Photo: flipsockgrrl, Flickr
Linda Sez: Put platters on boxes, covered with runners, so dishes will all be at varying heights, which will make your buffet table much more dramatic, a trick she picked up at an open house "thrown by a hot LA TV producer."
We Sez: Try to use only platters and dishes that don't have chips in them so nobody suspects you're struggling this year after being laid off and your 401K evaporated.
Linda Sez: Fill vases with cranberries before adding the flowers, which will take the arrangement from "ordinary to extraordinary."
We Sez: Do not try this with Ocean Spray jellied cranberries.
Linda Sez: Accessorize your cookie platter by sprinkling candy around the plate, another tip picked up at a "fancy holiday dinner party."
We Sez: Don't just limit yourself to candy. Get creative. We like to sprinkle sauerkraut and Bac-Os bacon bits around our cookie table for an offbeat marriage of sweet and savory. (We picked this up from the old lady next door, a former maid at MGM, where she once saw Joan Crawford do this at a party given by Louis B. Mayer.)
Linda Sez: "Make Sure You're Lit Properly."
We Sez: Linda's talking candles here. But we find that Jim Beam or Wild Turkey work just as well.








