As the weather warms, the prospect of summer entertaining becomes all the more appealing – inviting friends and family over, cooking delicious food and decorating your home beautifully for the occasion.
If you want to make the evening feel extra special, tablescaping is one of the easiest ways to elevate the experience. Put simply, tablescaping is the art of styling a dining table. It can be centred around a specific theme or simply be a thoughtfully curated arrangement of tableware, linens and decorative accents.
Of course, striking the right balance isn't always easy. Too many accessories can make a table feel cluttered, while too few can leave it looking sparse. To help master the art of tablescaping, House Beautiful hosted a Summer Entertaining Masterclass led by stylist and author Emily Henson (@lifeunstyled), alongside House Beautiful's Style & Interiors Editor, Jessica Taverner.
During the masterclass, Emily created three distinct tablescape looks: botanical, crafted and maximalist, each offering a different take on summer entertaining.
Before getting started, Emily and Jessica shared their expert tips for creating a beautiful tablescape that feels both stylish and effortless. Here's what they had to say...
1) Don't make things too formal
There's a fine line between creating an elegant tablescape and one that feels overly formal. For Emily, the key is to keep things relaxed and welcoming.
Rather than focusing on impressing your guests, think about how you can make them feel comfortable. A beautiful table should encourage people to settle in, enjoy themselves and linger long after the meal is over.
'I think for me, when it's too formal, I don't like it,' Emily says. 'I like it when things feel relaxed and sort of like you can move things around – I don't like when things are really, really perfect.'
2) Seek out secondhand options
If you're creating a tablescape from scratch, it can be tempting to buy an entirely new set of tableware and accessories. But Emily recommends looking beyond the high street and embracing the charm of secondhand pieces instead.
Whether it's vintage glassware, unique ceramics or characterful serving dishes, pre-loved finds can add personality and individuality to your table, as well as being a more sustainable approach.
'Whether you like new things or old things. I tend to veer more on the old secondhand or vintage. It's something I've always loved doing,' says Emily. 'It's thinking about – when you're out in a charity shop, junk shop, or on a high street, wherever it is, – always keeping your eye out for something to add to that little surprise element.'
3) Get your guests involved
When it comes to creating the perfect tablescape, Emily says you shouldn't feel like all the responsibility falls on your shoulders. In fact, getting guests involved can help take the pressure off and make entertaining feel much more relaxed.
'When you have guests over and you're feeling a bit flustered, I think one really good tip that somebody told me a long time ago was that when your guests arrive, give them a job to do,' Emily says.
'I think then, first of all, people want to feel involved. They wanna have something to do, and it makes your guests feel really uncomfortable. If they can see that you're panicked and manic and you're finishing cooking, just let someone put the salad in the bowl or put some glasses out, that's my number one tip.'
4) Embrace the unexpected
While it can be tempting to meticulously plan every detail of a tablescape, Jessica encourages a more creative approach. Some of the most memorable table settings come from using everyday items in unexpected ways.
'You can use the tableware in unexpected ways. For instance, you could put a flower frog in a cereal bowl,' says Jessica. 'These are little pins and you put the flower stems into it and they bloom out.' Flower frogs can be bought from an array of retailers and are great if you want to experiment more with floral displays.
5) The vibe is more important than the food
When planning a dinner party, it's easy to focus all your attention on the food. But for Emily, creating the right atmosphere is just as important, if not more so.
‘The food is important, but actually it's more the environment that you create and that sense of relaxation so that people don't feel like they can't mess anything up. This way, they can relax and enjoy the meal and maybe meet people they haven't met,’ Emily says.
Shop the 'crafted' look
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