Caroline's Christmas Table

Caroline had an early Christmas celebration this year and decked out her table Dandi style to get the mood happening. A plain dyed tablecloth and holly berry napkins were used to set the scene.

Berry red ribbon on simple elegant paper lanterns add a touch of drama to the occasion

Edible napkin decorations - yummy plump cherries to accentuate the red.

They even had matching cocktails courtesy of our favourite Dandi model, Nadine. Recipe for these to follow!

Summer Trends

Welcome Summer! To kick off the start of the party season we have compiled two different looks from the our range which both capture the essence of Summer entertaining - what fun!

Our Gum Leaf pattern is so elegant and calming it will cool even the hottest of Summer days! Try the rick rack range of placemats and table runners for easy outdoor entertaining and picnics.

Bold, bright Bloom is the perfect statement pattern this Summer. Whether you're after a tote for the beach or an oilcloth tablecloth for a fuss free Christmas table, this range will turn heads for all the right reasons. Team the tablecloth with plain dyed berry or wisteria napkins to create a nautical inspired look.

Plain Dyed Love

As Seen In: The West Australian

Dandi table runners, placemats and fabric napkins were recently featured in The West Australian 'Habitat' lift out. Click on the image to enlarge it and read our article.

DANDIFIED: Amelia's Lunch

Amelia has been a fan of Dandi for some time now, she recently organised a beautiful birthday lunch for her lovely mum, Belinda. Amelia used two Olive Branch Tablecloths and decorated the tabel with vases of protea flowers repeated down the centre. The Olive Branch designed worked wonderfully with the leafy surrounds of their courtyard. As a special touch Amelia hand made place cards for each guest. The Dandi ladies are so impressed and inspired by her efforts (and artistic photography!) that we are awarding Amelia with the first ever Dandified prize.

Pink proteas and Pistachio Olive Branch, a match made in Heaven

Place cards and repeated vases set and elegant scene amongst a leafy back drop

For sending in her pics Amelia wins an Olive Branch mini tote. If you have pictures of your Dandified space email them to us for inclusion on our Blog

Dandi on The Brightside Project

Today Dandi is featured over at The Brightside Project for a giveaway for 2 x $50 gift vouchers! You have until October 20 to enter online. All you need to do it answer the following question:

"At your perfect dinner party who would be your guest of honour, and which Dandi pattern would you choose for your napery?"

Post your entry here. GOOD LUCK!

Dandi's dining essentials - How to Set the Perfect Table

DO:

- Place utensils in order of use, outside in
- Use order of letters in the the word FORKS for a simple guide to start your table setting. From left to right: F for fork, O is the shape of the plate, K for the knife and S for the spoon. (you forget the R, but apart from that your on the way to the perfect table setting)
- Place dessert utensils tp the right of the knives or above the plate.
- Face the knife blade towards the plate
- Do this simple but easy step for the placement of bread and drinks. Hold your hands down in front of you and touch your fore finger and thumb together on each hand. The 'b' shape is for bread and butter on the left and the 'd' shape is for drinks on your right.
- Place the napkin to the left of the fork or on the plate. Dandi loves the napkin on the plate leaving a blank canvas in the middle of your setting for creative decorating!
- Get creative with napkin folding, place cards and table decorations and centre pieces

DON"T:

- Overdo the decorations

- Place more than three utensils on either sides of your plate, leep it simple and ensure no guest is confused!

- Have too many glasses on the table, as it will become overcrowded. Try to limit it to a water glass and an alcohol glass. Should guests change drinks or have coffee or dessert wines new glasses can be stowed nearby.
- Feel you have to have a bread plate, it's completely up to you
- Have a centrpiece which overcrowds the table and blocks one side of the table from the other.
- Get too tied up with formalities, keep it simple, fun and creative to ensure your guests have a good time.

Dandi's Tips

- Try sticking to a theme, such as a season. You could go out into your garden and use feathers, fresh herbs, flowers or leaves. These could be used as a centrepiece or a simple decoration on each napkin

- Use cool colours for light meals and rich colours with texture for warm, hearty meals.
- Look around your kitchen for decorating ideas, use fruit, vegetables, vases or interesting bottles

- Try mixing colours for contrast and use patterned with plain dyed napery

- Fold your napkin in an interesting way, try placing utensils or a menu in the napkin fold.

Chocolates and Neutrals

Winter is set in and we are all rugging up with lots of layers and textures to warm ourselves, so why not use these same principles in fashion trends for your table settings at home.
Start with a dandi plain dyed chocolate tablecloth as your base, then fold a chocolate olive branch tablecloth into a square shape and layer over the top. For something more casual create the layers using our rick rack runners or placemats.

Once you have the tablecloth set up, carry out the earthy theme and use dinnerware made from natural materials such as stoneware or bamboo. Using wooden accessories, such as the dandi bamboo range, not only look great with your wintry setting, they're good for mother nature too.

A big trend this season is to bring the outdoors in. When you're out on your morning walk or pottering around the garden keep an eye out for fallen branches and leaves to use for styling your table. We demonstrated this a fee weeks ago when Caroline brought home some goodies from the Kanagaroo Valley. Click here to view our post.

BEAUTIFUL BLOOM

Dandi introduces the latest bold, bright and beautiful design to the oilcloth range – Bloom. A vibrant burst of berry red flower petals with accents of curling white stripes, the print is a subtle nod to nautical inspiration and the perfect backdrop for your home décor.

The Bloom print will adorn Dandi’s popular range of oilcloth aprons for adults and kids, tablecloths, tote bags and a new mini tote-bag. Bloom oilcloth is also available to purchase off the roll so you can put your own creative twist on Dandi’s signature style for your own kitchen or home products. An added bonus of the range is the easy care of oilcloth, simply wipe clean any spills - no washing required!

The Bloom tablecloth lends itself to easy outdoor entertaining – whether in the garden, having a BBQ or out for the day with a picnic. Let the tablecloth set the scene and accessorise with simple dinnerware in plain colours. Dandi’s plain dyed napkins in berry, white or wisteria work back with the Bloom print for a striking nautical look.

Available in :

Adults Apron - RRP $39.95
Childrens Apron - RRP $29.95
Tote Bag - RRP $34.95
Mini Tote Bag - RRP$24.95
6-seater Tablecloth - RRP $79.95
8-seater Tablecloth - RRP $99.95
10-seater Tablecloth - RRP $119.95
Oilcloth Fabric off the Roll - RRP $35 per m

Click here to shop the entire Bloom range now

New Photo Shoot

Today we are sharing with you a few images from our latest shoot. We took over 450 photos, and most of these won't go to print or go on our website so if we didn't put them up it would be such a waste! Hope you enjoy. Above: Chocolate Rick Rack Placemats and Runners with Bamboo Bowls

Gum Leaf Rick Rack Placemats and Runners with Plain dyed Wisteria Napkins

Plain Dyed Green Tablecloth and Napkins with Olive Branch Rick Rack and Bamboo Bowls

Plain dyed Chocolate Napkins and Bamboo Bowls

Plain Dyed Wisteria Tablecloth and Napkins with Gum Leaf Rick Rack Placemats

Tea Towel Wrapping

Manuela came up with this clever, reusable wrapping idea for baked goods. Take one dandi tea towel or fabric napkin, place home baked treats in the centre of the reverse side and tie up with pretty ribbon. Looks just lovely and the receiver can use the wrapping after the goodies are gone!

Some cute snaps taken by Kylie, Caroline's sister inlaw, at Christmas. The oilcloth table cloth worked perfectly outdoorsand was a breeze to clean up! Thanks for sharing these with us, we love it!

Some Fresh Ideas for the New Year

Well, its been a while between posts but we are well and truly rested and ready to kick into the new year at full speed! We thought we would start by sharing a few pics from Christmas with different ideas for table settings. Given that its still great entertaining weather we hope you are able to use some of them!

 Top and Above: Caroline's Gorgeous Red Christmas Setting

Leezar's Christmas Tree

Here at dandi we are all getting into the spirit of things with just 8 days left until Christmas! So we thought we would show you our clever Leezar's lovely Christmas tree which has been decorated with hand sewn dandi fabric ornaments. These are simple to make and look very stylish, whilst adding a personal touch. Instructions can be downloaded in PDF form here.

Retailer Watch: Turner & Lane, Melbourne

A while back the Dandi ladies paid a visit to the gorgeous store Turner & Lane in Malvern, Melbourne. Turner & Lane stock a wonderful selection of elclectic gifts & homewares in the front of their shop, with a colourful kiddies section out the back.Everything was displayed so beautifully and Dandi even featured in the window so we had to share it with you!