Ground your guests and family by candlelight

A beautifully laid table is about more than plates, linen and flowers. There is one final touch that can completely change the atmosphere: candlelight.

Perhaps more than any other element of a tablescape, candles create the mood. They soften the room, bring warmth to the table and make even a simple dinner feel a little more special.

At Maison Otto, we particularly love the 18 cm dinner candle. It has enough presence to dress a table beautifully without feeling too grand or formal. It works just as well for a casual dinner with friends as it does for a more elaborate celebration.

Choose the Right Candles

Start by considering the size of your dining table and the number of guests.

On a smaller table, two or three candles may be all you need. On a long table, repeat them along the length of the table to create rhythm rather than concentrating everything in one large centrepiece.

And don't feel that everything needs to match perfectly. A combination of candle holders, colours and heights can make a table feel much more relaxed and personal.

One rule we do recommend: keep your dinner candles unscented.

Fragrance has its place in the home, but at the dining table the aromas should come from the food, wine and flowers. A strongly scented candle can compete with them rather than enhance the experience.

Think Beyond the Centrepiece

Once you have chosen your candles, think about how they will live amongst everything else on the table.

A row of candle holders running down the centre creates an elegant, more structured look. For something softer and less formal, scatter candles amongst small vessels of flowers, greenery and little decorative objects.

Varying the heights adds movement and makes the table more interesting to look at. Just remember that your guests should still be able to see one another across the table — conversation is, after all, part of the decoration.

Use Colour to Set the Mood

White and cream candles are timeless. Paired with natural linen, simple ceramics and greenery, they create an effortlessly sophisticated table.

But candles are also one of the easiest ways to introduce colour.

Pick up a shade from your tablecloth or napkins, echo the colours of your flowers, or deliberately introduce a contrasting colour for a little surprise.

Soft pink can bring romance to a neutral table. Burgundy immediately adds richness. Green feels wonderful with botanical arrangements, while brighter colours can make an everyday gathering feel playful and contemporary.

There is no need to save coloured candles for special occasions. Sometimes a pair of beautiful candles is precisely what transforms Tuesday night's dinner into something worth lingering over.

Choose from our collection of coloured Dinner Candles and Candle holders

Light Them

This may sound obvious, but candles are not simply decorative objects.

Light them.

As daylight fades, candlelight changes the entire table. Glassware begins to sparkle, colours become softer and faces are illuminated by that warm, flattering glow that electric lighting simply cannot reproduce.

It creates intimacy. It encourages people to stay at the table a little longer. Another glass of wine, another story, perhaps a little cheese…

And One Little Safety Ritual

Beautiful candlelight should never be forgotten at the end of the evening. Keep candles away from anything that can catch fire, place them in stable holders and never leave a burning candle unattended.

If you know you are likely to become distracted as guests leave or the evening winds down, set a timer or reminder on your phone to extinguish the candles. It is a very simple habit that means you can enjoy candlelight without accidentally leaving one burning.

And ultimately, that is what setting a beautiful table is about.

Not perfection. Not formality.

It is about creating an atmosphere in which people want to sit, eat, talk and stay.

The candles may be the final touch on the table, but very often, they are the detail that brings everything else to life.