Holiday Buffet + Tips for Entertaining

Happy Monday! I hope you had a great weekend. Did you opt to shop or sleep? I didnt do either, but had an enjoyable few days putting the final finishing touches on the Christmas decor. And this week is going to be all about showcasing and sharing my home decorated for the holiday season. Boy, do I have some surprises up my sleeve for you

To start off the week, Im excited to give you a tour of my newly decorated Christmas buffet that I partnered on with Kirklands for their Holiday Hostess campaign along with a few of my friends Kelly of View Along the Way, Carrie of Making Lemonade, and Chelsea of Two Twenty One.

o, and guess what there is a giveaway, so keep reading.

One of my favorite parts of the Holiday season is hosting a brunch for our family and friends. Filled with muffins, sconces, egg tarts, and much more, the buffet gets filled with delicious goodies that I make, along with the treats that everyone brings. As part of my collaboration with Kirklands this year, they sent me a few items to incorporate amongst my holiday decor. I was up for the challenge. All the items (3) tall mason jars, a chip + dip bowl, and a drink canister were versatile and can absolutely be used throughout the year for many occasions. Those are certainly the best types of items to decorate with.

Come take a tour of my buffet ready for a party

Amongst the serving pieces and food, I added other touches of the season with berries, ornaments, and various Christmas decor like a santa statue and our loved ceramic victorian houses.

In the 3 varying sized tall glass mason jars that Kirklands provided, I added chocolate biscottis yummmm in the small one and various flavored teas in the medium size.

Other small dishes were filled with muffins, savory treats, and fruit.

For the tallest jar I took branches from the yard and adorned them with small colorful ball ornaments. This is my favorite part of the buffet because it adds height and interest to the overall vignette. The colorful ornaments are from Lowes and they are leftover from the ornaments that will be used for the Pallet Christmas Countdown Tree.

Entertaining can often be a little nerve-wracking, but it really doesnt have to be. The people you are inviting over are often those you choose to be surrounded by and they dont care if everything is perfectly in place. Instead they are just happy to be there with you enjoying the occasion. So basically, dont stress. Its not worth it. Ill try to take my own advice

Aside from that, which is something thats a must to remember, I have a few more simple tips for entertaining.

1. Music is a Must There are very few moments when we dont have music on in our home. I grew up that way, so entertaining or not, music is a staple. For a party or gathering, music is so important to set the atmosphere and mood. Choice something that fits the style of your gathering. I love using Pandora on my iPhone to get a variety of music and artists. And the other part abut music it eliminates any awkward silent moments.

2. Buffet Style Setting up the food on a buffet where guests can serve themselves as they wish often makes for an easier, more casual set up. To feed a crowd all at once and to make sure everything is piping hot is almost impossible.

3. Plan for More One of the worst things to happen at a party is to run out of food or drinks. So if youre having 8 people over, plan for 10 or 12. Leftovers are better than running out.

Hopefully my tips for entertaining have helped a bit. Of course, it goes without saying, that prepping ahead of time is the biggest and most important part of a successful party. And most of all, when youre having a good time, your guests will follow.

Want to see a few more pictures of my Holiday Buffet? Enjoy

One of the items that Kirklands sent me was this beautiful chip + dip bowl. I love the oval shape and the attached smaller bowl for dips.

And one more peak at the overall buffet set for the party I wish you could join us.

If youve enjoyed my buffet, you will LOVE what my friends created in their homes + you can see how 4 Designers / Bloggers used 3 of the same items.

Kelly of View Along the Way

Carrie of Making Lemonade

Chelsea of Two Twenty One

On to some awesomeness for the day

Kirklands is being super generous this holiday season by providing (2) $100 Gift Cards to two lucky winner.

Plus, TONIGHT at 8pm, I will be part of a the Holiday Hostess Twitter Chat where we will be giving away even more Gift Cards to Kirklands! Follow along with Kelly, Carrie, Chelsea, and I using the hashtag HolidayHostess + @Kirklands. Be sure to join us!

Good Luck and Happy Holidays!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Via: Holiday Buffet + Tips for Entertaining