able to take a few hours last night, though, to host a very small dinner party for a few dear friends who I met through my blog: Will Merrill (former design director at Hickory Chair who now designs a great furniture collection for Currey & Co.), Rory Carlton, and Barry Leach (who, by the way, writes a fantastic blog called The Blue Remembered Hills.)

Playing hostess on a weeknight is easy if you remember two things. First, don't wait until the last minute to clean and spruce up your home. And second- and this is key- have someone else prepare your dinner. In fact, Chris Spitzmiller and I were recently talking about what a shame it is that so few people entertain at home anymore. Chris is super busy making those gorgeous lamps that we all covet, but he doesn't let that stop him from hosting small dinners. He simply picks up the food from a neighborhood restaurant, although he often prepares his own dessert. (Granted, Chris could serve gruel to his guests and they probably wouldn't care; more than likely they would be paying more attention to his gorgeous apartment.)

So for my dinner last night, I had my friend Mattie at Cafe Lapin make the entree. Mattie will make all kinds of wonderful dishes and casseroles for you if you call ahead of time. I hear Mattie makes a mean seafood lasagna (ordered often by a few of Atlanta's top designers), but I opted for chicken and dumplings. All I had to do was bring in my Apilco white casserole on Monday, and Mattie had the dish ready for me late yesterday afternoon. How easy is that? I did toss a green salad, but obviously I didn't have to exert myself for that chore. Dessert was easy too- store bought Blackberry Cabernet sorbet with some of Mattie's delicious cookies.

Why am I going through my menu for last night? I guess because I realized that I often talk the talk about easy entertaining, but I decided that I should walk the walk. Having a weeknight dinner party is easy...if you have someone like Mattie to make the dinner for you.

If you live in Atlanta, you should definitely visit Cafe Lapin not just for lunch or dinner, but to talk to Mattie about catering. He's the one who made all of that great food for the Summer party I hosted for my sister. I'm ready to host another small dinner just to serve his seafood lasagna. Anyone care to join me?

Mattie can be reached at 404-812-9171 or lelapin3@aol.com


I realize that chicken and dumplings is not the world's most beautiful dish, but this one tasted beyond fabulous. We were all spooning up the sauce from our plates.


Mattie's cookies


The image at the very top was my four minute table setting. Nothing fancy here. My bar is always set, so I just had to throw some wine glasses on it and bottles of wine and sparkling water. That was a three minute chore. The only thing that does take a lot of time is laundering the dirty linens, something which I'll worry about tomorrow.

Finally in the Christmas Spirit

You haven't seen many posts about the holidays around here because quite honestly, it snuck up on me. It dawned on me last week that Christmas is this Friday. Have I been out to lunch or what? But someone who has been in the Christmas spirit for a few weeks is my friend Bob Garner, owner of Fabulous Things in Atlanta. Thanks to the creative eyes of Bob and David Duckworth, the shop looks amazing with wreaths, bows, garlands, and trees everywhere.















Nothing to do with Christmas, but I adore this custom Pagoda lantern. Too fabulous.

A few weeks ago, Bob hosted a very festive Christmas party in the shop for family, friends, and clients. I have to share with you some photos of the dining table laden with food. To me, this is such a wonderful example of gracious entertaining. Bob prepared most of the food himself- favorites like cheese straws, sausage balls, and pimento cheese- and served it from his grandmother's silver trays and bowls. If you don't have Grandmother or Mother's silver, it doesn't mean you can't have an elegant gathering. The point is that when you make an effort, when thought and care have got into the food and the setting, when things look lovely, and when you have plenty of booze, a good time is sure to follow.










A display of famous (or infamous) Claxton fruitcakes.

If you see something you like (perhaps that Pagoda lantern?), contact Bob at (404) 350-0916 or fabthing@bellsouth.net. The wreaths you see above are now being offered at reduced prices and can be stored for use next year- much like the Claxton fruitcakes, which will taste the same whether you eat it today or a year from now.

Giving Thanks for a Beautiful Table

How does Jonathan Preece do it? In addition to being an interior designer and stylist with Bunny Williams Inc. and serving as Creative Director of BeeLine Home, Jonathan also creates stunning holiday tables for a coterie of clients and friends. Obviously, Jonathan's creativity- and energy- knows no bounds. Need proof? Just look at a Thanksgiving table that Jonathan designed for a client. While most holiday tables are as dry as a Butterball turkey (mine included), Jonathan's is a delectable feast.

The setting was a Federal house in Westport, CT that had been decorated by Bunny Williams. The client often hosted Thanksgiving dinners for 30 to 45 guests, all of whom were seated at tables in the main Dining Room and the Hall. When Jonathan was brought in to assist with the Thanksgiving arrangements, he suggested creating an enfilade effect by having a table in the Dining Room and two 72" round tables in both the Hall and the Breakfast Room.

Because the client loves drama, Jonathan came up with a scheme loaded with "Wow". One of the first things you probably noticed in the photo above is the male turkey taxidermy. (I've always thought turkeys were actually beautiful birds, and if this shot doesn't prove it, I don't know what does!) Also woven into the mix were branches of pear, maple, and magnolia intertwined with pyracantha vines. Jonathan also nestled purple variegated decorative cabbage plants into the mix.




Blanc de chine cockerels were perched alongside pumpkin tureens that did double duty as cachepots. Mercury glass votives, compotes, spheres, and toad stools added a little shimmer to the table. Mother Nature was present in the form of seasonal fruits and vegetables like brussel sprouts on the stalk, shitake mushrooms, pomegranates, and grapes.



Jonathan's client asked him to include place cards and gifts for the guests. Keeping with the theme of the table, the male guests received turkey callers, while the females got silver old fashioned hand warmers. And the kids? Mini Coleman lantern key chains. The place cards were actually plaster leaves with painted relief. The china was Wedgwood and the etched wine glasses were Christofle.


Over-scaled branch arrangements flanked the Breakfast Room Entry and added color and height to the main Dining Room. Albino pumpkins and decorative cabbage were clustered around a 19th c. garden urn. Love the drama of the uplight. And if you look carefully, you'll notice little bird houses made of bark and moss that hung on the branches.

So...after seeing these photos, I'm completely rethinking my Thanksgiving table. (Anyone know where to get albino pumpkins here in Atlanta?) If you think this is good, just wait until I show you Jonathan's Christmas table!

The Art of Entertaining

My apologies for being MIA, but I'm busy preparing for my talk tomorrow on "The Art of Entertaining" at the Atlanta Christmas House. Do come by if you have time! It starts at 2pm. For more information, click here. (You might also be interested in some of the other great lectures taking place there tomorrow.)

Now I must get back to My Way of Life, Joan Crawford's tome about what a perfect wife and hausfrau she was. You'll love her campy tips on entertaining!

Park Avenue Potluck Celebrations

I just finished reading my review copy of Park Avenue Potluck Celebrations: Entertaining at Home with New York's Savviest Hostesses. I love to curl up in bed and read cookbooks...and sometimes cook from them too. This one came along at a fortuitous time as the holidays are right around the corner.

Members of The Society of Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center have contributed their favorite recipes that they rely on to celebrate holidays and the seasons. There are menus and recipes for Valentine's Day, Passover, Derby Day, and of course what I'm thinking about now: Christmas. I haven't tried any of the recipes, but I thought the Society's previous effort was a success so I'm anxious to try my hand at a few of these dishes. (Also, the fact that Florence Fabricant is associated with this book is like a seal of approval.)

I've included a dessert recipe below that I'd like to make, but if you're not someone who enjoys cooking or reading cookbooks, you should at least look at the photos of the gorgeous interiors and tablesettings. You just might be inspired to get into the kitchen and whip up something to celebrate.

Roaring Twenties Coffee Bavarian Cream (Makes 12 or more servings)

2 packets plain gelatin
1 cup whole milk
1 cup brewed espresso
1 cup sugar
2 large egg whites
1 teaspoon salt
2 cups heavy cream
Small chocolate truffles for decoration, chilled

Place the gelatin in a 4-cup glass measuring cup and stir in the milk. Bring the espresso to a boil and whisk it into the milk mixture. Stir in the sugar. Transfer the mixture to a metal bowl and place it in a large bowl filled with ice and water. Stir from time to time as the mixture cools. When the mixture starts to thicken, transfer it to the bowl of an electric mixer.

Beat the mixture at high speed until it is smooth and fairly thick and lightens in colors. In a separate bowl, beat the egg whites with the salt until they hold peaks but are not dry. Fold the egg whites into the gelatin mixture.

Whip the cream until stiff and fold it into the gelatin mixture. Transfer the mixture to an 8-cup metal ring mold or another fancy mold. Cover and refrigerate for at least 6 hours.

To serve, unmold the mousse and decorate it with chocolate truffles, if you like, which can also be piled into the center of the unmolded dessert.








(Recipe and photographs from Park Avenue Potluck Celebrations: Entertaining at Home with New York's Savviest Hostesses, Rizzoli New York, 2009, photographer Ben Fink.)

Old School Entertaining

I hope you'll indulge me in another post on entertaining. It's been on my mind a lot lately because 1) I'm speaking on the subject for the Atlanta Homes & Lifestyle's Christmas House and 2) I've got to figure out what the heck I'm going to serve on Christmas Eve. And, as the holidays are a time for formal entertaining (at least I think it should be formal), why not look back to the 1960s when International Society entertained in a very formal way. Let's see what these soigné hostesses liked to serve thanks to an old issue of Town & Country.


Take, for example, Mrs. Samuel Pryor Reed (that's Annette de la Renta to you and me). She preferred soups, puréed vegetables, and all kinds of soufflées but nixed meat, though she admitted that poultry and veal were acceptable. (You don't see puréed vegetables on menus anymore, and I wonder why not? It's like fancy baby food for adults and it's usually delicious.) I agree about the soufflées too; I never met a soufflé that I didn't like.


If you want to get really fancy, take a cue from Madame Pierre Arpels, who was really gorgeous by the way. Her suggested menu included "Truite en gelée, sauce maison, served with Pouilly-Fuissé; Selle d'agneau, haricots verts, pommes noisettes, served with Bordeaux Leoville-Las-Cases; salade, fromage, and a soufflé Grand Marnier accompanied by Champagne Dom Perignon." You see, another soufflé.


Of interest to many of you will be Donna Marella Agnelli's choice in food. In the country, it was Piedmontese cuisine like white truffles, bagna cauda, and venison. In the city, it was French. French food seemed to be a favorite amongst these hostesses, and it's not hard to understand why.


Traveling over to London, there was Mrs. Diana Phipps. (Fabulous paisley dining room and dress, by the way.) What was served in her swinging dining room? Pancakes with smoked haddock, cottage cheese, mushrooms and mornay sauce, marinated lamb on skewers, saffron rice, and fried aubergines, then Crème brûlée with peeled grapes. (I'm an adventurous eater, but this just doesn't sound very appetizing to me.)

So what am I going to serve for Christmas Eve dinner? I haven't a clue, but after reading this I realized that I want Annette de la Renta's hair, Madame Arpel's good looks, Marella Agnelli's style, and Diana Phipps' dining room. And maybe the courage to serve a soufflé to a houseful of guests!

"Perfect" Entertaining

Yesterday's post about entertaining reminded me of one of my favorite movies, "Rear Window". One thing about that movie that has always annoyed me, however, was how Jimmy Stewart's character was always critical of his girlfriend Lisa (played by Grace Kelly) as being too perfect. Now tell me, what man would not be head over heels crazy over the fact that he was 1) dating a woman who was as gorgeous as Grace Kelly; 2) dating a woman who brought over a Mark Cross train case with a silk peignoir set in order to spend the night (I'm more taken with the Mark Cross train case but obviously the man would be excited about the overnight stay part); and 3) dating a woman who surprised him with dinner from 21! Scenario #3 really gets me because here was Grace with a waiter from 21 in tow with dinner for two. Lobster, no less. And all Jimmy Stewart could do was make a snide comment about how perfect everything was as usual. What a fool. Wouldn't you want someone to show up at your door with lobster from a fabulous restaurant- with a bottle of Montrachet no less? That's what I thought.

A little perfection never hurt anyone as long as you strive for it in moderation. So, if I were Lisa and I was surprising my significant other with such a feast (in my case it would probably be from La Grotta seeing that it's next door to my building), I'd go for perfection in my tablesetting too and perhaps set a table like these:


The dark colors of Lee Radziwill's vignette adds just the right amount of masculinity for a table for two. Vermeil chargers and flatware; Le Tigre cushions on the chairs. Ostentatious? You bet, and I love it.


A casual table by Elsa Peretti. I wouldn't serve lobster from 21 on this table; a bit too casual, and after all, you're not ordering dinner from 21 every night. Still, it's romantic.


Betsy Bloomingdale was being thoughtful and included a small TV on the table so that her husband could watch a game. I wouldn't include a TV on the table during my little dinner, but if you do decide to do so, expect to have to wear that peignoir set to get his attention.


And you know, TV trays are not tacky. Just look at what the late Nan Kempner did to hers. If my dining companion complained about things being too perfect, I'd show him the door and console myself with my Flora Danica plates.

(All table images from The New Tiffany Table Settings)

The Silent Butler and Some Canapes

You know what I've always wanted? A silent butler. No, not that kind of butler but rather a handy sterling or silver plated contraption used to quietly and efficiently (and stylishly too) whisk away crumbs from a table or ashes from an ashtray. Do I need one, you ask? No. No one I know smokes, and my guests tend to be pretty tidy eaters. I think I like it for novelty's sake.


I've been eyeing this Tiffany Bamboo silent butler for years!


A more traditional Chippendale style piece

The other silver piece I'd like is a canapes server that looks similar to a silent butler. It's a lidded compartment with a smallish sized handle. (Any ideas as to what it's called?) There is this fabulous scene from an obscure Joan Crawford movie titled "Harriet Craig" (it's about a woman who is compulsive, possessive, a liar, and a bit of a sociopath, yet, she keeps the tidiest home you've ever seen. She goes nuts when things are out of place. Oh, and her prized possession is an Oriental vase) in which she serves her beleaguered husband canapes in something like it. Well, that scene did it for me. I want to serve canapes that way too.


So, channeling my inner Harriet Craig (that's Joan as Harriet, above, next to her prized vase), if I were to pass hors d'oeuvres from said silver dish, I'd probably serve something retro like this:

Cheese and Bacon Croquettes

Season cream cheese very highly, using grated, fresh horse-radish root for the predominating flavor. Shape into inch-long croquette forms and roll in finely chopped, well-grilled bacon. Skewer and serve before the bacon softens.

Then again...maybe I wouldn't!

(Image at top: Italian silent butler c. 1935-40)

I Survived the Party

Remember my frantic decorating in anticipation of the party I was hosting for my sister? Well, said party took place a few weeks ago, and it seemed a good time was had by all...including the hostess. (And believe it or not, my good time was had without any wine. You have to stay sharp while hostessing.) Before the party, there was the mad rush to get my powder room finished. My poor sister made that valance the week of the party. She's refusing to come home for Christmas unless I promise that I won't cook up another project for her.

Now I must admit that I had some anxiety before the party because my dining room really isn't finished yet. I don't yet have a rug in there because I'm looking for the perfect rug. There is one wall that is completely bare and will be until I find the perfect piece of art. So, while I'm waiting for perfection, the dining room remains a bit incomplete. I started to wonder what the guests would think about the bare floor, the bare wall. But then I thought about Dorothy Draper and what she might say about my dilemma. I feel confident that she would have said to get over the will to be dreary and have the party. And you know what? Once the guests were in place and the room was bathed in candlelight, I don't think anyone really noticed the bare spots!

When I entertain, I don't have a theme per se. This time, however, I chose a color theme for the party: fuchsia with hints of silver, black, and white. I covered the dining table in a hot pink tablecloth which was inspired by those gorgeous fuchsia table linens that Mathilde Agostinelli had in her Jacques Grange designed dining room. I stuck with silver trays for a dash of glimmer, and pink and white ikat votives added another punch of pink. Oh, and I went with bright pink hydrangeas for tight little arrangements in the center of the table.


That's me shortly before the party wringing my hands over the bare floor.




I hired Cafe Lapin to cater the party. Mattie Hines, the proprietor who also happens to be a major design devotee like the rest of us, did a fabulous job helping me come up with a menu which included:

Ham and Gruyère Biscuits
Fig, Prosciutto, and Arugula Crepes
Asparagus on Puffed Pastry
Parmesan Shortbread Stars with Caramelized Onion Marmalade
Chicken Satay
Billionaire's Bacon


You know we like our bacon here in the South. The sugared bacon on skewers were a hit.



On the other side of the dining room, I set up a dessert table with macaroons in pink, brown, and cream (had they made black macaroons that would have been perfect!) and a tray of petits fours.






I kept with the color theme on the dessert table by using fuchsia cocktail napkins and pink butter mints. Yes, I realize that the mints were a rather old school touch, but they looked good on the table.


I made tiny arrangements of dark purple calla lilies and white fancy tulips. I love nothing more than a floral arrangement that looks black and white- so graphic.



And I couldn't neglect the balcony. The fuchsia lanterns looked great for all of five minutes, but then a thunderstorm hit and the wind ripped them down. And to think that my poor father was up on a ladder for half an hour before the party in the sweltering heat hanging the darn things!

What about the bar you say? I set that up in the living room, as seen in the top two photos. It's not easy trying to make room for the liquor, the wine, the beer, the mixers, and all of the other accoutrements. The lack of space on the bar, though, did not seem to deter anyone from partaking in the libations. One thing that really came in handy was my Dash and Albert outdoor rug (full disclosure: a number of bloggers were given the opportunity to select a small rug of their choosing from the Dash & Albert website). I was trying to figure out where to use it when I realized that it would be perfect under the temporary bar. It protected the hardwood floor from spills, which meant one less thing for this harried hostess to worry about!

So when is the next party? I'm thinking Christmas. And hopefully I will have a rug and some art by that time!

(To contact Mattie at Cafe Lapin, the telephone number is (404) 812-9171. I highly recommend them!)