How to dress up your table without investing a lot of time or money. You can impress family and friends with small changes that stretch your dollar to make a big impact. For the increasing number of people who are entertaining at home, a few inexpensive home accents can make a big difference. Picking a colour theme is easy when you start with one object, any object, as your ‘inspiration’ point. Our table designs have uniformly been dressed with a black tablecloth. Black is a fabulous base when entertaining, especially if your menu can stain, i.e. spaghetti sauce, berries, red wine, etc. If you or your guests spill on a black tablecloth it will not show. But the greatest reason is that black adds an incredible dramatic flair.

We started with a silk scarf with a design in soft lilac and shades of green. Using a black tablecloth really showcases the scarf; we picked the predominant colours of lilac and green for our colour theme. Green napkins were gathered up with a lilac beaded napkin ring. We used a glass bowl full limes as a refreshing change from flowers and we tucked a green candle in the center.

The colour scheme for this romantic dinner for two began with an eye-catching small square plate. With matching square charger separated by a white plate with a black design displayed on a black tablecloth, this romantic setting has been taken to the next level.

For this fun yet sophisticated theme, our napkin, napkin-ring, table decoration and placement were all chosen from the colourful design of a dish. Whether it is an outdoor country buffet, a child’s party, or having company for supper, it’s easy to give the WOW factor when you use the same simple principles.

Daytime highlights the people, events and trends that make Ottawa a vibrant community. Hosted by Derick Fage and Melanie Serjak, Susan couldn’t help but have fun in her 7 minute segment – it’s Ottawa in an hour filled with interesting interviews, useful demonstrations, good food and great music!