So we asked two home store proprietors and a finance-executive-turned-interior designer to set tables for us and we were in for a surprise.
Forget ostentatious displays of Limoges or Waterford, of crystal flutes and expensive centerpieces. What we got instead are three different tables that surprise and delight. These are tables that reflect the designers’ aesthetics, and even more so, the times we are living in.
"It dawned on me that there’s so much hurly burly in everything that sometimes your true luxury is quality time alone," Leah says. "You’re so tired, and cooking takes so much out of you that you end up living the fats-food life. For me, that’s contemporary life. That’s the reality of things, but it doesn’t have to be just a sandwich in a cardboard box. I wanted this table to be real but special."
Leah put together a pair of nesting tables and filled them with everyday things that make solitary dining extraordinary. First, she put things that people living alone love: books, personal accessories, and nice Christian Tortu plates from Cardinal Ceramics ("We’re so lucky we don’t have to go to Galleries Lafayette in Paris or Takashimaya in New York to get them!"). She put flowers and candles, a box topped by a pewter figurine of a frog, a calligraphy set that she got from a friend (no, she doesn’t do calligraphy – her penmanship is atrocious according to her – but she uses it to write her notes and when writing on her journal), trashy novels (like The Two Mrs. Greenville by Dominick Dunne, a veritable blast from the ‘80s). And finally, the food: a triple burger from Burger Machine, french fries and a soft drink.
Most people don’t set up their table if they’re eating alone – let alone a burger. Why should they? "They owe it to themselves. It’s not just being with others that’s special, it’s also being with yourself. Setting the table should not be just for affectation. Food and dining is so enriching you should honor and give it importance. Even if it’s just a cheap burger, you add flowers on the table and put the food in a nice plate, then it adds richness and texture to your experience, an opportunity to give yourself the importance you deserve even if you’re alone."
The biggest mistake people make in setting the table, according to Leah, is just not doing it. "When I eat alone, even if it’s just on a tray, I set the tray. It’s not a major effort, you just need to put some thought into it. And it’s so easy now – the food courts offer great, inexpensive food; there are flower ships everywhere; you can pick up a candle at home stores."
Leah adds with a laugh, "I asked my friends, ‘Is it sad that I’m setting a table for one?’ But, really, I love being alone. I don’t think a lot of people will believe it, but I do. I love hosting dinners and seeing friends, but I also enjoy my alone time. I guess I wanted to portray that it doesn’t have to be sad and pathetic and your cats are going to eat you when you die." And like Martha Stewart always says, Leah adds, "With the population explosion, it’s a good thing, right?"
"You have things that your mom or grandmother will give you, something that you buy from your travels around the country or abroad, something you buy from the mall," Joby says. "And you should use them together. It’s good to mix everything and to not be perfect."
For his setting for four, Joby went back to his roots: Filipino. "I think our old pieces have more character than the new ones. I also like it when they show signs of their age." Believe it or not, this interior designer doesn’t throw a hissy fit when guests put down their cold glasses on his wooden table without coasters (he doesn’t use coasters) or when a cigarette butt burns the tabletop’s finish.
"Gusto ko nga may mga marks ang furniture to give it character. If it’s too perfect, your guests will feel like it’s a showroom or a museum. If it shows signs of really being used, they feel they can relax."
For him, the most common mistake people make with their setups is putting tall centerpieces that the host removes when guests sit down or leaves alone that guests have to crane their necks to see each other when talking.
"It becomes simply decorative and I don’t like taking away stuff from the table when you sit down. It’s nice to have a low flower arrangement or candles. The table itself has to be convenient for the guests to talk and eat. And also you don’t have to match everything. In a set, a pair of plates may break, so combine the remaining ones with another set. Play around the theme, play with colors."
His table is actually a bench – one that he designed for the public seating areas of Greenbelt 3 – a white, fiberglass paisley-shaped bench that serves as a low table. Set for two, the only color on the table apart from black and white is blue – simple blue glasses. The rest of the colors and drama come from nature itself.
"I decided to use an outdoor theme because how minimal more can you go with nature or as natural as possible and as simple as possible," Ito says. "It’s a no-clutter, no-fuss table."
And that’s one mistake that people often make when they throw a party at home, he says. They create such a beautiful and crowded table that when food comes, they have to rearrange the setting because there’s just no space for the food. Yes, as idiotic as it seems, hosts sometimes tend to forget to leave space for the plates and food. "That’s why with this setting there’s so much space for the food. People overdo it sometimes, they over-decorate."
His must elements for a great table? "Candles because they set the mood. Flowers – and they have to be aromatic – so that your guest’s or guests’ sense of smell is stimulated even before the food comes. Also there should be a specific color theme so to create an impact before you even sit down to eat."