dinner party

A few weeks ago we hosted a dinner party for a group of friends.  The idea is a "supper club", where once a month someone from the group has everyone over for dinner.  With busy jobs and some of our friends with kids, this is a perfect opportunity to catch up with each other and relax over a good meal.  

I thought it would be interesting to share some photos of the table setting and the main course.  I love setting up a table.  It's a blank canvas in which you can create any mood or feeling.  It's like setting a stage.  I have always preferred to start with what kind of mood I want to create, as opposed to a theme.  Is it a casual meal?  What time of day will you be eating?  Is it for a group of women or will there be couples? This all plays into the choices of plates, flowers or candles (or no candles).  

For this particular evening, I wanted the table to feel earthy and green and slightly masculine.  I wanted the juxtaposition of our fine wedding china (I fully believe in using what you have, not hide it away) with our colorful, cobalt blue octopus plates. Yes, they have a giant octopus on the plate and I got them from Anthropologie.  I added a lot of clear glass votives and gold striped shot glasses (which I turned into candle votives for this occasion).  Small, green orange juice glasses I picked up in Morocco for about $.50 became small vases for groups of gardenia that I snipped from outside.  I scattered these glasses across the table to add some uniformity.   A tall, spindly yellow plant sits in the center.  I planted it in a heavy stone planter to contrast all the glass.