My Holiday Dining Room: Silver and Gold Entertaining

gdonohue2263
Nov 30, 2021
9 min read

Updated: Dec 1, 2021

Happy Holidays. Welcome to Gayle Donohue Interior Designs.

Featuring My Victorian Home Chronicles

My goal is to provide personal service to inspire people to represent their true nature, to create an authentic, unique home using my innovative approach; an opportunity to create beautiful spaces that provide genuine meaning.

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Gayle Donohue Interior Designs. Welcome to My Victorian Home Chronicles, My Holiday Dining Room.; Silver and Gold Entertaining

Silver and Gold

Silver and gold, silver and gold, everyone wishes for silver and gold. How do you measure its worth? Just by the pleasure it gives here on earth. Silver and gold, silver and gold mean so much more when I see silver and gold decorations on every Christmas tree. Folk singer Burl Ives’ famous holiday song was in my head when I re-discovered twenty-nine silver and gold goblets tucked in the back of my mom and dad’s dining room cupboards. Made in Spain, my siblings and I would polish the set, and my mom would serve champagne in the wide-mouthed stemware. When I saw the tarnished and dusty collection, I knew that I would set my dining room table with this long-forgotten service. Silver and gold would be perfect with my Benjamin Moore Timson Green backdrop and red tree-trimming ornaments. With a plan in mind, I was excited to start my holiday decorating.

It took me 3 hours to polish the silver. To enjoy the tedious process, I sat comfortably outside on my side porch couch and rubbed one piece at a time, remembering what it was like to drink from the metal vessels as a young adult. The stems were twisted and chunky, so I liberally slathered on the Wright’s Silver polish. It comes with a soft sponge that is easy on the fingers. Worn in spots, they were still beautiful, and I could not wait to see three at each place setting on my table set for six. I polished several other pieces that I use annually, pleased that I was ahead of schedule.

My Bon Appetit Collection, Holiday Editions

Gifts From Your Kitchen

A few years ago, I was close to throwing away my 27-year-old Bon Appetit Collection but could not do it. The heavy bounded editions took up so much space. I set up a table at the curb and made a sign that said:” free.” It distressed me so much. Instead, I took them to my office, and there they sat on my shelves for seven years. I read all of them to keep current, saving the holiday issues for quick reference to the “Gifts From Your Kitchen'' ideas. The year that I went to town was in 1994, inspired by A Victorian Christmas edition. I made every gift recipe; Chocolate and Toasted Almond Fudge, Old fashioned Butterscotch Stars, Double-Coconut Macaroons, Ginger and Spice Shortbread Diamonds, and Apricot-Orange Truffles. My family’s favorite is the Double-Coconut Macaroon which I still make every year to this day. Dipped in melted chocolate, they are simply delicious.

Double-Coconut Macaroons Recipe, Bon Appetit

There was something special about that Victorian Christmas issue; there were a lot of fabulous firsts. Other fantastic recipes included Smoked Trout and Dill Spread, especially enjoyed by my brother-in-law, Harry, who continues to love to smoke fish on his Traeger smoker. For the first time in my life, I made a Pear, Poached, and Raspberry Trifle with Orange Custard with my first professional All-Clad pan, a gift from my husband. The pears and custard came out just right with this heavy-weight beauty. It was a liquor-soaked cake, layered with jam and custard and covered with whipped cream. I remember my sister-in-law, Jane, who married an Englishman, saying, “I never had a trifle like that in England” - a grand compliment! The magazine also featured Potato Latkes with Applesauce and Cinnamon Sugar. My cousins and my younger sister’s family are Jewish, so together, our families have always celebrated the best of Hanukkah Suppers and Christmas Dinners. That year, all the family came for a holiday, and My Victorian Home Recipes were a big hit.

The Table Top

I have never purchased a tablecloth for my dining room table. My mom handed down to me my great-grandmother’s white linen tablecloth, which drapes nicely and is so pretty. Each year, I have it cleaned and pressed at Green Mountain Cleaners, staged on a hanger, wrapped in plastic, ready to appoint. I like how it puckers, giving it a sought-after textured look, a decoratively popular term today. Like a freshly-pressed and boxed men’s dress shirt, the folds are part of the appeal. Eighty separate service items rest on the cloth; its delicate details peep from underneath, a patterned runner defines the collage of silver centerpieces.

Wedding China

I chose Christian Dior "Renaissance" china for our wedding back in June 1990. My husband recently remarked, “they are your colors.” I liked the design immediately and now realize that I love the deep colors of red, navy, yellow, lavender, pink, green, and gold - basically the mix. The pattern is rich and fussy, but it does not hold me back from using them year-round for special occasions. I chose simple white linen napkins to house the silver service ware, including a soup, coffee spoon, and dessert fork. I placed the coffee cups on the table to save a step at the end of the meal. On the side table, I stacked dessert dishes, ready to serve with additional napkins, if needed. Years of catering training taught me a few tricks of the trade.

The Centerpieces

Like the tablecloth, the silver-handled ornate bowl belonged to my maternal great-grandmother. I always admired it and filled it with decorative fruit along with red-berry garland. The six white pillar candles are from Pottery Barn and sit on a silver candle stand with leaves and berries purchased from Crate and Barrel. Salt and pepper shakers adorn each side. At the heads, I place my mother’s silver birds. There is no more room on the table, so I am pleased with my 2021 holiday dining room settings’ look and feel.

The Holiday Music

Halfway through, I decided to turn on some music. A couple of my CD favorites are Mariah Carey’s Merry Christmas and Andrea Bocelli, Under the Desert Sky. Unexpectedly, one of the songs, Miss You Most (At Christmas Time), made me a bit melancholy, and I had to pause for a while. I regrouped and kept going, remembering that this time of year is tough without your parents, grandparents, aunts, and uncles. Feelings of loss run super deep during the holidays and can sneak up on you when decorating. It’s essential to reach out to people who may need a friend.

The Walls, Holiday Dish Towels

I needed a big center display for the open green wall with the combination tables. Unsure of what it would be, I started to pull out items from my sideboard, customarily draping the Christmas tree linen towel over the silver platter and the poinsettia linen on the side table. I then stopped to consider placing them on the wall. They were pretty charming. So I found some push pins and stuck them on the wall. I repositioned the existing artwork and staged my small trees just so. I thought this would work. Vera Neumann signed VERA, designed the poinsettias, and Mahogany Brand made the Christmas tree towel. Who said dish towels and silver service could not go together? It was simple and had “country elegance,” which was the look I was going for this year. The east-facing room is a bit dark so I brought in my lighted white birch trees to add brilliance and flair. A friend gifted them to me along with red clip-on cardinals which add a sweet touch. I like the way they blend in with the wall and complement the scene.

Christmas Crafts, Bramble and Berry Wreaths

I saved the burlap-made sign “MERRY” from last year’s Chrismukkah pendant when Christmas and Hanukkah overlapped and hung that too. Our Jewish relatives will be with us again this year, so it always works for us. I then purchased a natural bramble wreath from the nearby Berle Farm and adorned it with more red berries and trinkets. It looks nice on the big dark wooden door. Not stopping there, I draped red berry garland on my grandmother’s artwork and my enormous silver platter, a wedding gift from my parents—red, green, silver, and gold. I needed more gold for the small tree, so I purchased a sleeve of gold ornaments at the new Job Lot store. I hung two existing wreaths on the windows by Martha Stewart and removed the blue decorations to stay with the color theme. I always like these wreaths, and I will be able to reattach the blue for next year. I used small red glass apples on the other tree and broke two when they slipped off the tree bough and crashed to the floor. I had these simple ornaments for years and never used them, unsure of their origin. But in this room, I wanted a more natural scene with apples, acorns, pinecones, and such. I usually do not favor craft-made items, but I had a change of mind this year and placed two cute figurines made from cork on top of each tree. Aware that someone had caringly made these by hand, it was time to take them out of the box and show their craftsmanship. A friend of mine is a crafter, and she has a big heart. I realize now that hand-made art has a big heart.

The Sides, Silk Flowers, Holiday Hot Plates

Silk flowers, a glittery golden reindeer, natural poinsettia plants, and tapered candles adorn the sides of the room. I placed tall, red silk flowers in the vase with my yellow roses for a wowing effect. On top of the sideboard, holiday hot plates warm the space with clever designs from Crate and Barrel. I hung a couple of red stockings in the front, knowing that Santa would find them.

The Jars, Holiday Cookie Cutters, David's Cookie Jar

My family cookie cutters are in a big glass kitchen jar with a thick-knobbed lid, the kind you see at the cooking store and the like. I love the memories associated with the coppery-colored ones, each with the small handle in the middle. I remember decorating them all with my siblings and children and especially love Santa’s sack, the angel, and the snowman.

I look forward to decorating them this year. I always use Julia Child’s delicate sugar cookie recipe for the dough. A colleague gave me a David’s Cookie Jar, a Christmas “handbag” that is adorable. I like to fill it with gold coins for the kids. I also admired and held onto a burgundy and gold fabric wine holder with a tie on the top, given to me by a generous-natured friend. A pair of German strawberry pitchers are on top of the combination table stand alongside the small tree. In the background, a cute wooden, Charlie-Brownesque tree happily stands; its simplistic, child-like style always makes me smile.

The Newspaper Article, Mom's Cheese Ball, Scalloped Oysters

The dining room looks like a work of art, my work of art. But it’s no mystery how it all came to pass. I know exactly how I learned how to do everything, from polishing silver to displaying pretty things to preparing elegant meals. I found an old newspaper clipping from 1972 titled “Holiday Entertaining A Shared Activity In This Home.” It’s a narrative about my parents and their way of entertaining in their home. I had documented proof that I learned how to entertain with style from my parents, Peggy and Herb Loretan. It’s all in the article. I was only nine years old at the time, absorbing everything. I still have the knife and platter used to cut and serve the delicious chocolate ladyfinger cake. My mom always let us help separate the delicate sponge-like fingers. Mom’s cheese ball recipe requires a jar of Old English brand cheese which can be hard to find. Over the years, halved walnuts replaced the finely chopped pecans. Always requested, her scalloped oyster dish is still a decadent crowd-pleaser.

There are pleated drapes in the background, decorative shutters, a cattail floral display, and a

serving cake with homemade whipping cream; this picture embodies my mom, a class act and consummate entertainer. My dad was always right there helping in the kitchen too. I feel lucky to have them as creative and generous role models who are always with me in spirit as I write My Victorian Home Chronicles.