Move over, Martha Stewart

How to be the best hostess ever

Believe me, there are a bunch of things that I can pull off to perfection, but to effortlessly whip up a smoothly served six course meal and have it presented on an Instagram-worthy table…. well perhaps not my strongest point. What I can do is pay very good attention to the people that have mastered the art of putting on such a do, so then when my guests leave my dinner party they’ll be gasping; ‘Wow! How-does-she-do-it?’ So here they are: Tips for the hostess with the mostess who doesn’t miss a trick.

Warm welcome

Do you have a front yard? Then place a small outdoor fire pit by the entrance. Or use garden candles that illuminate the path to your door, your guests will immediately enter a warm atmosphere.

Welcome Music

You could (the operative word here is ‘could’. This is a tip that could also be skipped) consider putting a little speaker outside playing music to welcome the guests. Also fun for the smokers who duck out during the course of the evening. Not only do they have a little fire to keep them warm, but some cozy background music. Just be sure they come back inside.

Decorate hall and rest room

This could be as simple as some candles along the hall. Preferably put them in a lantern or jar for safety. A decorated toilet is also a way of paying attention to detail. A subtle scented candle, rolled hand towels (which you can possibly give a little spray of your favorite perfume), a beautiful hand soap with matching hand cream and you could even place a nice book beside the toilet for when a little more time is needed. Again, suppose you also have surround sound that reaches the restroom, then you score brownie-points on the ideal-hostess chart.

Frame it

A tip from our editor Josselin; find an appropriate proverb on Pinterest that fits the feel of the evening, the season, the color of the day. Print it out on nice paper and put it in a frame. Absolutely not essential, but this sort of thing does leave a lasting impression and will be remembered.

Ice, ice, baby

With lots and lots of ice, everything looks super chic, luxurious and decadent. Google ‘ice taxi’ in your area and put in your order. They can usually deliver on the afternoon of your dinner party and supply special boxes that keep your ice frozen. Don’t forget to order enough ice to use for presenting oysters and other cold seafood. Looks like a million bucks.

Don’t forget the napkins

Provide nice linen napkins. You don’t have enough of the same sort? Then make a theme from the mix. You can also do that by mixing up your crockery. Mixed and matched tableware can give a kitsch, cosy feel. A nice detail is to spray a very small amount of room perfume onto the napkin to add a subtle aroma.

Goodie bag

This is the real cherry on the cake. A small goodie bag on departure. Keep it fun; some aspirin for the hangover, fresh croissants and a small jar of jam for the next morning.

The cooking? Well I leave all that for someone else to do.

There are limits. Especially when it comes to perfection.