People are itching to celebrate the season with their close friends. So while we may be keeping our holiday entertaining small this year, Christian Dare showed us great ways to make it chic and easy.
Invitations
Dare recommends sending out invitations the old-school way using card invitations. He made his own DIY invitations and added earrings he bought at Winners and Marshalls.
“What I love is people will know immediately that it’s a sparkly dress party and you basically gifted them earrings before they even show up,” said Dare. “They’re happy before they even get to your house.”
Holiday decorating
Dare recommends skipping the hassle of decorating a tree and just decorate a mantel.
“It’s way easier than [decorating] a tree,” said Dare. “I grabbed everything from Homesense…whether you’re scandy, modern or traditional, they’ve got everything you need and at really great prices.”
He says Homesense has lots of holiday decorations including, stockings, garlands, nutcrackers and more. If you don’t have a mantel to decorate, Dare says a bookshelf, credenza or a table will also work.
Baking
“I always say, ‘bake ahead’,” said Dare. “I’ll be honest, I am not a baker, but the [Kitchenaid Artisan Stand Mixer] made me feel like a baker.”
He says the attachments that come with the mixer allows you to whip, knead and more. Dare says he bakes eggnog cinnamon rolls. He says the trick to make them fluffy is Fleischmann’s yeast.
Cocktails
Dare recommends making cocktails “easy”. He says he prefers whiskey and his favourite is Bushmills Irish whiskey, which is the oldest distillery in the world. For those who don’t like whiskey, Dare recommends Bushmills Black Bush.
“It’s great for spiking your eggnog and my trick is, buy the best store bought eggnog spik it with some good booze,” said Dare.
Cleaning up
Dare says there is a rule in his house. That is, “If I decorate, if I bake, you get to clean up.”
He recommends picking up a cordless vacuum cleaner from LG. He says the best part about it, is it comes with a second battery. It allows you to have over 80 minutes of continuous cleaning time.
