Who doesn’t love a dinner party? You get to eat delicious food and hang out with your favourite people, without having to deal with exorbitant drink prices or people shoving you at a bar. But let’s be honest — if you’re the one hosting it, it’s usually a thinly veiled excuse to play interior stylist and show off your ace cooking skills. Plus, there’s just something about being a hostess that makes you feel like a real adult.
The only problem is — in a world where there are literally hundreds of Pinterest boards dedicated to stylish dinner parties, it’s easy to feel like you can’t measure up. Sure, inviting your mates over for dinner sounds like a good idea at the time. But an hour before the party is due to start, you might reach meltdown point while trying to fold your napkins into origami swans while you tell “NOBODY is going to want to Instagram this dinner party!!!”
The good news is, hosting a chic dinner party doesn’t have to be a stressful process. With a few simple touches, you can host a stylish soiree and actually have a good time. Here are 6 simple tips for your Pinterest-worthy dinner party.
Don’t forget the flowers
Floral arrangements are by far the easiest way to up the style game of your dinner party. But instead of going with one, big centerpiece in the middle of the table, why not fill the space with multiple, smaller arrangements? Note: this doesn’t need to be an expensive exercise. You can get gorgeous, seasonal flowers at your local farmer’s market or grocery store and use vessels around the house (like old jars) as vases. Tip: don’t make them too high — otherwise you won’t be able to see each other!
Embrace the Hygge
Let’s be real: nobody (apart from you) really cares whether your dinner set-up looks perfect or not. Plus, there’s something kind of stuffy and formal about a dinner party where everything is a little too carefully arranged. Instead, why not take a leaf out of the Danes’ book and focus on making it as ‘Hygge‘ (cute and cosy) as possible? Keep your gathering small and intimate, light some candles and if you’re holding it outdoors, have some blankets at the ready. Bonus points if you can incorporate fairy lights, too!
Make use of menus
Nothing makes a soiree feel quite like a ‘real’ dinner party like having a menu of what you’re going to serve. You can do this buy creating a board like Camille Styles , or by giving your guests individual menus. Canva has a great range of menu templates you can download for free here.
Take it to the floor
Newsflash: Sitting on chairs isn’t cool anymore, you guys! Jokes aside, sitting on cushions at a low table is a serious outdoors dinner party trend at the moment. It’s not hard to see why — it’s a great way to bring the chilled out vibes. You can recreate it at home by moving your coffee table to the back yard (or grab some wooden crates from your local hardware store), putting down a mat and scattering some comfy throw cushions.
Go buffet style
One of the most stressful parts of hosting a dinner party is trying to cook something that everyone is going to like. So, why not make it buffet style you can have a range of food and your guests can serve themselves? Better yet, make it a potluck so everyone brings something along. Not only will it make life a lot easier, sharing platters tend to look amazing in photos!
Serve in style
Sticking to a colour theme with your dining set-up always looks stylish — whether that’s sticking to neutrals or going bright. However, don’t feel like you have to be too matchy matchy. Why not match your glasses with your side plates, but go for another, complimentary colour for your dinner plates and tablecloth? Rustic touches like wooden boards always look great, too.
