For some holiday hosts, the only thing more intimidating than cooking a Christmas dinner for family and friends is decorating the table you're going to serve it on.

But it doesn't have to be that way. Creating a festive holiday table can be as easy as adding a few special touches to your year-round tableware.

"In my opinion, a beautiful table is your gift to your guests," says Leigh Oshirak of Pottery Barn.

Although pulling that off can seem like an overwhelming task, she adds, "with just a little bit of planning, entertaining should be fun -- it shouldn't be a chore."

There's no shortage of retailers in Metro Vancouver who can show you how to accomplish that, including the brand-new Williams-Sonoma outlet on Granville.

"The essence of Williams-Sonoma is that it's a place for people to shop who are home chefs who love to entertain," says Tricia Sellman, a San Francisco-based spokesperson for the company who is in Vancouver this week for the store's official opening.

It has more than a few tricks up its sleeve for making holiday entertaining a pleasure rather than a chore -- and to make sure it doesn't devour your budget.

Sellman's top tip is to look inside your own cupboards first. "Start with the basics, things you already have -- you don't need to go out and buy everything brand new," she says. For example, if you have simple white china, you can slide wicker or gold enamel chargers underneath them, then top them with special dessert plates for a seasonal touch.

Sellman is particularly fond of the store's 12 Days of Christmas plates, which come in a drum-shaped box and cost $153.95 for the set of 12.

Oshirak of Pottery Barn suggests a similar approach, starting with the basics. If you don't have enough plates and flatware to have a dozen people over for dinner, you can pick up a Caterer's Box of 12 simple white dinner or salad plates for $39 to $49, or a dozen three-piece settings of flatware for $129.

To that, you can add a special dessert plate, such as the dramatic Versailles plates in red or black and white ($6.50 each), or whimsical reindeer ($50 for four) or polka-dot ones ($12 each). "It just makes me smile when I see it," says Oshirak.

At Liberty on Broadway, the look is dramatic and chic in black and white paired with silver, or more subtle in gold and cream matched with chocolate brown "for a little bit of a warmer palette," says store manager Craig Parkes.

One of his favourite looks is a simple table setting made special with elegant silk dupion placemats and napkins ($2.95 to $9.95), silver candelabras ($189) and napkin rings in the shape of oversized diamond rings ($7.95 each), which Parkes says have been "a big hit this year."

The centrepiece is a clear glass vase filled with silver ferns ($1.95 each) and real maple and oak leaves dipped in silver ($36.95 to $49.95 each) are scattered on the table.

"We like to have a few 'wow' elements, but overall, it's about simplicity and colour and warmth," Parkes says.

Colours like red and gold are a traditional choice for the holidays, but in an understated design like Williams-Sonoma's Russian linen tablecloth, they can work throughout the year, says Sellman.

She says she always likes to add "a touch of whimsy," such as a copper pot filled with Christmas crackers "so you can pass it around."

New this season at Pottery Barn are Swedish house print napkins in red and chartreuse ($10 each), which Oshirak says add an unexpected touch of colour and light-heartedness.

Another key ingredient is bringing a touch of the outdoors in, she says. You can do that by scavenging pine boughs or twigs with berries from your garden, or slipping a birch wrap tied with raffia ($18 to $28) over a simple glass vase.

"It just brings that element of the season to the table," she says.

Small favours, such as a Christmas ornament tied to a napkin, a CD of Christmas music or a miniature photo frame that doubles as a place card, can make guests feel even more special, Oshirak says. Her best advice is to not leave the job of decorating the table to the last minute.

"I do this myself and I swear by it -- get everything out the night before and set the table. Then the day of the party, you can enjoy your guests and focus your efforts on the food."

jblain@png.canwest.com

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