Stylish Dinner Party Arrangement Ideas

Rhiannon Ally: His name is synonymous with style, Robert Verdi is the style guru for such A-listers as Eva Longoria, Hugh Jackman and Mariska Hargitay. This taste maker has put his unique touch on just about every avenue of fashion and now he’s helping all of us create memorable, chic get-togethers at home this summer. We are so happy to have you here Robert.

Robert Verdi: Happy to be with you.

Rhiannon Ally: And I’m really excited to talk about all these

Robert Verdi: Smells really good right?

Rhiannon Ally: Yeah, it smells great and these look like fairly simply ideas?

Robert Verdi: Really easy ideas starting with the invitation, here’s a great idea so I found these little bottles at a 99 cents store and I created invitations using raffia and a little parchment paper. People are kind of -- it’s the lazy days of summer, nobody really wants to go out, you want stay at home so if from the get go, you set up an exciting event, they’ll come.

Rhiannon Ally: It’s a -- thing hand deliver this to them

Robert Verdi: You can hand deliver it

Rhiannon Ally: They can be a little bit more personal

Robert Verdi: Absolutely, they can hand deliver it or you can mail them but the fact that it’s a really exciting invitation makes people want to show up.

Rhiannon Ally: Yeah as soon as you see that, you’re going to go “What is this?”

Robert Verdi: Yes. Exactly, when you’re entertaining rather than using like a fancy, big vase, you can use ordinary glass vessels that you have right in the house These are the things that I found in my house, this is something that actually came with the flower entry that somebody said “may I just reuse it?” and rather than flowers, I decided to use big tropical leaves which is another alternative, I filled this one with sand, shells and starfish that I got from the craft store and a candle so it’s a little beachy vignette. I filled this one with ice and wine, Domani’s Pinot Grigio which is a great, crisp wine perfect for some entertaining.

Rhiannon Ally: That would even be a great like hostess gift, if you were going to a party.

Robert Verdi: That’s very chick, I would love anybody to show up with this and yes, that would be very chick.

Rhiannon Ally: Let’s talk about place settings

Robert Verdi: Place settings are really fun I think you can have a lot more fun than you think even with the things you have. Everybody has sort of play napkins. I tie them together with raffia, I created a little bit of an ocean side, beachy feeling by having these shells and starfish that I just knocked over for you, this one is for you.

Rhiannon Ally: Thank you

Robert Verdi: Rather than place cards, I put parchment paper down and now you could do it across the entire table like a table cloth and then write the person’s name on the bright --

Rhiannon Ally: I loved that! You’ve made crap paper look cool.

Robert Verdi: Schick, it’s kind of sand colors so that’s what I love, and you can find things at Flea Markets and gift stores like the silver crab I think really makes it a little spicy and fun.

Rhiannon Ally: Okay, so I’m smelling these.

Robert Verdi: Rosemary; this is another idea, it’s a place card idea and as well it’s a little take away gift so you stage it in your entry way and your front door and people can take them when they leave if you’re was doing a seated dinner, you can actually use it as place card also.

Rhiannon Ally: Great idea! What about the food, where are the burgers and hotdogs?

Robert Verdi: Rather than burgers and hotdogs, every great fashionista take their cue from the fabulous fashion cities like Milan so rather than do the expected the burgers and the hotdogs, we created a little bit of an Italian fair for you so here melon and prosciutto and mozzarella and little cherry tomatoes with figs, fresh eggs, also really fabulous paired with pinot noir from Ecco Domani, the bottles are beautiful to set on the table, they’re a fabulous wine, $14.00 a bottle, really great fruit forward varietals to fabulous products.

Rhiannon Ally: So it’s okay to serve a $14.00 wines in a party

Robert Verdi: 100% and really what you want to do is this is exactly how you should set it up, you should put the bottle out there, with the foods so people can help themselves, gracious entertaining means you’re not letting your guests ask you for things, you’re actually making sure that they can do it themselves. It’s a whole Italian inspired little meal which is really fun and refreshing, everybody’s going to a barbecue this year and maybe more than one, they’ll going to have their fill of burgers so this is an innovative, exciting and fun

Rhiannon Ally: So you would do all of these at your house?

Robert Verdi: I do, do all of these in the house.

Rhiannon Ally: You do? This is like straight from a party, your house.

Robert Verdi: This is straight from Robert Verdi, all this stuff is stuff from my home.

Rhiannon Ally: Perfect. I love all these tips, you are great.

Robert Verdi: Thank you.

Rhiannon Ally: And for more great style tips from Robert Verdi, log on to BetterTv.com and click on the links tab, and Robert startlingly knows about fashion and he’s well dressed you could see this, he looks better than me.

Robert Verdi: No, nobody looks better than you in this studio!

Rhiannon Ally: Take a look at this, the latest men’s fashion trends from Milan aren’t your typical slacks and blazers. Recent runway offerings their straying from the norm, you could say that. With some looks include croc tops and shorts that look like skirts, “skorts?”

Robert Verdi: Skorts!

Rhiannon Ally: Other showcased pants that look more like a priest and many of the looks also had man bags. Yeah man bags. This strange hybrid fanny pack meets belt. I’m not sure on that one, no word if or when these trends will hit the U.S., so what do you think of these trends?

Robert Verdi: The crop topping is really good if you have a pot belly, keeps your pot belly kind of cool. I am getting a little thick around the middle, I’m 40 plus. This “skort” thing is kind of I guess guys have always have these, I don’t know, isn’t it cooler?

Rhiannon Ally: I don’t think so, no the “skort” is not cool.

Robert Verdi: I’m a big bag guy, I like the big bag

Rhiannon Ally: Do you like the man bag?

Robert Verdi: I do like a big man bag. I’m not a fanny pack kind of guy.

Rhiannon Ally: So no, fanny bags but the man bag is good?

Robert Verdi: But this whole kind of like naughty leather thing that Robert Pattinson sort of vampiry, black leathery, I think it’s cool, I can’t wear it myself but I think it’s cool.

Rhiannon Ally: Yeah I don’t think anymore, a lot of people get to pull these look s off but, thanks.

Robert Verdi: But they can take them off.

Rhiannon Ally: Yeah.