Mid-Week Entertaining Made Easy

A dear family member got engaged and I wanted to host a mid-week intimate dinner to honor the lovely couple. My starting point for every event is always—

What is my intention? For this small gathering of six guests, I wrote, “To create a warm feeling of connection and celebration for the newly engaged couple. I want all of us to connect and celebrate together.”

My home is cozy and I can only comfortably seat six people at my mid-century Tulip table, so I would need to think carefully about the table decorations. Less is more when it comes to dinners at my table, especially mid-week. I am an admirer of heirloom, garden roses, so I decided to order some David Austin roses in white and pale pink from Grace Rose Farm and had them shipped directly to my home. When they arrived, I trimmed the stems at an angle, put them directly in water and "oooh la la" they started opening.

I cut and arranged the roses in small, glass vases of different sizes collected at garage sales and antique stores. The vases are petite sized for a crowded table and still make such a statement. I added small white votives candles to the empty spaces between the vases. I placed other small vases and candles around the house and an elegant, larger glass container of left over roses at the bar next to the Veuve Clicot and glasses for the toast. The table setting was no-fuss, simple and classic with variations of white and cream and knotted napkins.

I always love to add an element of surprise or delight to all of my events, small or large, so I grabbed one of the roses from the large arrangement at the bar and as the couple were approaching the entrance I pulled the rose apart and threw petals at the entrance threshold.