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There are occasions that deserve a separate chapter: I am thinking of family Sundays, when three or four generations gather around the table and you can feel the love in the air. I have a wonderful memory of this, almost every Sunday when my grandparents were there we would have lunch together at the large dining room table, set with neutral tones and beautiful fabrics. The atmosphere was relaxed but solemn at the same time and the arrival of the grandparents was always a celebration, so affectionate, cheerful, ready to give us lots of attention and listen to our stories as children.
The job of us children was to help set the table. I think it was there that I began to learn the first rules of etiquette, such as the position of cutlery and glasses, and more still to absorb the taste for detail, the subtle pleasure given by quality and care. On the large table my sister and I laid the cloth, its presence gave the table a pleasant softness and protected the wood of the family table, and then, with the help of my mother, the beautiful tablecloth chosen for the occasion, nicely ironed and the matching napkins.
What tablecloth to choose for Sunday lunch?
For these special moments in every home there is, or should be, a special tablecloth, which smacks of tradition and family. For the Sunday table, my mother used to choose a tablecloth from the large linen cupboard. She had several elegant ones, but for Sundays with the grandparents the choice always fell on something in delicate colors. The quality of the fabric was very important, it was always linen, sometimes fine and rustling, other times heavy and textured, or handcrafted flanders, often embellished with hemstitching or tone-on-tone embroidery, from cream, to sage, to delicate shades of blue. Similarly, I recommend choosing a tablecloth in neutral tones, with excellent quality fabrics, which add an extra touch of pleasantness to a happy occasion. You can opt for an embroidered tablecloth or for more minimal and linear packages according to your taste, but never overdo it: the real star of Sunday is good company. And speaking of company, there is nothing nicer than children at the table but, to prevent the little accidents that can happen, it is always a good idea to use a stain-resistant fabric. I remember that my grandmother and mother used to have the beautiful tablecloths made to measure for their trousseaus, and so even today I find it quite natural that our customers turn to us to customize the elegant tablecloths that will dress their tables: remember that they should always have the same drop on all sides and fall from the table no less than 35 cm per side. If you have an oversized table (and family!) It is a good idea to make tablecloths suitable for dressing with different extension lengths, sometimes using strategic underlays.
When I refer to beautiful Sunday tables, I am not talking about formal table settings such as those reserved rather for anniversaries. For me, it is a table that is well cared for and traditional, but characterized by a familiarity due to the fact that it is the family that comes together! For glasses, if you are happy to use glasses, two will suffice: one for water and one for wine, no flutes, because this is not a birthday celebration but simply to welcome the extended family So no underplates, no lit candles, if anything, a small bouquet of flowers cut from the garden in fine weather.
The right dishes for the Sunday table
When I was a child, for the choice of plates, my mother would select from time to time in accordance with the tablecloth, choosing between those of a delicate ivory color with a cannulated edge and the white Ginori porcelain plates received from my great-grandmother or others in English porcelain with royal blue designs. So my advice is always to have a classic service, white or decorated with a thin gold border.
In the center of our table there was never a lack of silver bottle holders to hold the bottles and protect the tablecloth from dangerous wine drips, and a complete menagerie for the condiments: oil, vinegar, salt and pepper. Today, the worry about stains makes me smile thanks to the practicality of our unbeatable stain-resistant treatment, and the under-bottles have remained just a small aesthetic quirk that brings back fond memories. Water was poured into crystal jugs, which were too heavy and difficult for us girls to handle, so it was always the men in the family who poured the water for us.
Sunday lunch would arrive on the table on large serving plates that would be passed from hand to hand, starting with the grandparents, and then on to us girls and daddy, an idea that I find very beautiful and which I invite you to try, to also create an atmosphere of complicity among the diners.
The sauce was always served in a beautiful porcelain gravy boat, with a small silver ladle and saucer, and the bread was cut and placed in a silver basket, with a napkin with embroidered edges. I have retained a real passion for these slightly vintage details and put them on our tables and in our shops with many vintage pieces including antique dinner services, cutlery, gravy boats, risers and serving dishes. These elements give an authentic taste to every table and are easy to mix with more contemporary pieces: don't be afraid to try and experiment!
The family Sunday lunch menu
On these occasions I think it is best to favor tradition, perhaps with recipes that have been handed down in the family and that are a pleasure to enjoy together precisely because they are full of meaning and memories. At home my mother always carefully prepared a menu of traditional dishes, sometimes cappelletti in broth, which my grandfather loved, other times the veal roast that my father loved, in winter it was often the occasion to prepare boiled meat served with salsa verde, cardoons or gratin dauphinois in honor of my French grandmother.
For dessert, he often prepared crème caramel or served rice cake, but there was also no shortage of pastries, small meringues with whipped cream and shortcrust baskets with cream and berries. Here, the rule is made together: if you dabble in cakes and pastries, propose your workhorse, otherwise your favorite pastry is the best solution, perhaps letting the little ones choose. The Sunday table, as you may have guessed, for me is more of a ritual in which to celebrate the beauty of family and affection than an occasion in which to prepare the perfect table, I keep vivid images in my memory of those gatherings, ever since I was a child, my grandparents always elegant, my grandmother dressed in soft blue or pearl gray dresses tighter at the waist and my grandfather always wore a tie and braces. My wish, also for the new generations, is that Sunday gatherings will be a source of good memories as they were for me and that they can be experienced in an extended way, inviting friends and including them in the circle of affection, to experience moments that make us happy, in their simplicity!
