MY GUILTY PLEASURE

I don't know about you, but Downton Abbey is of my favorite TV shows of all times, to the point that it's become my new guilty pleasure. I can't wait for Sunday nights to come to see what the new episode will bring. Unfortunately, tomorrow's episode is the second season finale (nooooooooo!!!), so who knows how long we'll have to wait for season three to come around. I'm telling you, this show is addictive. It has everybody talking about it so much that it has become the water cooler topic of the month. It's soooo good that it reminds me of the telelenovelas I used to watch back home when I was kid. But thanks to Kyle Hilton, these four sets of Downton Abbey paper dolls will keep us entertained until the next season starts. Aren't they hilarious?

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GIVEAWAY: Granite Cheese Board

Do you love to entertain? I do, and one of the things I enjoy the most is looking for different ways of presenting my hors d'oeuvres. These one-of-a-kind granite boards, created by Roman Borisenko in North Carolina, are a great and unique way to serve them. Being an environmentally conscious guy, Roman uses repurposed pieces of beautiful and unused granite slabs with his growing collection of wine corks to create these very special cheese platters. The cool thing about a granite board (no pun intended), is that it will keep your cold appetizers chilled for a longer period of time — especially if you refrigerate it before using it.

(Drum roll) Roman is graciously giving one fortunate reader the chance to win one of his lovely granite boards (pictured above). He is also offering a 15% discount to all of you when purchasing any of his boards at his Etsy shop and entering the special code DESIGNER15OFF. So let's give Roman, and his wife Aleksandra, a round of applause for this fantastic freebie. Thanks guys!

Sorry, but entries for this giveaway are no longer accepted.

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A Table To Inspire

Image © Gemma Comas

Last week I got a sweet email from one of my readers in search of some inspiration for table settings. She loves to entertain A LOT and is always looking for fresh ideas to style her tables. Luckily, she likes to mix things up - French, modern, floral…..you name it. It's funny she asked me since I also enjoy playing with my table settings. Although I'm more of a white-palette kind of guy, I often find myself advising clients to be adventurous when entertaining. I think it's always fun to have a variety of styles, shapes, colors, textures and heights to play with. Your tables should always reflect your style and it's ideal to start with a theme or inspiration — this will dictate the direction to take and give your table a cohesive look. So I've put together five themes to show you how imaginative you can get when dressing up your tables. Remember, it's always better to start with all your options and then edit down, but the key is to have a ball. So my dear Monica, I hope these vignettes will inspire you to let your creative juices flow. Happy entertaining!

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Sweet Celebrations

The Holidays are fast approaching and it's time to start thinking about how to decorate your home and planning the get-together with family and friends. Don't sweat it! The new Entertaining Issue of Sweet Paul Magazine is already here to help you bring it all together. The pages are chock-full of innovative and gorgeous ideas plus mouth-watering recipes that will delight your guests. Don't miss it — it's really a visual treat!

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