Centerpieces for a formal table setting. There always should be a centerpiece when you are setting the table. I tend to have one most of the time, though I have done a couple of small centerpieces. Setting...
Setting a formal table requires more than just china plates, bowls, cups, saucers, napkins, and silverware placed in the correct location. It requires its own decoration in the form of a centerpiece to set the ambience for the dinner.
Brian Hay, a chef and culinary instructor at Austin Community College and a sommelier who also teaches for the International Sommelier Guild, says, "There should always be a centerpeice when you are setting the table. I have seen a lot of people do huge centerpieces, which are absolutely gorgeous, but then you can't see around it at the table."
Centerpieces should reflect the mood and theme of the event. If your event has a color theme, incorporate those colors into your centerpiece. Flowers range greatly in prices, so find something that fits your budget and the feeling you are trying to create. Daisies may be inexpensive, but really aren't suitable for a formal dinner.
Your centerpiece may incorporate other components too, not just flowers. Candles are very popular for formal dinners and can be ringed with a flower wreath. Battery operated water falls are quickly becoming popular, as there are no cords to get in the way and you can create a soothing serene effect. Depending on the waterfall style, you can also encircle it with a flower wreath, vines, or let petals float on top of the water.
The key to centerpieces for formal dinners is to not go overboard with the size. The size of your table will also be a factor in the centerpiece you use. You don't want to take up too much room on a small table with a centerpiece, yet you don't want the centerpiece to be understated either. Small tables will use smaller centerpieces while larger centerpieces are appropriate for larger tables. If you have a very long table (or several long tables lined up together to make it appear as one long table), you will want one larger centerpiece in the very center, (but not too large) and then smaller pieces of the same design running along the rest of the table.
Hay says, "Depending on the table size, I might do two or three centerpieces that don't take up a lot of space. They still have color and match the tablecloth, but you can see around it."
So just how big is too big for a centerpiece? Anything over 15 inches is generally going to block the view of the people sitting across from one another. You can find centerpieces that are still a good size, but instead of being tall they are long. Of course you don't want them to be too wide either, so you aren't interferring with eating space.
Hay says, "I have just been to too many parties where they will do a three foot centerpiece. It looks gorgeous, but it becomes a hindrance."
Save the large arrangements for some place else, like a corner table out of the way, or across the top of a piano.
