Holiday Entertaining Tips
Photo by Kimball Starr
Are you ready for holiday guests to arrive? Me neither! But I do have some easy-to-do ideas to welcome them to a festive home! Read on for quick entertaining and decorating tips.
Make a Shrub to Drink
Photo by Kimball Starr
When your guests arrive, the first thing you want to do — after taking their coat and bags — is offer them a drink. Here’s a simple recipe for a shrub, a fruit-infused “drinking vinegar” that can be added to cocktails and mocktails for a delicious and refreshing twist. Prepare in advance, and store up to a year!
Photos and Recipe by Sylvia Fountaine via Feastingathome.com
ingredients
- 2 cups fruit or berries (rhubarb used here), diced into very small 1/4 inch pieces
- 1 cup sugar
- 1 cup vinegar (white or apple cider, or any other)
- time required: 4-11 days
- yields: 2 cups
instructions
Mix the fruit or berries and granulated sugar in a small bowl, cover with plastic wrap and place in the fridge for 4-5 days, stirring every 12 hours. Strain the liquid, pressing down hard on solids. Mix the fruit syrup with vinegar and pour into a lidded jar and refrigerate. You can use immediately, but after a week, their flavors will deepen, meld and harmonize. Add to cocktails or sparkling water.
Top a Gift-Wrap with Fresh Evergreens
Beautiful gifts can adorn your holiday dinner table too, and look great as a place setting. Here’s an easy way to dress up a simple holiday gift-wrapping.
Photos by Kimball Starr
materials
- gift in a small box
- brown craft paper
- clear tape
- twine
- colored string or ribbon
- fresh evergreen cutting
- sprig of berries
instructions
Wrap your gift in plain brown craft paper and tape shut. Using twine, wrap around the center of your box several times, and tie. Add a fresh evergreen cutting, wrap colored string or ribbon around the center of your box to hold the cutting, and tie. Add a sprig of berries by sliding under the string or ribbon. Optional: Write your guest’s name on the craft paper in red or green ink.
Dress Your Holiday Table and Chairs
Photo by Kimball Starr
My last quick decorating tip is to throw a textured blanket over the back of your holiday dining head chairs, to make them feel more cozy. You can easily change the color scheme of your chairs this way, if they don’t go with traditional holiday colors.
If you need to dress all of your chairs, use a wide ribbon looped around just above the seat, tied with the bow at the back to keep the blankets in place, and unify the chairs.
Photo by Kimball Starr
Do you need in-person help from a designer with your holiday decorating? Kimball Starr designs beautiful spaces to entertain and relax throughout the San Francisco Bay Area and Lake Tahoe – contact Kimball today!
