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| Interior designer Holly Lydick, dolled up in a black Oscar de la Renta dress and Christian Louboutin heels, puts the finishing touches on her dining table. |
Holly Lydick
You know those parties where you don’t eat anything and go home hungry? Fort Worth interior designer Holly Lydick doesn’t have those parties. At large gatherings, a healthy supply of hors d’oeuvres is circulated along with the drinks. Holly and husband Robert kept their love of entertaining in mind when renovating the house three years ago, turning it from a boxy clapboard into an elegant party pavilion with great flow. It’s perfect for the way the Lydicks host. Holly likes guests to roam casually through the house, meeting and mingling. The breakfast room, kitchen, bar, dining room, and loggia are the collective heart of the house, all connected by a galleria hallway, which greets guests in the entry and directs them, like an artery, to the other rooms. The dining room, though meticulously finished out and formal, down to the last two St. Louis “Tommy” wine glasses Holly holds, is centrally located to enhance mingling . Guests are encouraged to walk through it or congregate in it, not shyly lower their voices to avoid offending the Royal Doulton.
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| (above left ) Pinks and blues are unexpected at this time of year, but the Gracie wallpaper has a metallic silver background, which evokes a snowy, wintery scene. The pastel floral arrangements and festive blue St. Louis “Tommy” champagne glass pop at a time of year when red and green are pervasive. (above right) The Lydicks’ dining table is set with St. Louis “Tommy” stemware, Reed & Barton “Francis I” sterling, and hand-painted Royal Doulton plates framed by Mottahedeh chargers in “Red Lace.” The dining table is early 19th century topped with Italian Carrera marble and bronze inlay from Manheim Galleries in New Orleans. Framing the window are two 18th century gilt girandoles purchased at the Mews. | |
At more intimate gatherings, Robert cooks, sometimes a rack of lamb with a rosemary and Dijon crust, and the couple collaborates on wine and cheese pairings. “Out in Napa, earlier this year, our guide paired a high-end dessert wine, Dolce, from the Far Niente vineyard with a delicious creamy Empereur Bleu d’Auvergne cheese,” Robert says. “Together, it’s like a rich cheesecake.” The Lydicks head to Napa Valley once or twice a year with other couples on trips set up by wine merchant Steven Sherman to scout new wines and replenish favorites. Privileged guests to the Lydick home might be treated to something chosen from the Miner Family Vineyards or T-Vine Cellars or a Shiraz or Cabernet from Cape d’Estaing Wines, located in South Australia’s Kangaroo Island wine region.
Whether hosting friends, family, or potential clients, the Lydicks’ River Crest area home is a comfortable spot for everyone, including their 4-year-old twins. This suits Holly just fine because she’d rather be mingling with friends than slaving in the kitchen, anytime.
Allison Beadles
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| Allison Beadles, donning a black Chloé dress, sits at a festively dressed dining table. Above the banquette is a vibrant painting by contemporary German artist Joachim Kersten, whom the Beadles once hosted. |
“The house is just made for entertaining,” homeowner Allison Beadles says. She and husband John live in a mid-century modern manse, which neighbors frequently call “the Hollywood house,” a moniker owing more to the fact that film star Joan Crawford slept there and Hollywood decorator William Haines designed it, than to the Beadles’ glamorous party style. Still, it fits on that account, too.
The 1952 house is “the” spot for the Beadles’ friends, family, neighbors, and even children. “We almost always include young kids,” Allison says. “Our living and dining rooms are formal, but we open our doors, so the kids can play outside.” Last holiday season, the Beadles hosted Christmas Eve dinner, and luckily the dining room table seats 14, because the number gets up to 25 when the family congregates. The evening of the photo shoot, 17 couples and their children dropped by, plus neighbors on their Ridglea area block.
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| (above left) A granite and Lucite dining table is set with Herend “Chinese Bouquet” china, available through the Fort Worth store P.S., The Letter; Reed & Barton “Francis I” sterling; Onde stemware by Baccarat; St. Louis “Bubble” dessert cups. A 1960s Venini glass chandelier by Toni Zuccheri glows above, and floor-to-ceiling glass walls let the outside world in. (above right) Desserts tempt, on a 1930 Art Deco sideboard from John Gregory Studio, beside a mid-century Murano lamp, also from John Gregory Studio. Early 20th century gilt tracery glasses on the sideboard are from Carter Bowden Antiques in Fort Worth. | |
Big numbers don’t scare this hostess; she simplifies by hiring a bartender and serving dependable dishes. “I almost always make the same recipes,” she says, citing several staples: an almond, strawberry, and mixed greens salad; chicken cordon bleu; artichoke or tamale dip; dense chocolate brownies; wedding cake martinis; and everyone’s favorite, white chocolate bread pudding (see recipe below). “My husband and I try to open the door for each guest and talk to everyone who comes,” she says. “It’s important to us that everyone feel comfortable, at home, and included.” Looking at the vibrant Joachim Kersten painting above the banquette in the dining room, that mantra is evident. The painting, Allison says, symbolizes different people coming together in one space harmoniously. And isn’t that the goal of any hostess?
White Chocolate Bread Pudding
From Good Friends Great Tastes
by Debbie Meyer
Pudding
6 cups heavy cream
1 cup milk
1 cup sugar
20 ounces white chocolate, broken into pieces
4 whole eggs
15 egg yolks
1 (24 inch) loaf stale,
French bread, sliced (1 inch slices)
Sauce
8 ounces white chocolate broken into pieces
1/2 cup heavy cream for whipping
1 ounce dark chocolate for garnish
If you don’t have stale bread, then toast it in the oven at 275 degrees to dry it out. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. In a large pan heat the heavy cream, milk, and sugar over medium heat. When hot, remove from heat and stir in the 20 ounces white chocolate. Stir until melted. Whisk together the whole eggs with the yolks in a large bowl. Slowly pour the hot cream mixture into the eggs in a steady stream, whipping the eggs as you combine. In a 9-by-13-inch pan sprayed with cooking spray, place half of the bread in a single layer. Pour one half of the egg mixture over the bread. Be sure all parts of the bread are saturated. Layer other half of bread on top of other layer. Pour the remaining egg mixture on top of the other layer. Cover with foil and bake at 350 degrees for one hour. Take the foil off and bake an additional 30 minutes, until pudding is set and golden brown. To make the sauce, bring the heavy cream to a boil in a small saucepan. Remove from heat and add the 8 ounces white chocolate, stir until smooth and completely melted. Using a cheese grater, make chocolate shavings. This can be served immediately from pan topped with the sauce and chocolate sprinkles. To make ahead, the bread pudding can be baked, then refrigerated for 6 to 8 hours. Loosen bread pudding from sides with a knife and invert the pudding on to a clean surface. Cut the pudding into 4 1/2 x 4 inch squares and then cut again diagonally into triangles. Heat the triangles on a cookie sheet at 275 degrees for 15 minutes and serve with warm sauce and sprinkle with grated dark chocolate. Recipe may be cut in half.
