Meet the newest FH Dinner Party Series Guest, Tabletop & Event Stylist, Home Decor Expert, and lover of all things blue & white, Kara from Style Meets Soirée. And to kick off Fall, she is sharing a gorgeous tablescape she created that has me taking notes for my upcoming Fall Parties! Read on for an interview with Kara and her inspiration for this beautiful table {I can’t get enough of these copper accents!!}.
FH: Tell me a quick bio of how you came to start Style Meets Soirée?
SMS: Hi! I’m Kara from Style Meets Soirée! I started Style Meets Soirée to showcase my individual style and taste for hosting, decorating and entertaining. I come from a long line of women who love to throw parties! I’m pretty sure my grandmother’s motto was “Life’s too short not to throw a party!”, and my mother never missed out on an opportunity to remind us of life’s daily blessings. Decorating and entertaining are two things I’ve always loved doing, so I started Style Meets Soirée to share that passion with others. And if it inspires others along the way, then that’s even more reason to celebrate!
FH: How would you describe your blog or company?
SMS: Style Meets Soirée focuses on easy entertaining ideas for today’s busy hostess! Women today are expected to “do it all.” Style Meets Soirée attempts to serve a need by providing simple yet elegant entertaining and decorating ideas, tips and tricks that can be effortlessly woven into everyday life. Whether you’re a tireless mom or CEO (or both), or just looking to add a little more fun to your daily life, Style Meets Soirée hopes to offer something that speaks to you.
FH: What is your entertaining style? Traditional, Contemporary, Seasonal?
SMS: My entertaining style focuses on the light and bright. I would say I’m a modern traditionalist, but I like to try new trends with the changing of seasons. The one quality I try to remain at all times is “accessible.”
FH: How often do you entertain and for how many guests?
SMS: I love everything from impromptu get-togethers to large scale soirées. For a girls’ night in, I might do an easy cheese and veggie platter paired with wine or a sparkly cocktail. For large-scale events, a catered menu and event rentals are a necessity. Each style of event brings its own share of planning and attention to detail, which is fun for me and part of what I love so much about this job. Now that summer has passed, I am looking forward to a new season of decorating and entertaining.
FH: Do you have a go-to recipe or dish or cocktail {or do you avoid cooking at all costs!}?
SMS: This is a hard question because I love drawing so much of my inspiration from the particular season but, when I have the time I love to cook, and depending on the size of the crowd, I like to prepare my own dishes or at least mix some of them in.
For this fall tablescape I knew I wanted to feature a leaf-shaped crust pie. I didn’t have a ton of time, so rather than making my pie from scratch, I bought canned apple pie filling from the store (2 cans) and a package of Pillsbury pie crust (the kind that comes 2 in a pack rolled up in the freezer section). After letting my pie crust thaw, I unrolled the first pie dough, placed it in the bottom of my ruffled pie dish and poured the two cans of apple pie filling on top. Using my small leaf-shaped pie crust cutters from Williams-Sonoma, I cut small leaves out of the second pie crust and placed them in a circle, starting from the outside, each row facing the opposite direction, until I reached the center. I baked my pie for 30 minutes at 400 degrees and it was done.
FH: Did something inspire you for today’s table? A certain color, flower, plate?
My Kate Spade Malmo flatware in rose gold was the inspiration for this tablescape! Rose gold is different than the normal gold metallic that I use in my tablescapes, and perfect for this fall table because it melds so nicely with copper tones that are so popular in the fall. From there I added rose gold-rimmed chargers (similar), painted fall leaves, ombré gourds, and even a “We love you, fall” sign – and mixed those with fall-hued shades of my favorite colors.
For the floral, I chose pink and purple garden roses, white carnations and violet chrysanthemum finished with silver dollar eucalyptus. The “vase” is actually not a vase but Juliska’s Carine champagne bucket, which worked nicely for such a large floral display.
These pillows from Pottery Barn were the perfect shade of dusty pink and these linen napkins from Sferra in lilac tied it all together. In Fall and Winter, I also like to have a few throw blankets available (such as this Kate Spade throw blanket in ivory) for when the conversation continues from dinner into after-dinner drinks.
FH: What’s your favorite element in today’s tablescape? Can you share with readers tips for re-creating at home!
SMS: My favorite part(s) of this tablescape are the personal touches that I added through the painted leaves and miniature gourds. I don’t always have time to craft items for my tablescapes, but when there is a particular need, I enjoy pulling out my craft box and getting a little paint on my hands. For this table, I purchased a fall leaf bunch and some craft paint from Michael’s, cut individual leaves off of the bunch and painted them ballet slipper pink and rose gold to match this tablescape. I also painted the faux gourds in ombré shades of the same colors to continue the fall theme. I absolutely love the “We love you, fall” sign from Lindsay Letters featured on my bar cart! It is such a cute sign—one that is sure to reappear numerous times on my blog and Instagram account this fall!
FH: If you could give one party tip for readers what would it be?
Planning is everything! I like to create a Pinterest board to visualize my ideas and color scheme. For a large scale event, organize the items that you already have and make a list of anything else that you’ll need. If you will be purchasing items from an online retailer, make sure to leave yourself plenty of time to account for any shipping delays. Complete as much as you can before the day of the event as possible–there will always be plenty to do on the day-of, and you’ll enjoy yourself more if you aren’t running around looking for that pie slicer you know you had! Set up your table at least the night before. If you’re preparing your own menu, make-ahead dishes are great for this reason (and help to reduce the amount of kitchen mess to clean up). Most importantly: make sure to take the time to “smell the roses” and enjoy the fabulous entertaining event you’ve planned!
FH: Table top… Share all the deets!!
- Plates: World Market
- Napkins: Sferra (similar)
- Charger: Amazon.com (similar)
- Water glasses: Pottery Barn (similar and similar)
- Wine glass: Crate & Barrel
- Julep Cup: Bed, Bath & Beyond (similar)
- Silverware: Kate Spade
- Vase: Juliska
- Fall Print: Lindsay Letters (similar)
- Bar Cart: Williams-Sonoma
- Copper Pitcher: Williams-Sonoma
- Miniature Gourds: Pottery Barn
- Gilded Agate Serving Tray: Anthropologie
- Copper Tiered Stand: Home Goods (similar)
- Ruffled Pie Dish: Crate & Barrel
- Cake Stand: Crate & Barrel
Home location: Lakeway, Texas
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