Photography byDane Tashima,Styling byMegan West,BySarah Moroz
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Vase and Pinch Bowl, Walmart—yes, that Walmart.
When the sun bails early and the chill creeps back, there’s nothing like conjuring a come-on-in-from-the-cold vibe. ‘For fall, I’m drawn to a warm, modern sensibility with rustic ranch and country influences,’ says lifestyle expert Peter Som, who’s worked with Calvin Klein, Bill Blass, and Tommy Hilfiger, plus founded his own label. ‘I gravitate toward textured, cozy, hand-sewn-looking materials—but reinterpreted in clean lines.’
While Som insists a timeless, seasonless approach never fails, he admits a soft spot for ‘a nod to the occasion.’ Using pieces from Walmart’s Fall Style lookbook, he deployed his rule of three—solid + feature pattern + small-scale print—to build a tablescape that’s subtle yet unmistakably alive.
Som’s tablescapes are tailored to the occasion, but only gently. ‘For brunch, I keep it lighter and brighter: whites, off-whites,’ he says, whereas a proper celebration might call for deeper colors. For an autumn-tinged setting, he likes a pop of color via seasonal florals—skirting anything heavy-handed (yes, skip the pumpkins). Lighting is the other mood maestro, heightening or softening the scene whether it’s candlelight, lamplight (‘Turn off your overheads,’ he pleads), or good old daylight.
Once you’ve picked your hues, ‘table linens are basically your wardrobe,’ reasons Som. Three or four table runners are handy to rotate (here he went with a tasseled version), and pretty cloth napkins, simple stone plates, and black flatware round out the basics kit—endlessly adaptable, zero effort.
‘You don’t need some big, fussy arrangement,’ says Som. ‘Just grab a handful of flowers, line bud vases down the table, and… done!’ he laughs, noting it’s easy to weave candles between them. This set of bud vases comes on a small wood tray, ‘which I love,’ adds Som, ‘because they’re a cheat sheet for buying a few flowers and keeping them alive.’ He’s partial to dahlias, which bloom from August straight through fall in a riot of colors.
The ideal host is relaxed—but ‘relaxed doesn’t mean slumped on the couch doing nothing,’ Som clarifies. He suggests prepping food way ahead and treating cookware as the trusty sidekick to nourishing fall dishes (think stews, braises, baking). Sure, his vibe screams ‘Instagram’ (his feed is stacked with gorgeously plated meals), but ‘the number-one rule is IRL,’ he insists. ‘It’s about being physically present with people.’ In that spirit, he sees hosting and guesting as nearly interchangeable: ‘It’s glancing around the room and realizing everyone’s having a great time. A dinner party’s mood always trickles down from the host.’
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