Setting the Table

As you all know I love a good tablescape.  The decorations, flowers, table linen options, dinnerware, flatware and stemware…I love it all and of course the endless ways a table can be styled.  While I can certainly talk at length about the various ways to decorate a table, I wanted to focus today's post on the the actual mechanics of properly setting a table.  You have to learn to walk before you can run, right?!?

There are subtle differences between setting a formal dinner table and an informal table, and the placement of tableware pieces definitely matters.   Below I have laid out examples of each, along with additional tips/highlights to keep in mind for each type of table setting.

Informal

The Highlights….

• Commonly used for brunch, lunch and casual dinners
• Notice these meals typically do not have multiple courses, so setting out one simple set of flatware is plenty.
• Water and either a wine goblet or champagne flute, but this is casual so you do not need to set out every piece of stemware
• Knife blade should ALWAYS be facing inward towards the plate.  The logic behind this rule- to avoid having the server cut his/her hand when clearing the dishes from the table. 

Formal

The Highlights...

• Commonly used for fancy sit-down dinners.
• Stemware- Water goblet at the top, then red wine glass in the middle and white wine glass in the lowest position.  Once the guest selects their wine, clear away whichever wine glass isn't being used. 
• Flatware- Include all flatware needed for the number of courses you plan to serve and place them in the order you plan to serve the dishes starting with the outward most utensils and working your way in. As you can see from my setting, I plan to serve soup, followed by salad, then a main course and a dessert that requires both a fork and spoon (positioned at the top).
• Place cards always go to the upper left hand side, in between the bread plate and water glass. 
• For a detailed layout of both an informal and formal table setting, I would recommend checking out this Huffington Post article.  They have a fabulous infographic. 

Additional Etiquette Tips

Whether I am hosting or attending a dinner party (heck, even just going out to dinner) here are a few of my top etiquette tips I keep as my top of mind reference when dining.  This is not meant to sound stuffy, rather it is just a nice guide for how to properly conduct yourself at the dinner table.  

• Flag Down- I think I wanted to start with this one because it is my ultimate pet peeve when people leave their spoon (aka flag) in their soup bowl.  Resting or finishing, the soup spoon (flag) should always be down at rest to the side of your bowl.   
• Look to your Host/Hostess for Cues- When attending a sit-down dinner, you should look to your host/hostess for cues as to when to place your napkin in your lap and when to begin and be finished eating.  Your host/hostess sets the pace for the table. 
• Treat your napkin with respect- think of your napkin like a lease…normal wear and tear is fine, but using your napkin to say, blow your nose, is unacceptable (yes this has happened to me).  Lovely dinner napkins are not kleenex nor are they bounty paper towel rolls, so please do your best to treat them with respect. 
• Bread- when it comes to eating bread at the table, refrain from taking a bite straight out of the piece that has been served to you.  Rather, consume by breaking off small pieces from the roll. 
• Salt and Pepper-  It doesn't matter if a fellow diner asks to pass the salt, pepper or both, you always pass them together.  Think of the salt and pepper as a married couple who should never be divorced. 
• Never reach across the table- I don't care if you are trying to avoid inconveniencing someone by grabbing an item yourself instead of having it passed, always ask someone to pass it and never reach.  The likelihood that you will knock something over in the process of reaching is pretty high
• Utensil Placement: Done vs. Still Eating- This is an easy tip to remember and helpful for those around you (especially waiters) to know if you are done with your dish or still working on it.  When you are still in the midst of consuming a dish, you can rest your utensils face-side down, crossed in the center of your plate (pictured below).  When you are finished with a  dish, utensils should be aligned parallel to the right hand side (also pictured below).

I swear, table étiquette has enough content to fill book three times over!  At it's core, I personally feel that the information I have shared with you today are the essential nuts and bolts.  Manners and traditions (like properly setting the table) are important and something that I certainly appreciate.  Whether you decide to apply some or all of these tips in the future, you now have access to what I would consider to be the necessary information for properly setting your table and being a guest at someone else's table.  

As always, if you have other etiquette questions not covered in today's post, feel free to contact me via my contact page or email redefiningdomestics@gmail.com.  Have a wonderful weekend everyone!

Strategies for Saving Money on Purchases for the Home

I love a good deal and of course, saving money!  So much so that I would even venture to say that roughly 80% of all of the furnishings in my home had some sort of cost savings associated at the time of purchase.  Today I wanted to share some of my favorite cost savings strategies with you all, because regardless of whether or not you can afford the full price of an item, why spend more than you have to?  

Coupon Websites

Before I make any purchase online, I always check coupon websites for any store discounts/coupon codes or sales.  These sites are designed to provide users with all of the latest information on store deals and any coupon codes that are currently being accepted by that store.  Two of my favorite coupon websites are coupons.com and retailmenot.com.  Before you make your next online purchase, I highly recommend checking these sites to see if you can obtain any additional savings.  It takes only a few moments to do and you might be pleasantly surprised by the savings benefits.  

Registry

For brides-to-be: When registering for wedding gifts it is very important to read about the store's registry benefits program (here are a few examples- Williams Sonoma, Bloomingdales, Macy's).  When applicable, I would highly recommend organizing your registry(-ies) based on where you will receive the most benefits for those items you plan on registering for.  For example, if you plan on registering for Riedel Crystal, register for all of your Riedel pieces at the store that provides a Riedel registry benefit.  That way you are not only registering for items you want, but also positioning yourself to qualify for the Riedel Bonus Registry Gifts.  It sounds so silly, but I cannot tell you how many perks I received when I got married just from organizing my registries accordingly.  I received a sizable array of additional home goods that I would not have otherwise had the opportunity or budget to obtain.  

In addition to organizing your registries based on the additional product brand benefits, don't forget that as a registrant you will receive a store discount for up to 6 months after your wedding on most store items.  My advice, take advantage of this opportunity to save a little extra money while furnishing your new home with your spouse. 

Sign up for E-Mails/Become a Member

I used to abhor receiving mass solicitation emails from retail stores.  Who wants to have their inbox filled with junk mail?  Well, I have certainly changed my tune over the past few years.  I no longer consider those emails junk, but rather free money!  Horchow is a great example - 20% off your first purchase just for signing up to receive their emails!  Even after you use the 20% coupon, you will still receive emails alerting you to their site-wide sales that typically involve taking 20-30% off everything in the store! (For example- Horchow is currently having a bedding sale, so my matelasse from this post has been reduced in price by almost half!

In addition, I also recommend becoming a member of a store's member rewards program. They are typically free to join and the benefits can be significant.  One of my favorite rewards programs would have to be the Bloomingdales Loyalists program.  Sign up to become a loyalist at no charge and you will receive regular discounts for store events, free shipping for online purchases and even cash back in the form of Bloomingdales gift cards! Because I always enter my loyalist member number when I make a purchase at Bloomingdales, I was recently able to buy a really high end pair of designer shoes for $35! So phenomenal and yes, true story. 

Check Magazines and Mail

Don't forget about the snail mail!  How many times have you received a Bed Bath & Beyond coupon for 20% off a single item in the mail and either tossed it?  Those coupons are free money!  Well you know what I mean, they are valuable and the money they can save you on your next purchase is money that you get to put right back into your pocket.  Vacuum cleaners, trash cans, bedding, etc… all expensive household items that you can easily get for 20% if you just save these coupons!

In addition, I know that most people read magazines for the content and then get rid of them.  The next time you are reading a magazine like say, Martha Stewart Living, peruse the ads carefully and you may be pleasantly surprised by a few discount codes to your favorite home furnishing stores.  

Wait for Sales

Patience can really pay off when it comes to store sales.  One of our most recent furniture purchases, the Mocha Vintage Velvet Living Room Chairs from RH, was a custom order (as is most furniture) and had a price tag to match (woof!).  My husband and I patiently waited for a sale opportunity to come along and lo and behold the opportunity finally arrived!  RH ran a promotion recently "$100 off every $500 spent"…when buying furniture, that can quickly amount to substantial savings.  My point being, while instant gratification may be tempting, if possible I would recommend holding off on ordering big furniture until a sale is announced.  Furniture is a major investment and every bit of savings helps!

While I am certainly not anywhere close to achieving "Extreme Couponer" status, I have learned a few tips and tricks over the years that have afforded me the ability to obtain great deals on some fabulous furnishings.

Helpful Tips for Moving

As I was driving around town the other day it was evident that Moving Season is in full swing!  All of the local college students have wrapped up the school year and are in the process of moving out for the summer.  Which means that in the coming days/weeks, an influx of summer interns will be descending on DC.  Witnessing the abundance of movers and moving trucks in DC made me take a moment to reflect on my own move last Spring.  For today's post, I have compiled a list of my favorite moving tips and advice based on my experience with last year's big move.  These tips range from big picture to small details, but all have proven to extremely helpful and are definitely tips that I will be using for our next move.    

Children & Pets

Around the time we closed on our house, I had discovered Martha Stewart's Homekeeping Handbook (a book that I absolutely LOVE-see this post).  Martha's Homekeeping Handbook is a wealth of information regarding all aspects of the home, including moving! One great tip she shared was with regard to pets, and I think it also applies to children.  On the day of the move, make arrangements for your pet or child to spend the day at a day care, friend or family member's house.  Watching their home be moved can be traumatic for an animal and/or child, so it's beneficial to shield them from witnessing the actual moving of furniture.  In addition, it's also dangerous to have a pet and/or child present when heavy furniture and boxes are being moved out of a home.  Keeping your children and/or pets away from the action on moving day will help to ensure that they are kept safe and your move runs as smoothly as possible.   

 Wall Hanging Hooks

When preparing to transport all of our wall hangings and paintings, I pulled everything off the walls and started to create a large ziplock bag of all picture hanging hooks.  I realized that I was going to have a serious dilemma once we got to the new house, because the hooks that I had started to pile supported different weights for specific paintings.  In an effort to avoid having to sift through a pile of wall hooks in order to hang paintings in the new house, I placed the wall hook that corresponded to a particular painting in a snack size ziplock bag and then used packing tape to secure the ziplock bag to the hanging wire behind each painting.  As a result of this packing tip, hanging artwork in the new house was a breeze and required a fraction of the time to complete.

The Week Before...

Have everything packed and ready to go one week prior to the official move date.  This was another Martha tip that I absolutely loved from her Homekeeping Handbook.  Reason being, the amount of loose ends that will undoubtedly emerge on the day of the move is sizable.  Simple and seemingly insignificant items like spare hangers, paper products or door hooks that you want to take with you to the new house, all require time and space to move.   The more you can do ahead of time, the easier your move will be (especially on the official moving day).  

 If you don't want an item to break, move it yourself

We ended up having a total of zero houseware casualties during the move.  Why?  Because anything that we considered fragile or irreplaceable, we moved ourselves.  We opted to move everything over in phases using 30 gallon plastic storage bins.  The bins were a tremendous help when moving over a variety of our belongings because they are sturdy, have handles for easy transport and are now used for storage in our attic.  Plastic Storage Bins are a great cost saving idea when purchasing moving supplies and very effective for moving delicate keepsakes.   

 Coupons

A well known checklist item when moving is to have your mail forwarded through the United States Postal Service.   While I was taking care of this checklist item on their official website, I was prompted to select catalogues that would be of interest to me.  Of course I clicked on everything!  A few weeks later, I received a welcome package at our new address from USPS that was filled with coupons from fabulous stores like Pottery Barn, Crate & Barrel, West Elm, Target, etc.  Talk about an unexpected, much needed and very appreciated surprise!  

If you have moved before, you are most likely aware that there are so many little house items to buy right off the bat (ex. Shower Curtain Rod, Kitchen Trash Can, Paper Towel Holder, etc.)  In addition, more often than not, certain furniture pieces that may have worked in your former house do not fit to the appropriate scale of your new house and you are in need of new furniture.  Having all of these coupons, courtesy of the USPS is a big help in off-setting all of those initial expenses.  In sum, not only do I highly recommend forwarding your mail through the USPS website, but I would also strongly encourage you to check all of the catalogue box options.  The benefits you will reap are well worth the extra step of signing up for additional catalogues.  

 When it comes to moving, the resources available to help you through this process are endless.  These 5 tips were merely some of my most helpful/less obvious lessons learned from my own experience.  If you have any additional questions regarding moving, please feel free to contact me.  I also would love to hear from you if there are any tips/strategies that you have found to be particularly helpful during the moving process.  Whether it's a comprehensive moving checklist or a singular tip, when it comes to moving, more information ahead of time definitely contributes to a seamless move.   

5 Ways to Prep Your House for Entertaining

While preparing to host my most recent dinner party, it occurred to me that my preparations went beyond the standard cooking and cleaning.  The devil is really in the details and I have realized that there are some additional steps necessary to ensure my parties run smoothly.  In this post I have put together a list of my 5 pre-party to-do's around my house that aren't obvious, but make a huge difference with the overall flow of your party and ease of entertaining.  

Clear your Coat Closet

Taking your guests coats and other outerwear accessories is the first step in welcoming them into your home.   The season doesn't matter, during summer and spring guests could still have some layer of outerwear, so its important to have a place to put their excess garments.  Before a party I will typically remove enough coats from my front coat closet to allow for the largest scenario of coat checks (ex. 5 guests = Space for 5 Coats).  I will also stock the closet with heavier coat hangers (all matching).  Good quality coat hangers will reduce the likelihood of damage occurring and it's a more aesthetically pleasing look. 

Pull up your Bathroom Rug/Mat

My house only has one bathroom, so by default that is the bathroom my guests use.  Since bathroom rugs are really meant for comfort when bathing, I pull up my mat to avoid having it soiled from foot traffic during my parties.  No one will be bathing during your party (hopefully), so there is no reason to keep the bathroom rug/mat on floor.

Add Guest Towels

More often then not, I will stock my bathroom sink with 2 freshly laundered hand towels for my guests to use.  On the occasion where I may be feeling like adding a pop of color or being a little festive, I will buy paper guest towels (like these).  

The one problem that I have encountered with using pretty paper guest towels is that guests are often too intimidated to use them because they look too nice.  Of course I want my guests to use the pretty paper guest towels (if I didn't want anyone to use them they wouldn't be out).  In an effort to take the pressure off of my guests,  I will go into the bathroom and use a guest towel before the party starts, so that there is a visible example present in my trashcan.  If guests can see that someone already used a guest towel, they will be more inclined to follow suit.   

Have the Ambiance Set

There are two aspects of party ambiance- candles and music.  Ten minutes before guests arrive I will turn on the music and light all of the candles.  For music, I have found one of the best options that requires little maintenance throughout the evening is Spotify.  I will select a station on Spotify through my phone and then enjoy continuous play throughout the evening.  For candle lighting, I like to keep a long multi-purpose lighter wand in both my living room and dining room for easy access.  In the event that one of my guests arrives early, I am ready to go.  

Empty the Trash and Dishwasher

Whether you're hosting a cocktail party or full on dinner party, I am always blown away by the pile of dishes and trash that accumulate by the end of the night.  Starting out your party with a full dishwasher and/or trash will lead to pile-ups on your countertops and other various disruptions (i.e. having to take out the trash or run the dishwasher).  If you make a point to have both the trash and dishwasher completely empty, you can clean as you go without creating disruptions or kitchen pile-ups during the party.  

While cooking and cleaning are certainly the most important areas of focus when preparing for a party, incorporating these 5 tips into your party prep checklist will certainly make your party less stressful and more enjoyable.