Using everyday glossy white dinnerware and a few personal pieces, senior decor editor Karen Kirk and celebrity designers Debbie Travis and Peter Fallico set three fine tables in their own unique styles. Re-create these looks for your next celebration or make them your own by using your favourite colours, family heirlooms or handcrafted linens and decorations.

Vintage inspired
For special occasions – or even a quiet evening with family and friends – I love to bring out my favourite pieces of pressed glass and other family heirlooms to mix and match with my everyday EcoWare Cantania white dishes (sears.ca). Making each place setting unique instantly stirs up lively conversation around the table.

Candlewick is one of my favourite vintage glass patterns. Candlewick glassware is readily available for next to nothing at flea markets and antique shops, and you'll also find new versions of the pattern, such as the America Retold Pearl dinner plates, bowls and votives (marketexpressions.com). I've mixed in here with my vintage juice glasses and serving dishes. The clear glass pattern and delicate beaded detail add shimmer to the place setting, while a lilac-coloured Chardon Constance dessert plate (marketexpressions.com) and matching place mat (crateandbarrel.com) add a fresh, modern look. American Retold etched mini wine carafes (market expressions.com) and reusable porcelain place cards (parkermac.com) suit any occasion.

- Karen Kirk, senior decor editor, Canadian Living

Set your dinner table right
Not sure of where to put the soup spoon and salad fork when setting your table? Check out our interactive guide on how to set a perfectly laid out table.


Page 1 of 3 -- Debbie Travis describes her table setting as nature-themed. Take a look on page 2.

Extending the holiday season
Entertaining after the holidays is a great way to keep using my favourite holiday ornaments and decorations on the table. This table setting, with my Debbie Travis Soho white dinnerware and Capital flatware, looks gorgeous and elegant but is simple to create just by using ornaments in different ways. It is a luxe look without the high price tag.

The nature theme, with birds, leaves and pinecones, done in a layered gold palette, is very trendy. I used one ornament as a place card holder and attached another to a ribbon for a napkin ring. I layered faux foliage on the place mat to add colour and shine.

To incorporate a bit of tradition into my table, I used crystal glasses, vintage linen napkins and silver candlesticks that have been in my family for years. (All Debbie Travis dinnerware, flatware, place mats, votives and ornaments are available at canadiantire.ca.)

- Debbie Travis, television personality, author and home collection designer for Canadian Tire.


Page 2 of 3 -- See Peter Fallico's colourful table with creative repurposed place mats on page 3.
Style and personality
My place setting is clean, fresh and personal. It's the type of table setting I'd use for a spring or summer luncheon in the garden, such as for a Mother's Day, birthday or anniversary celebration. I started with Maxwell and Williams Beverly Hills classic white dinnerware and Allure cutlery (both can be found at maxwellandwilliams.com), then layered the table settings with unique touches, such as small, individual flower arrangements and place cards made in minutes on my computer with an inspirational quote in a pretty font (Zapfino). A gold-rimmed dinner plate (from homesense.ca) instantly glams up the plain white dishes.

Because I'm not much of a baker, I like to buy decorated desserts from my local bakery. It allows me to offer a selection to my guests and present them in unique ways. Here, I've used a miniature cloche dessert pedestal. I love reusing and repurposing, so I often make place mats from vintage-inspired wallpaper remnants that I salvage from my various projects. On the table, they look like expensive place mats. The delicate crystal vase, cut-glass flute and vintage ribbon are from the St. Lawrence Sunday Antique Market in Toronto (sundayantiquemarket.com) where I love to go for one-of-a-kind finds. You can also find inexpensive colourful napkins, decorative ornaments and accents at discount stores like HomeSense.

- Peter Fallico, renovator, decorator and host of HGTV's "Home To" series, is renovating a Toronto home for the next venue of Monogram Dinner by Design, which raises funds for Toronto's Casey House.

This story was originally titled "Set to Impress" in the January 2012 issue. Subscribe to Canadian Living today and never miss an issue!

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