Mother's Day Brunch

For Mother's Day this past weekend, I threw a lovely brunch for my mom.   Well really it was a "brinner" as she had to work during the day, but the table styling, menu, and overall concept was that of a lovely, sunny Mother's Day Brunch.  This is the perfect example of easy entertaining and I think it shows that with just a little bit of creativity and using what you have around your house, you can make create a beautiful setting for a special meal.  See more pictures and tips after the jump...
For the setting, I used our standard white table setting, which really makes any food pop on the plate.  I used clear glasses with a hint of gold.  Unfortunately we are limited in our silverware choices, but I think gold cutlery would have looked beautiful here if you have it. The tablecloth is a gorgeous Portuguese cloth piece my grandmother recently gifted me from her collection.

The menu was designed to reflect the flavors of a classic brunch menu, but tweaked to be suited for a dinner with twists such as a "breakfast" risotto and a fresh shaved asparagus salad. The drink remained the ever delicious and classic Bloody Mary with a dash of spice and a dash of beer in it for the boys.
For the flowers I took two bundles of pink flowers including African roses and Gerber daisies from Trader Joe's and divided them up into several short votives that are really glasses I got from the dollar store.  I wanted to keep the arrangement short so that guests could see each other across the table and so that conversation could flow more easily.  As this did in fact occur around dinner time and a bit of extra light was needed, I added tea lights placed on top of several different styles of stemware.  This an easy and inexpensive way to add twinkle to your table without expensive candelabras.

How did you celebrate Mother's Day?  What tips or tricks do you have for easy entertaining?