Tonight I was on a zoom presentation, benefitting the Historial Society of Greenwich, for entertaining for the holidays with two of my favorite people Style Maker, Eddie Ross, and the Fabulous Caterer, Susan Scully. They gave so many great tips, from flower arranging, to how to create a safe and fabulous buffet during Covid, to new holiday table setting ideas.
Here Eddie is showing us how to make an arrangement in a vintage wine cooler. He used a mixture of a “forever flowers” aka. faux!! amaryllis, white peonies with pine and evergreens from the garden, and sprays of berries and candy cane carnations. Now I am on the hunt for some vintage wine coolers and my own forever light-colored amaryllis.
Next, we moved onto the Holiday Covid friendly buffet. Here Susan shared with us some elegant foods that can be individually served but take everything to the next level. She had miniature cones filled with popcorn sprinkled with truffle salt and shaved truffles (because as she said, it is the holidays after all!!!!). She also uses a mini charcuterie board for each guest. Susan recommended that we mix it up from all cheese. Perhaps add figs or a crustini. I think this is such a brilliant idea. Do you see the egg ups filled with egg salad and caviar!!! And lastly, I love the mini copper pans filled with Shepard’s Pie. Susan recommends MacDuffs in Greenwich for their delicious Shepard’s Pie so you don’t even have to make your own!!!
I really loved everything in these presentations but no one sets a table like Eddie Ross. I have been following him for years and I am in awe of his creations for each holiday. He certainly did not disappoint tonight. Look at the way he places his table runners. Eddie does not like using them the long way down a table. He says it looks too much like a runway!! And you know, I totally agree…I love this idea of how he uses them across the table. Eddie also loves using footed silver dishes for arrangements, especially ones with fancy lids. He just snuggles the lids under neat halfway exposed on the table. Brilliant!!! He also scatters mercury glass bud vases around the table holding glitter leaves. And lastly, rather than using place cards, Eddie likes to wrap little gifts with each person’s name on the tag to save their seat!!!
I just love this duo. I have known them for so many years and they keep surprising me time and time again, with all of their new and special tips!!! Happy Holidays to you both, Eddie and Susan….please do another workshop soon!!! XO
You are cordially invited to come shop in person, safely socially distanced, and masked tomorrow. Wednesday, December 2nd, from 10 am to 3 pm Linda Richards Showroom 114 Pearl Street, Port Chester A percent of proceeds support Sacred Heart Greenwich. Participating Vendors: Linda Richards, Back Country Mercantile, Adrianna Pepe Stationary, Ilyse’s Pieces, Jean Forte Vintage Gifts, Molly & Mags |
Jean Forte Vintage Gifts
Ilyses Pieces
Backcountry Mercantile
Linda Richards
Molly & Mags
Adrianna Pepe Stationary
Etsy is such a great place to shop for unique affordable gifts for everyone on your list. For my first Holiday gift guide, I decided to feature items from Etsy. Most of these choices are under $50. There are some great options for the hostess, bestie, kids, and even mom. Happy Almost December!!! And Don’t forget there are only 15 days left to order most items in time for Christmas!!! PS Don’t forget to click the link to learn more about the artist of the main image, she has some really fantastic artwork for sale as we!!
Charm Bracelet//Gold Earrings//Snowman Hot Chocolate//Monogram Cups//Green Foo Dogs//Paper Snowmen//Brass Reindeer//Leopard Coats//Feather Bag//Tiger Rug//Statement Ring//Vintage Tree//Santa Ice Bucket//
I don’t know about you but this year’s Black Friday was so overwhelming. I think I got an email every 2 seconds. As a blogger, honestly, everyday is Black Friday. Between all the product reviews and posting of best sellers and weekly sales, Black Friday is for amateurs!!! And really this year we need to shop local, shop small more than ever. I started the day with posting some great best sellers from Palmer and Purchase in Rye and some really fab J McLaughlin sale pieces. I went to Dabney Lee in town saw my friend Julie and bought an ornament for my mom. Then onto getting my tires filled with air and worked on the GREATEST CHRISTMAS PLAYLIST EVER. I promise you, these songs WILL get you through the end of 2020!!!!
Don’t worry I’ll be back tomorrow with the 1st Christmas Gift Guide….And I am doing the COOLEST thing tomorrow…going to the warehouse sale for American Christmas. This is the company that makes all the light displays for Saks, Rock Center, Radio City, and so many more famous places. I am sure I will have a lot to report next week. In the meanwhile, click on the Christmas Tree below to access my Playlist (and make sure to follow me on Spotify!)
The response to my question of “What is your favorite Thanksgiving side?” was so amazing. I heard from so many of you. Here are three more favs, including one of my mom’s. So many people said they loved creamed onions. It is such a blast from the past. My mom used to make them every year, so I decided to dig out the recipe for you. We actually made it a couple of Thanksgiving’s ago and it was as popular with the crowd as it had been my mom use to serve it in the 70’s!!!!
Roasted Brussel Sprouts with Garlic and Pancetta from Katie D
adapted from epicurious.com
Baked Farro and Butternut Squash from Lori M
adapted from The Barefoot Contessa
6 thick-cut slices applewood-smoked bacon
2 tablespoons good olive oil
1 tablespoon unsalted butter
1 1/2 cups chopped yellow onion (1 large)
2 teaspoons chopped fresh thyme leaves
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
1 1/2 cups pearled farro
3 cups good chicken stock, preferably homemade
3 cups (3/4-to-1-inch-diced) peeled butternut squash
1/2 cup freshly grated parmesan cheese
My Mom’s Traditional Creamed Onions
Adapted from All Recipes
This Thanksgiving is going to be sooooo different this year for most of us. Since I am not hosting our annual Thanksgiving dinner for my husband’s side of the family, I honestly did not know what to do with myself for the past month. Usually, I am planning and arranging and cooking, well you know the drill. But this year, we are just celebrating with our immediate family. We are going to one of our favorite places for a social distance dinner on their heated patio. I have not eaten out on Thanksgiving in years…but in a way, I am looking forward to it. It will be a nice day to really think, reflect and be thankful for the positive things this pandemic has brought us: like all the family time we have spent together, that we probably will never be able to do again, especially my parents and my kids, our sweet little King Charles Spaniel. And the few times that I was able to spend with my close friends, making me realize that if you have good friends in your life, you can get through almost anything!
But I could not resist..I still had to set a table. Just one, and just for us. When I was thinking about what I should do, I decided on decorating the table with wheat bundles. I consulted with my amazing talented floral friend, Stephanie, you really need to follow her,, https://www.instagram.com/stephanie_asher/ to get some tips. Then, as usual, I went on Pinterest for my inspiration. Here is what I found…
PS I have included some links to purchase wheat for your own centerpieces HERE, HERE and HERE.
Happy Almost Thanksgiving Everyone!!!!!