Martha Stewart Just Told Us Her Best Tips for Entertaining in Style

published Jun 16, 2022
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Summer is upon us and so are the warm weather celebrations. Whether you’re gearing up for a Fourth of July party or are hosting a dinner party for your nearest and dearest this weekend, it pays off to be prepared. And who better than to take advice from than Martha Stewart.

In a recent interview with Apartment Therapy, Stewart shared her top tips on how to get organized when entertaining this summer, no matter if it’s your first or hundredth time playing host.

“You have to be very organized and you should design your menu and drinks menu to fit your space. Have some really lovely glasses, trays and stacks of plates that you can serve a buffet dinner on,” she explains. “Make it simple, make it clean, make it easy. I think a good hostess really knows how to maximize the use of space no matter if it’s big or small. And don’t make a complicated menu—one big dish is better than five little dishes,”

If you’re hosting for the first time ever, Stewart stresses the importance of practicing and whipping up a dish that you—and your guests—will love, but if you’re going to be putting on a party regularly this summer, don’t get too comfortable. It’s a good idea to step outside of your comfort zone and switch up your decor and dishes each time.

“Practice, practice, practice. If you’re going to host a dinner party, make sure you know how to cook that dish and that it’s really good,” Stewart says. Make sure other people have tasted it and said, ‘Wow, this is really good.’ That is very important. But don’t always cook that same dish either. I had a boyfriend who made pasta puttanesca and he would have a dinner party once every month and it was always pasta puttanesca because it was very delicious. But you can’t do it every single time.”

And when it comes to setting the scene and creating a beautiful ambience, Stewart reaches for (no pun intended) the BIC EZ Reach Lighter—she keeps one in every room of her house both for practicality and a “pretty accent item.”

“I love using the BIC EZ Reach lighter for lighting candles, fireplaces, and my stove pilot lights. The lighters are extremely easy to use thanks to the extended wand to help keep the flame away from your fingers.”

Happy entertaining!

This post originally appeared on Apartment Therapy. See it there: Here’s How to Entertain in Style, According to Martha Stewart