Pride of place old sheffield plate

Silverware, with its glistering surface and ornate designs, dresses the table like no other material and has an unmatched capacity for turning a meal into an occasion, as Matthew Dennison discovers

Fans of the leading British artist David Hockney will know how much he doted on his pet dachshunds. Sold at Phillips last autumn, Little Stanley Sleeping was a poster made for the show ‘David Hockney:

CREATE A STUNNING TABLESCAPE WITH SOME SHOWSTOPPING PIECES AND UPDATED ESSENTIALS

A sale of Modern British Art earlier this year brimmed with the kind of wonderful works that auctioneers find a little heart-wrenching to let go, including a Waterfall full of wild windiness by Sir Kyffin Williams

These handpainted mistletoe table linen prints are the perfect backdrop to decorate a seasonal tablescape with foraged foliage. The crisp white-and-green colourway is also ideal to inspire a fresher c

Sèvres made the exquisite porcelain plates now belonging to collector and scarf designer Rory Hutton, but it’s the wittiest of Irish playwrights that encouraged him to use them