It’s official; the festive season has begun! I attended my first company Christmas party this past weekend. The menu was amazing; it was a buffet and the dishes included braised meatballs in red wine jus, madeira pan jus lamb shank (the meat literally fell off the bone) and carbonnera fettuccini with andouille sausage. At first, I skipped the bread basket and mashed potatoes in a dismal attempt at caloric intake damage control. But when several people at my table raved about the potatoes, I had to taste them for myself. And yes, the mashed potatoes were worth the trip back to the buffet table. And before you wonder if I had a good time, yes I did. But I’m a thinker, and what occurred to me as I was enjoying and taking part in the festivities, was that no matter how good the food is (and it was indeed excellent), whether we are conscious of it or not, the surroundings, including the furniture, all play a part in contributing to our ultimate dining experience.
Especially around about this time of year as we’re heading into the holiday season, we want our homes to look their best. When entertaining for the holidays, the living room, kitchen and dining room see a lot of the holiday action. And particularly the dining room where it’s the designated stage for the big reveal – the Christmas bird decked out in all its stuffed glory. It’s most likely because the furniture in the home I grew up in was furnished in the traditional style and so too were the homes of my relatives and the friends of my parents we visited during the holidays. To me nothing says Christmas more than a traditional dining table elegantly set to celebrate the occasion.
When preparing for Christmas, you want your dining room to look warm and welcoming, but you don’t want to have to do a major renovation to get it to look guest ready. For a traditional style dining room, start with a dining table that has a rich dark finish with a satin or semi-polished surface. If you tend to entertain a large number of people only occasionally, such as Thanksgiving or Christmas, select a table that has a leaf. This will allow you to seat more people when needed, but for everyday meals with just the family, the table can be used without the leaf, providing a more intimate setting.
Dining chairs should match the dining table in color and style. To be truly traditional, they have flowing lines, carved decorative detail, and have a thickly padded seating area designed to go the distance of a festive, many-course meal. Legs are typically curved and ornate, either turned or carved. Traditional style dining chairs without upholstered backrests often include intricate splat backs and with classic motifs such as acanthus leaves, shells and rose medallions.
Part of the fine dining experience is atmosphere. Shed some romantic light on your dining table with a chandelier. Showoff your china and crystal to its best advantage with a traditional style buffet or china cabinet. Fine dining is essentially paying attention to the details, such as silver candelabra, gold trimmed chinaware and vintage flatware. A traditional style dining room will provide you, your family and your guests an elegant and refined setting, not just for the holiday season, but year-round.
