Home Help: 26 October

Add glamour and iridescence to a Christmas table with coloured glass, says Hugh St Clair

Whether it be a blue, opaque hand-blown dessert bowl or a translucent wine glass through which light can pass, vessels in pink, green and blue will cast magical effect over the occasion. In shops and online there are plenty of places to find coloured table glassware.

Fashion designer Ben de Lisi who made Kate Winslet's red dress for the 2002 Oscars, and creates fabulous gowns for Rachel Weisz and Angelica Huston, has been commissioned by Debenhams to design glass, and his purple carrier wine glass has pleasing solidity. Debenhams also sells Sagaform wine glasses and tumblers, which have a hint of blue and turquoise, or pink and red that would reflect candlelight. The stems of the wine glasses also have coloured rings.

For a Christmas drinks party, Liberty London sells martini, champagne and wine glasses, which have a delicate smidgen of colour across their elegant bases. Or for more bespoke pieces, Corin Mellor, son of cutlery designer David, has designed thick glass iridescent bowls for dessert or tealights.

For glass artists who create work solely by hand, CAA (Contemporary Applied Arts), is their showcase. To see vessels, rather than sculptures, look at Gillies Jones; coloured jugs and bowls by Bob Crooks, and bubble tumblers with a coloured rim by Lindean Mill.

• Tornado jugs by Bob Crooks, £90 each, CAA: 020-7436 2344, www.caa.org.uk (main picture above)
• Royal Doulton martini glass set, £40, Liberty London: 020- 7734 1234, www.liberty.co.uk (pictured below)

• Sagaform blue glasses, £20 for two, Debenhams: 0844-503 5487, www.debenhams.com
• Ben de Lisi purple-stem glass, £5, Debenhams: as before

• Glass dessert bowls by Corin Mellor, £19.50 each, David Mellor: 020-7730 4259, www.davidmellordesign.com (main picture above)

Email your design enquiries to Hugh St Clair at homehelp@lady.co.uk