Take advantage of the fine weather and eat outside. Thanks to the ubiquitous gas-fired outdoor heater, it's possible to do this when the temperature drops in the evening - which is when you'll want to decorate your table more than you might for lunch. Which in turn means adding candlelight.

The best way to to do this is to use candle-holders that protect the flame from the gentlest breeze. Dunnes Stores and Meadows & Byrne both sell good hurricane lamps but pictured here are a few others that do much the same thing.

The styles that hold the bigger candles should be bought in pairs to place at each end of the table.

In be'tween, use tea lights. But don't try to match the style of the two main holders. Try putting them in simple jam jars.

They're cheap and unpretentious. Or buy some of the tea light holders shown here from Waterford Crystal and Harriet's House and mix them in.