The famed event designer makes handmade crystal crackers for her guests.

When she&rsquo;s not designing events for the the likes of Dior, Smythson and Emilia Wickstead, tablescaping queen <a href="https://fionaleahy.com/password" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Fiona Leahy</a><a href="https://fionaleahy.com/password" target="_blank" rel="noopener"> </a>is busy foraging, crafting and creating bespoke pieces to thrill her roster of stellar international clients. In this Christmas exclusive, Fiona shares her her tips for festive decorating in Ibiza.&nbsp;

Christmas is the most beautiful time of year for decorating, whether that&rsquo;s in London, New York or my native Ireland. On an island like Ibiza I&rsquo;ll be bringing the outdoors inside, decorating tables with sabina pine, eucalyptus and tons of foraged rosemary. I especially love rosemary because it looks like pine in miniature, so I use it to create tiny, circular wreaths, around the size of my palm &ndash; super cute and chic - which I&rsquo;ll then place on top of the napkin. I like to use a frayed, rustic, linen napkin in Ibiza, tied in a simple knot.&nbsp;

I&rsquo;ll be writing my menus on seeded paper, which is wonderful stuff because once it&rsquo;s used you can just wet it and plant it in the garden and voila! &ndash; the seeds will grow. I always like to add pinecones to a festive table and perhaps give them a little dusting of gold leaf for that extra-special effect. I&rsquo;ll have a beautifully rich coloured tablecloth &ndash; perhaps a burgundy or a green &ndash; and there&rsquo;ll be glossy, dark green candles everywhere, both in tapered glass hurricane lanterns and in more traditional brass candleholders, which give a wonderful glow.

Christmas Tablescape by Fiona Leahy

&nbsp;The piece de resistance of my festive table is going to be my homemade crackers, which are just absolute showstoppers and so easy to create at home. I like to use marbled paper but you can use any pretty paper really &ndash; an old copy of the Financial Times always looks beautiful with that lovely, peachy hue. The beauty of handmade crackers is that you can fill them with whatever feels right for your guests. I created an event in New York that was hosted by <a href="https://www.aerin.com" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Aerin Lauder</a><a href="https://www.aerin.com" target="_blank" rel="noopener"> </a>and Olivia Palermo, and for that I made oversized crackers with Aerin&rsquo;s own winter lip balms and face creams hidden inside.&nbsp;

Christmas Crackers by Fiona Leahy

My real love though is crystal-filled crackers and these feel just right for the spiritual nature of Ibiza. When I designed a dinner for Pomellato and <a href="https://www.ladoublej.com/en/gift-guide/?hp1_d_201222_gifturgency=1" target="_blank" rel="noopener">La Double J</a> at London&rsquo;s <a href="https://www.5hertfordstreet.com/s/">5 Hertford Street</a>, I made crackers that contained shungite, an ancient healing stone that is said to eradicate negative ions and the EMF from our mobile phones. If you know your guests well, you might choose a stone that you think suits them: obsidian for protection, amethyst for purifying or malachite for wisdom, perhaps. Otherwise go off-piste and choose randomly, adding a little description of each crystal&rsquo;s properties in place of the usual cracker joke. Add a beautiful big ribbon bow - I save all the ribbons I receive on gifts &ndash; and write the name of your guest on each cracker as the place setting. The crystals then become talking points around the table and a beautiful take-home talisman for your treasured guests. Handmade elements like this convey love, care and intention: what&rsquo;s more festive than that?

HOW TO MAKE CRYSTAL CRACKERS:

You&rsquo;ll need:
<ul>
 <li style="font-weight: 400;" aria-level="1">Decorative paper</li>
 <li style="font-weight: 400;" aria-level="1">Cardboard tubes</li>
 <li style="font-weight: 400;" aria-level="1">Cracker snaps</li>
 <li style="font-weight: 400;" aria-level="1">Ribbon to tie &ndash; I like velvet</li>
 <li style="font-weight: 400;" aria-level="1">Craft knife</li>
 <li style="font-weight: 400;" aria-level="1">Scissors</li>
 <li style="font-weight: 400;" aria-level="1">Glue</li>
 <li style="font-weight: 400;" aria-level="1">Assorted crystals</li>
 <li style="font-weight: 400;" aria-level="1">Crystal qualities printed or handwritten on slips of paper</li>
</ul>
To make:
<ol>
 <li>Ensure your paper is positioned face down on a table so that the longest sides are at the top and bottom. Position your cardboard tube in the centre of the paper, lengthwise, cutting to shape if necessary.</li>
 <li>At each end of the tube, cut small diamond shapes out. This will make it easier to create your cracker ends.</li>
 <li>Wrap your paper around the cardboard tube, overlapping the edges slightly and gluing in place to create one wide tube. The cardboard tube will give your cracker extra structure so it won't fall apart.</li>
 <li>Carefully twist one side of your cracker around the ends of the cardboard tube, secure it with festive ribbon and feed your cracker snap through.</li>
 <li>Gently add your cracker fillings, being careful not to overfill, and secure the other side of your cracker with a ribbon.&nbsp;</li>
 <li>Write your guest&rsquo;s name on each cracker and use for the place setting.</li>
</ol>

Event queen Fiona Leahy shares her festive tablescaping tips

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