Dinner with Skye McAlpine
As the cookery writer and author launches a new glassware range I get her tips on making the table look beautiful and find the best places to buy tablecloths.
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A couple of weeks ago I had dinner at Skye McAlpine’s London home to mark the launch of the latest addition to her range of tableware. She already had gorgeous plates but has now added glassware to the collection.
Over a delicious supper of baked gnocchi with pumpkin, sage and cheese (“lots of cheese”), salads of chicory with candied pecans and kale with chestnuts, followed by an incredible chocolate and orange s’mores cheesecake, Skye showed us her gorgeous new glasses – explaining that while she had wanted to use recycled glass, it turned out to be too heavy.
The final pieces – a small, yet casual coupe (champagne should always be casual, darling – don’t you think?) and a matching lightweight tumbler – have coloured rims around the top for a more relaxed feel and yet are pleasingly light and comfortable to drink from. They are made with borosilicate glass, which is both light and strong. I love the bud vases and candlesticks as well which would make great gifts. (I will be posting about my failsafe present-buying methods in the next few weeks so make sure you are signed up for that).
You can have a look at the whole Tavola range here and do subscribe to Skye’s Substack, The Dolce Vita Diaries where she shares lots of recipes and tips as well as details about her home and where she likes to shop. In 2020 I visited Skye for a podcast tour of her house, which you can listen to here.
One thing about Skye, whose cookery books are brilliant by the way (even my 23yo son swears by them), is that she seems to entertain for upwards of a dozen people all the time while making it all look quite effortless. So I was keen to discover her secrets to creating such a pretty and relaxed atmosphere. And while she was casually juggling dinner for 12 on the evening I visited, I managed to ask her.
First up it’s about the right table. Skye’s is long, of course – but it’s also pretty narrow. This means you can easily chat to the person opposite as well as the people on either side of you. (And when the person opposite is regaling the table with a story of how a bee managed to get through nine layers of taffeta to sting her on the bottom on the way to her own wedding, you need to be able to hear those details.)
As Skye says: “The table is the most important piece of furniture in the house in a way, it’s where we live, where we eat, where I often end up working and my son does his homework. It’s where you linger after meals, which is where you have the best conversations. I love this open-plan way of living as I hate the idea that when you have friends over, you’re in the kitchen doing all the work and they’re in another room having a fabulous time.”