SPRING INTO ENTERTAINING

How to have a May Day Party

Spring Into Entertaining Rebecca's Garden : A scarf placed across the buffet table helps set the color theme. Plain white plates on the table and clear glass stemware enhance the other colors present on the table without detracting from the effect by adding unnecessary color. Just in time for your springtime celebrations, here are five easy steps for setting a beautiful spring buffet table:

Step 1.

Start with a theme. This way, you can throw out things that don't work. The theme can be based on a color or on subject matter. Host Rebecca Kolls laid a colorful scarf across a white tablecloth as a runner. Then, any aspect that's added to the table complements the scarf in some way. A garland of silk flowers dresses up a copper-finished lighting fixture above the center of the buffet table. The flowers pick up the colors of the scarf on the buffet, and hanging ribbons draw the eye back down to the table.

Step 2.

Choose either a centerpiece or a focal point. Because Rebecca was setting a buffet table, she chose a focal point, as opposed to a centerpiece. The focal point was a copper-finished lighting fixture located above the center of the table. Rebecca added a garland of silk flowers to dress up the lighting fixture that incorporated the colors of the scarf, and also added some hanging ribbons that drew the eye back to the buffet table.

Step 3.

Add appropriate embellishments. For a simple embellishment, Rebecca created miniature bouquets, tying small bunches of flowers together with wire and then winding the stems with appropriately-colored ribbons. She also created candleholders out of terra-cotta pots. She painted the small pots with a 50/50 mix of acrylic paint and varnish. After the paint was dry, she turned the pot upside down and attached a terra-cotta saucer to the bottom with glue. This made a perfect pedestal for a pillar candle.

Step 4.

Invitations. Of course, you could use store-bought invitations, but Rebecca made her own. She used a piece of cardstock to which she attached a packet of seeds and ribbon. On the back of the cardstock, she put all the party information.

Step 5.

The food. The food for the party can be as simple or as extravagant as you like, but Rebecca likes to keep her food simple and easy, so she opts for finger food. A simple recipe that works is a fromage spread ("cheese" in French).

Fromage

In a food processor add: swiss and cheddar cheese (or any left-over cheese from the fridge) grated parmesan cream cheese (to make it easier to spread) hunks of blue cheese a clove of diced garlic a splash or two of white wine to help create a smooth but tasty consistency. Once everything is in the processor, blend until creamy. Scoop the mixture into a bowl and surround with crackers. Tip: A terra-cotta pot and saucer, painted white, serves as a pedestal for the pillar candle, and an iced bowl, ringed with yellow roses, holds the shrimp and helps carry the theme. A frozen ice bowl keeps cocktail shrimp chilled and adds to the color theme. Pour about an inch of water into a large bowl. Float a smaller bowl inside the large bowl, and tape it in place. Fill the space between the two bowls with water and anything that will match your theme (Rebecca chose some silk flowers). Place in the freezer, and a few hours later, you have a frozen bowl to keep your shrimp fresh.