Hosting summer dinners and planning the finer details – from curating the tableware to candlelight and flowers – is an art in itself, with an aesthetic appeal to delight the senses.
“For me, entertaining is all about the music, the lighting, you know… the drinks you have, the combination of friends you have round, and making people feel really comfortable at home,” says Kelly Hoppen CBE, and multi award-winning designer.
“It should feel like you’re at home. It shouldn’t feel that it’s all very stiff. And that’s the beauty of entertaining at home – celebrating the people who are there.”
“And I’m always very good at putting people together,” says the 66-year-old, who splits her time between London and the Cotswolds with her long-term partner.
“I love doing the table layout, so I know who’s sitting with who, because I know about the conversations people are going to have.”
Obviously, food is important, says Hoppen, but believes “you can serve up anything.” And if you’ve got everything else right, “you’re going to have a fun time.”
Speaking about her love of entertaining, Hoppen says since they moved a few years ago, they’ve downsized from a dining table which seated 30 to less than half the size.
“We now have a beautiful table in our kitchen which seats 12, and that’s perfect… nice, small and cosy.”
Famous for her signature neutral palette, “my favourite colours are taupe, white, black and grey,” which have graced some of the most famous celebrity homes and hotels in the world, the super-host has two favourite colour schemes for tablescaping.
“For me at home, it’s always white and green. But it really depends on somebody’s home… if it’s all greys and monochromes, you could go for navy and white, which is really lovely in the spring and summer.”
Or just have all white, she suggests, and then have bits of red. “And also remember, food is a colour on the table; so you can always go more neutral and have food as a colour.”
To help create a Hoppen-inspired presentation of your own, she’s designed a new home collection with Marks & Spencer, featuring design-led pieces… with tableware at the heart of the collaboration.
The range features a soothing colour palette of white and sage green stoneware in the mix; with glassware, nibble bowls, linen napkins and serveware which she describes as bringing a sense of quiet luxury into the home.
“All the beautiful glasses with the white base,” referencing the footed wine glasses. “And the striped white glass [tumblers], I just love that… it evokes summer.”
With side and dinner plates to dish up your favourite recipes, the collection also features a playful slogan platter…
“Big salads, meats and fish, whatever you want to put on it… but I love the fact it just says Bon Appétit.”
“It’s happy. We need happiness. We all need those positive affirmations at the moment. And why not have it on a plate?”
When it comes to laying the foundations for a beautiful tablescape, Hoppen doesn’t play by the rules. “If I ever drink wine, which occasionally I will, I’ll drink it in a tumbler with ice. I love that… I just like it.
“Everyone always laughs at me, but I like mixing. You might have some old glass that’s crystal, but mix it in with my new collection – I like the mix of it, so there are no rules.”
But she does play it old school with a seating plan. “I always do a name card. I think it’s easier, because when you’ve got 12 people coming to sit down for dinner and people go ‘where do I want to sit?’
“Well if they can see their name, and I just draw it really nicely, it makes it easier.” And sometimes she switches out place cards for something less formal.
“I’ve got luggage tags, like the old-fashioned luggage tags, and I write their name on that and put it on the napkin… and that’s quite nice.”
Especially if it’s a casual, mid-week meal. “When you say ‘come over for a kitchen supper,’ that doesn’t mean it can’t be stylish and gorgeous,” highlights Hoppen.
“You know, it’s the same way as people say ‘what shall I wear?’ I say ‘come in jeans, come in whatever you want, whatever you’re comfortable in.’
“Because the more comfortable people feel when they’re out for dinner in somebody’s home, or you’re in your home, the better the night is.
“And then it gets to midnight and people are like ‘Oh, it’s a school night… we’ve got to go home, but we don’t want to… that’s a good night.”
In contrast to her modern style, and author of 10 books focusing on contemporary chic, Hoppen also likes to bring quirky accessories to the table.
“When it comes pudding, we always do a really nice cake. Everyone loves custard, so we’ll make a nice custard.
“But I put my custard in a glass teapot, and that looks nice. So interesting ways to do things on the table that you wouldn’t expect… that people will take away thinking ‘God, that was cool.’
She’s also a firm believer in blending the old with the new. “All the stuff my mother’s given me, I mix it in… so nice bits of silver, I love all of that.”
“I think the more you can mix, the better. And it takes the pressure off people to know that that’s okay; because we’ve all got stuff we’ve had before, but we want to buy new things.
“It’s the same way you dress. You’ve got something from years ago, you put something new with it; it feels new. So I think it’s fine.”
To top the most stylish tables, summer blooms make a big impact, and Hoppen’s love for flowers is well storied. “I think you have to keep it at a low level.”
“I mean, it kind of drives me mad. I love the idea of having food all the way down the centre of the table, because it feels very Italian and family.
“The problem is, I love flowers down the centre of the table, so I’m always juggling for space with my own self; but you’ve always got to keep everything low.
“But there’s nothing better than some beautiful flowers down the centre, and then you’ve got big things of bread and big chunks of butter, and it’s a celebration when you have people round.”
Moreover, she says you can use anything you’ve got to put them in, and suggests thinking out of the box.
“Even if you’ve got Pyrex mixing bowls because you haven’t got anything else, you can float flowers in them and put them down the centre of the table.”
Hoppen continues: “If you’ve got baked bean tins, take the baked bean wrapper off and fill that with herbs; and do herbs down the centre of your table.
“Anything goes, as long as you can create it and make it look stylish.”
M&S X Kelly Hoppen S/S 26 Home Collection is available online and in-store now.
