5 Tips for a Stress-Free Holiday Season

After this weekend we will officially be in the Holiday Season. This is both a joyful and overwhelming time of year. It can get scary. Waking up at 4am to cook a turkey and then looking alive at midnight for black Friday sales (that are starting way too early... or late?). But it's okay we've got your back, and your sides! Here's our top five tips for surviving the holiday season without pulling all of your hair out.

 Keep Gatherings Small and Intimate - Get together with a few of your closest friends or relatives for the holidays. Choose to throw the big blowout parties at another time of the year, when you and your guests will have fewer commitments competing for your precious time.

 Be Ready to Attend Holiday Parties - Buy a small stock of hostess gifts in advance so you don't have to run around the day of each party you attend trying to find a gift amongst the masses. It's also helpful if you have a unannounced guest. Several jars of locally made preserves are good to have on hand, as are beautifully wrapped soaps and bottles of wine.

 Take Advantage of Timesavers - Order our creamy garlic mashed potatoes or the bakery’s pumpkin pie to complement your main course. "Adeline Rosemire, author of Christmas Shortcuts, once went one step further and hosted a holiday dinner in which everything—the appetizers, smoked turkey, bread and desserts—had been ordered from gourmet food catalogs and required little or no preparation" - WomansDay

 Stock the Bar - Take inventory of liquor-cabinet staples, including tonic water and other mixers, and restock those that are running low. Also chill a few bottles of Champagne, you never know when holiday guests may decide to drop in!

 Plan Ahead for your Holiday Party - Trying to get everything done at the last minute with guests knocking at your door can be very stressful.  If your cooking your holiday dinner yourself think about what you can prepare in advance and make a checklist of all the ingredients you need. When it comes time to shop, avoid the evening-weekday rush and weekend crowds. The day of, set the table in the morning so that unforeseen events -- a late meeting, a last-minute stop at the wine seller -- don't slow things down. Right before your guests arrive, dim the lights, light some candles, and pour yourself a glass of wine. 

And you can always make things easier by having it catered! 

Because after taking care of everyone else all day, it's nice to have someone take care of you.

2013 Wedding Trends No.10 Birch

We've been getting ready for the new year of wedding trends and styles. After researching online and hearing from our upcoming brides we've put together our list of the Top Ten Wedding Trends for 2013.

 Starting with this Wedding Wednesday we will be counting down the top ten trends for 2013, and this week we're revealing number 10: Birch.

We're loving these wooden touches at weddings! These whimsical wooden accents definitely add an amazing natural feel to a rustic wedding. From the table to the buffet, planks of wood make beautiful table runners, and tree stumps are fabulous cake stands!  And If you’ve always dreamed of an outdoor wedding, but find yourself with a great indoor venue instead – you can add some wooden accents to your big day to bring the outdoors inside.

 

Setting the Table

Thanksgiving is only a week away, and if your the one hosting the big event this year you might be beginning to panic. Thanksgiving is a wonderful holiday because it's really focused around a meal more then any other holiday, it's also one of the few times in the year when almost everyone pulls out the china and sets a gorgeous table! 

When it comes to setting the perfect holiday table everything from the centerpieces to the linen matters, it's all in the details. Your centerpieces are a great way to bring in color and texture to your table. You can also be creative with your centerpieceses and use fruits and sqaush, florals, leafs, feathers, sticks or even little nik naks from around the house. The color scheme you choose will really be impactful on the mood of your dinner as well. If you choose the colors in the bronze, gold, and burgundy family you'll create a very traditional feeling. Choosing unexpected color combos like aqua and brown are still earthy and appropriate for fall but are much more playful! For a simple and elegant feeling keep it contemporary with a monochromatic scheme.

 

Check out this handy diagram for setting your table properly for thanksgiving. This setting is for a formal meal that would involve multiple courses so if your eating family style with everything on the table at once don't worry about the salad plate/fork and you can get away with only one wine glass.

 As for the meal itself don't worry so much we've got you covered our chefs can make as much or as little as you want. Prepped and ready for pick up the night before. So you can sleep in, and enjoy your day with the family! With whole roasted turkeys, provolone potatoes, and fruity autumn salads who could ask for more.

Sip & Speakeasy...

Here at Colette's we've been researching and gearing up for 2013's wedding trends. One that we're most excited for is the 1920s Great Gatsby style that's on the horizon! But if you can't stand the wait (or aren't getting married) then why not host a Speakeasy Cocktail Party! Gatsby makes a perfect theme for a holiday party especially a glitzy New Years Eve party.

The old speakeasy door at the Muckenthaler

The Late Night Snack

It's Wedding Wednesday again our favorite day of the week! Actually any day we get to focus on food and parties is our favorite day of the week. A great wedding trend that we love is surprising your guests with a midnight snack during your reception. After dinner and cake guests will have danced themselves hungry again so serving a snack is a great pick me up to keep the party going. It also serves a purpose of soaking up some of that alcohol before the last dance.

The Holiday Feasting Table

We've seen our share of elongated kings tables in the wedding world but it's definitely a pleasant surprise to find this trend popping up in the corporate world. This Holiday season Corporate parties will be sporting these elongated tables for their employees to feast together a la Tiny Tim in Charles Dickens "A Christmas Carol". Feasting Tables create a more familial setting where all of your guests can truly enjoy the meal together!

How do you like them apples?

It's fall which means it's also the ideal time for apples! And though we can't quite make it to every apple festival (and we really wish we could) we're still satisfying our craving for apples here at the shop.