For today’s Dinner Party Spotlight I headed to Greenwich Village to visit the eclectic and incredibly cool apartment of jewelry designer Lele Sadoughi. Much like her one-of-a-kind jewelry line, her apartment is filled with specialty pieces from her vintage red velvet dining chairs to her handmade napkin rings {which she designed especially for her wedding reception in the Mayan Riviera!}.

A little background on Lele… Lele’s impressive resume included designing jewelry for Ippolita, Neiman Marcus, Anthropologie, Club Monaco, and then serving as the Director to the J Crew Jewelry Division before debuting her collection in 2012. The line, entitled Lele Sadoughi, is sold at high-end retailers like Intermix, Harvey Nichols, Net-á-Porter, and NeimanMarcus.com.

This incredibly talented mom of two {our kids are actually the same ages}, was kind enough to grant us entry into her home and show us another talent, how she eloquently entertains for friends… Read on for her Q &A.

Q & A:

FH: What is your entertaining style? Traditional, contemporary, seasonal?

Lele: I would say contemporary: I love mixing prints, modern stemware, and traditional silver.

FH: How often do you entertain and for how many guests?

Lele: I love a dinner party. However, with a 6 month old baby and 2 year old toddler, I haven’t had much time to entertain recently. I hope to get back into hosting something every month.

FH: Do you have a go-to recipe or dish {or do you avoid cooking at all costs}?

Lele: On a winter day, I love to make chili. Being from Texas, I use a southwestern recipe with corn, black beans and lots of cumin.

FH: Did something inspire you for today’s table?

Lele: I started with malachite printed placemats and Lele Sadoughi napkin rings that I made from my jewelry manufacturers. I designed some gold ring napkin holders with malachite-colored stones and other ones with hand painted black and white enamel. I complimented this palette with ivory roses and china.

FH: Tell me about today’s table…

• Placemats: Dransfield and Ross
• Plates: L’objet (Aegean pattern)
• Napkins: Classic linen by Crate & Barrel
• Napkin rings: Lele Sadoughi. The Riviera napkin ring is very special to me, as I designed them especially for my wedding reception in the Mayan Riviera. The stone napkin rings are made in the same style of my slider bracelets.
• Water glasses: Baccarat (Massena)
• Wine glasses: Baccarat (Massena)
• Silverware: Silver wedding gift from my grandmother. (Pattern is King Richard)
• Flower vases: Center: Baccarat. Flanked: Vintage, from a flea market in Lisbon
• Candelabra: I like to get fresh flowers in the flower district, and often go to Jamali Gardens. I found these amazing candelabras there.
• Table and chairs: Chairs are Midcentury finds from 1stDibs.com and the table is Ligne Roset.
• Piece of art behind table: There is an amazing place in Brooklyn called Film Biz Recycling where they get pieces from movie sets, and dontate proceeds to charity. I have found some great things there!

Thanks so much Lele for sharing your hostess style. Be sure to head over to Lele’s website and shop her romantic pieces at www.LeleSadoughi.com.

Location: Greenwich Village, NYC // Photographer: Alexandra Wolf