Take your dinner parties to a new level with this tabletop look by Stephanie Brown.

It’s the kind of interactive design experience that you have to see to believe: for Dinner by Design, 15 designers create “tablescapes” that range from the aspirational to the magical (we won’t forget the cross-stitched ceiling installation that designer Kelly Deck created one year—a mere 140 hours or so in the making). It’s an immersive couple of days: guests tour the tables at a buzzy cocktail party the first night, or over dinner right in each space the next. This year the Vancouver event moves to November 16 and 17, with designers like Chambers and Stark, and Jamie Banfield confirmed to dream up a space, with proceeds going to the Visual College of Art and Design.

For her tablescape in last year’s Dinner by Design in Vancouver, designer Stephanie Brown created a space inspired by a Paris apartment, with a modern twist. Bleached natural chevron hardwood floors pair with moulded bright white walls, along with a stunning installation of preserved moss from Vancouver’s By Nature. Klismos dining chairs from Once a Tree Furniture give the room a modern update.

Instead of designing a single arrangement for the centre of the table, Brown worked with Celsia Florist to create green-and-white arrangements of varying heights in geometric vases. She selected the Mitchell Gold pendant lights from Once a Tree Furniture because “the scale was super-dramatic,” she explains, “and this event is all about drama.”

For the tabletop, Brown selected Martha Sturdy resin trays, which take the place of a classic charger. A swath of Kelly Wearstler fabric becomes a custom napkin for each guest, and it’s topped with a marble tray—a hint to the Parisian life—and gold flatware from West Elm.

Dinner by Design

November 16 and 17Harbour Event Centre, 750 Pacific Boulevarddinnerxdesign.com

Susan Bryant

Susan Bryant