Stand Up

Who can't use a cakestand during the holidays? A truly great one will make your homemade desserts look fantastic, your store-bought treats look homemade and your starters stand out. Here are three...

These wood cake stands from Anthropolgie will bring warmth to your table and mix well with just about anything. Think hors d'ouevres, an array of cheese or stack them and top with snacks. 

Martha offers a plethora of gorgeous cake stands through Macy's and this one is no exception: imagine it topped with any number of decadent layer cakes.

Ebay and Etsy have a wide variety of vintage stands that will bring a unique quality to your table--find a color that contrasts with the rest of your serving pieces to really stand out. 

Bowl

The holidays and high entertaining season are upon us and who doesn't need a new serving bowl to help them along? Here are four amazing options:

This four-piece server can do triple duty. Imagine, filling all three smaller vessels with different treats? Or perhaps you fill the largest piece with a salad or some pasta? And you fill the others with garnishes? The possibilities are endless.

This serving bowl will bring some warmth to your table.

This monster of a bowl (eighteen inches in diameter) could do amazing things for you all through the holidays--big bowls of pasta, roasted vegetables or a leafy green salad could all be served to the maddening crowds. 

This black and gold bowl, although not as big as some of the others, will bring drama to the dining table. Colorful food like edamame or a melange of small tomatoes would only look more gorgeous in this vessel. Buy two.

Cheers!

Buiding a bar?  Here are some great finds that can make your bar shine...

Simple and elegant, this large black tray from Crate and Barrel would provide a dramatic background for metallic pieces.

This Como tray would add an element of the exotic to a bar--you could go either way, making it more modern with some simple glass pieces or take it over the top with I Dream of Jeannie carafes, Moroccam tea glasses and other jewel-like glassware. 

A set of kaleidoscope trays would be perfect for the bar--use the large one for glasses and the other sizes for snacks or garnishes.

Bar tools. Easy. 

Like a small sculpture you can use to open bottles. 

I mean, it isn't shaped like a razor blade, but I still think people would use it and compliment your sense of style. 

So simple, so affordable and so useful.

The king of cocktail shakers, this design from MoMA was designed in 1957.

Classic and so useful for making drinks. 

Great looking carafe, what else can I say?

Drama! Add it to your bar with this...not as tall as it looks, so get five and use them to serve mixers. 

A special decanter that just screams, "This is my favorite thing to drink!"

Simple and all-purpose, these glasses from Williams-Sonoma still have a lot of character due to their supernatural thin walls. The smaller ones are perfect for a casual glass of wine while the larger size makes a generous cocktail. I use th m for everything. 

These are far fancier, with a big splash of midcentury panache and would add some shimmer to your bar.

Yes, you could buy wine glasses in every shape for every vintage on the planet. Or, you could buy these great looking, all-purpose glasses for $1.99 and save your money for wine. Plus, when your tipsy guests are having a great time and break one, you won't cry,

Linen cocktail napkins are simple, yet durable and this blue is what I would consider a neutral that is not neutral.

J'adore! I am buying these for me...

Sometimes mixed color sets seem a little infantile, but with cocktail napkins it is kind of fun. They also act as a drink signifyer and the scalloped edge makes them feel very special. 

These straws are perfect for summer drinks and, while plastic striped ones are fun, these are just killer. I will have them.

Stack It Up

Serving tea sandwiches is just one way to use a tiered serving piece for entertaining. New or vintage pieces can add drama and heighth to your buffet or appetizer arrangement: think more delicious things in less square footage.  Plus, tiered serving pieces can make smaller treats, appetizers and canapés more accessible to guests and creates a welcoming presentation.  No surprise, I have several tiered serving pieces in both ceramic and metal, some new and others vintage.  I use them frequently for sweet things as well as starters and think you should have at least one in the batterie.

This stackable wooden one from Merchant No. 4 is perfect for cheese or charcuterie.

This glass and metal example from Crate and Barrel is simple, but the materials allow it to go with any type of serving pieces.

This wood and metal tri-tier also from West Elm takes a cue from a couple of the vintage finds in my collection.  Keep your eyes open at the thrift store and estate sales for classic ones or look on Etsy and eBay for some wonderful vintage versions that the above examples are based on.