DINNER TABLE DECORATIONS.

Waikato Times, Volume XXVII, Issue 2233, 30 October 1886, Page 2 (Supplement)

DINNER TABLE DECORATIONS.

To attain success in the art of decorating dinner tables needs a thoughtful eye and a discreet haud. The primary object is to enhance the elegance of the table, " That the feas-t may be more joyous, And the guet>ta be more contented." Therefore the decorations must be subordinate to the comfort of those who are to partake of the meal ; they are not to be arranged for the entertainment of lookeis-on, and it should never be said of them that the seivants had all the pleasure they could afford, while the guests were simply made uncomfortable. The old epergne and the golden bowl of gaudy flowers interfered with conversation, midc the table heavy and ostentatious, and indicated that the dinner was prepared for ceremony rather than for enjoyment. In selecting receptacles for flowers and fruits, it should be borne in mind that a clear view across the table is always to be desired, and that simple designs characterised by distinctness and elegance are to be preferred before those that are complex and elaborate, even if these last should happeu to be in the best taote considered apart from the purpose they are intended for, There are occasions when elaborate and costly works are fouud appiopriate, but, as a rule, they are the very things wo do not want. All gold and silver receptacles are more or less objectionable ; nevertheless, they are not to be condemned in toto, because we have seen them u^ed with admirable etfeot, and the sparkle of metal is appropriate to festivity. The large silvered plateau is usually a cold obstruction or a glaring mockery, aud even plants, if too large or in too great plenty, arc apt to suggest that the table is an imitation of a nursery, or a greengrocer's shop.