How to Decorate a Hall for Dinner

Set the tone for the event by creating some lights for the walkway up to the dinner hall. Some possible ideas include glass jars or tin lanterns filled with votive candles. If you've chosen colors for your event, choose candles or lanterns that feature these colors.

Set up a trellis arch in the entrance way and decorate it with balloons, ivy or flowers. Fresh vines and flowers work well for spring and summer events. For fall and winter events, choose silk or dried flowers and vines.

Put together a welcome table right next to the entrance. Place one of the tablecloths that you've selected for the rest of the hall onto the table. Decorate the table with fairy lights, sprinkle flower petals on it and open the guest book for guests to sign. Add photos of the people for whom you're creating the celebration. Try a photo tree if you're doing an event that's related to family such as an anniversary party; this allows you to show the generations of people affected by the guests of honor.

Decorate the head buffet table with ice sculptures or vases filled with colorful fruits such as orange, lemon and lime slices.

Lay down tablecloths of different colors if you've chosen a color scheme that involves more than one color. For example, if the event's colors are pink and orange, alternate the colors of the cloths on each table.

Put down a table runner on each table. Choose runners that have some kind of texture as well as a pattern to help bring visual interest to the table.

Roll up silverware and tie with a ribbon. Add some sort of trinket that reflects the event's theme to the ribbon's bow such as miniature bells for a wedding theme or cards with apples printed on them for the retiring teacher.

Create some table centerpieces specific to the theme. For example, if you've chosen to decorate for a Hawaiian luau, fill glass cylinders with a variety of colored shells or place a mirror in the center of the table and top with shell-shaped candles.