I am glad to be back to my Monday posts! Life finally seems to have returned to a more balanced paced or at least a pace I can manage. Today I wanted to share how I decorated my holiday table for dinner last year. I LOVE to host and I actually get lots of opportunities to host around the holidays as we celebrate Anya's birthday on Dec. 21st and then either Christmas and New Years is at my house. Sometimes I go all in and other times I keep it simple. There is room for all of it and over the years I've learned that no matter how fancy or simple it is, the only thing that truly matters is coming together with the people you love. Last year just before Christmas, we had a complete shut down due to COVID and we weren't allowed to see anyone outside of our family. It was devastating and I really wanted to make our home feel special and beautiful as our plans to come together with family changed once again. This year thanks to science, we are all fully vaccinated and looking forward to celebrating together. That feels good.
Check out the post I wrote a few years ago about Tips and Tricks for hosting a holiday dinners here. These tips and tricks are coming to you from a full-time working mom of two, a women who hosts on a moderate budget, and doesn't have infinite time to shop and decorate (but maybe one day). LOL.
Now let's take a peak at how I spruced up my everyday dining table without breaking the bank. What you need:
- garland
- candles of various sizes (tea lights, tall candle sticks and battery operated festive candles)
- candle holders (
- your best dishes (because what are you saving them for)
- pine needles or rosemary, cloth napkin and twine
- special cocktail and a good bottle of wine
The garland can be pricey but if you wait until the week before Christmas most places will already have it marked down and you can save some money. Choose to go either with gold or silver as your color, which will make everything else come together easier. I took a trip to Dollarama and bought all the candles and candle holders there. I also just took a pair of scissors to our pine tree for the napkin settings. The items I did splurge on were the drinks and obviously the food it self. Our specialty drink was Reindeer Mule that I got from my sweet blogger friend Andrea from Living on Cloud Nine. I also splurged on a more expensive bottle of wine than I usually drink. I love Quails Gate Merlot wine and it always reminds me of our wonderful trip to their winery a few years back, read all about it here.
Since I have all the items now, I plan to recreate this beautiful table setting again this year when I host Christmas Eve, although I haven't decided if I am going to be more casual and make appetizers or a spiral ham dinner.
My parents and us for Christmas 2020. We snuck them in for a little visit.
May you find light and joy in the small moments of life.
What are your plans?
What kind of host are you, simple or fancy?
What is the best and hardest thing about hosting for you?
