Holiday edition of Homestyle's Dish and Design gets creative juices flowing

The December edition of The Detroit News Dish and Design event was a festive evening celebrating holiday design, home entertaining and shopping that started with doorway décor trends and ended with the crunch of savory lobster bruschetta.

The sold-out crowd of more than 130 Homestyle readers were greeted at Southfield's Great Lakes Culinary Center Wednesday evening with a spread of hearty appetizers, sangria and wine from the center's chef Reva Constantine-Smith and her staff. The informative and cheerful evening, which takes place quarterly, is sponsored by Busch's Fresh Food Market.

Detroit News editor and Homestyle columnist Maureen Feighan got Dish and Design underway by announcing the first presenter, home stylist and blogger Sarah Macklem of the Yellow Cape Cod. The DIY maven showed off some useful tips for taking a basic tension rod she purchased at Home Depot and using it to turn doorways, windows and other nooks in your home into an eye-catching holiday decoration.

With a simple shower curtain, she used faux garland from a dollar store, battery-operated string lights, twist-ties, satin bows and bells from Amazon to cover the rod, transforming her display doorway into a festive archway. She finished the look with eucalyptus sprigs to fill in the sparse spots.

"I have tension rods at home but I never thought about using them like that. I can do that," said Dish and Design regular Bette Edwards of Detroit, who was in attendance with two friends. She says the seasonal event can really "stir up your creative juices."

"It's an awesome event and it's very informational. I really love to come to see how to redecorate, do something different," she said.

Edwards said her favorite part of the evening was the presentation from Laura Williams of My Wine Witch, a sommelier and self-described "Halloween fanatic" who talked about her business model of offering consultations, large and small, in the homes of people who want to learn more about wines or to host a wine-tasting event.

"My Wine Witch invites you to summon your inner sommelier," she said as she demonstrated how to make a warm wine cocktail using apple cider, cinnamon whiskey, maple syrup, vanilla extract and Pinot Noir wine. Guests were treated to samples of the cocktail, which had thin slices of honey crisp apple and oranges. Williams said you could also make this drink with cranberries, or make a nonalcoholic version by using St. Julian's sparkling grape juice instead of wine.

Catching Fireflies boutique owner April McCrumb came armed with a table full of holiday gift ideas for stocking stuffers, things for kids, gifts to send to friends who live out of town and useful host gifts.

For stocking stuffers, she suggests adding a gift that smells good, like soaps or shower satchels, so the whole stocking has a "yummy" aroma, and also a gift that tastes good. She also showed off some of the more whimsical items she sells at Catching Fireflies — she has locations in Berkley, Rochester, Ann Arbor and sells online at catchingfireflies.com — like silly "finger hands," coffee mugs and birdhouses covered in birdseed.

"Elevate the ordinary," is McCrumb's advice for shopping for gifts that people will enjoy receiving and want to use.

The team from Shift Kitchen and Cocktails certainly elevated ordinary bruschetta with their "lobster roll" version using claw meat mixed with de-seeded tomatoes, white onion, garlic, fresh mozzarella and seasonings. Chef Mark Redmond demonstrated how to quickly toast the sliced French baguette on the stove by using just a bit of olive oil to get those nice grill marks.

Attendees went home with a recipe for the lobster roll bruschetta from Shift Kitchen and Cocktails, which has locations in Birmingham, Plymouth and Grosse Pointe. Partner Mark Adamo also spilled the beans about a fourth location of Shift planned for early 2024 at Hall Road and Hayes in Sterling Heights.

Tickets to Wednesday night's Dish and Design event were $30 per person and included one drink ticket, appetizers, recipes and samples from presenters, plus drawings with prizes like cookbooks and gift cards. Stay tuned to detroitnews.com/homestyle for details about the next Homestyle Dish and Design event, planned for this spring.

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