Set a romantic Valentine's Day table
With the month of love on our doorstep, wedding florist extraordinaire Heike Hayward shares her ideas for a memorable Valentine’s table that’s both dramatic and deeply personal
Heike Hayward
knows a thing or two about romance, after all, her floral design business, Fleur le Cordeur is one of South Africa’s most sought after wedding florists. Case in point: when we interviewed her for this month’s table feature, she was working on no fewer than six weddings – in a single week.
Yet, amid the craziness of summer wedding season, Heike still gets excited at the prospect of setting a romantic table for Valentine’s Day – which is what she’s done for TASTE this month, using an array of gorgeous blooms from Woolworths.
“People like to go out on Valentine’s Day, I know, but why would you want to go to a restaurant when you can set a beautiful table in your own home? With all the delicious food and produce available today, I find it so rewarding to set your own table – it also feels like a much more authentic experience as opposed to the commercial exercise that Valentine’s Day can sometimes be. This way, you can use the event to reinforce the relationship between you and your partner – and that’s worth celebrating.”
So, how should you set your Valentine’s Day table for optimal romance?
Heike has a few pointers.
Pick a theme
“I love indigenous flowers, especially Cape fynbos,” she says. “But locally, people sometimes perceive them as a bit ‘old school’ because of the way we’re used to arranging them.” For this table setting, she combined them with “super modern” flowers in rich colours. “I really enjoy the challenge of combining unexpected elements. Here you’ve got the ‘old-school’ elements of the proteas and the fynbos, combined with the orchid, which is modern and bold, and then you’ve got lots of roses to bring it all together.”
Master the basics
Consider your colour scheme and the physical components of the table. “For this setting, you could group lots of small to medium vases together, or push the flowers directly into green oasis foam. As long as the flowers are in water, they should keep for a few days in a cool room.” In terms of colours, Heike is all for mixing things up. “For this setting I was really keen on using black accents in the crockery. Valentine’s Day can often come across as quite cheesy – but a few black elements can immediately elevate your table.”
Aim for abundance
Heike believes that working with what you love always yields the best results.
She loves food, so she likes to “load the table with food, and flowers, of course”. “I like to present the food as part of the arrangement," she says of her actual menu, “something like informal platters of tapas. Throw in a nice bottle of wine, some candlelight and your loved one, and you’ve got everything you need for an inviting table, and a romantic night.”