Text and styling by Esther Ottensoser
Photography by Felicia Perretti

The term “Succos weather” has sort of become an inside joke in our family. Year after year, one of my daughters would ask, “Is it going to be Succos weather this Succos?” We all knew what she was referring to: the cool, comfortable fall nights (at least in the Northeast) that seem to pair perfectly with a beautiful succah to create the idyllic ambiance of this Yom Tov.

At the time of this photo shoot, though, it was far from “Succos weather” — it was August and nearly 100 degrees out. However, with the unique Litton Sukkah on my deck (which brought down the temperature by about 15 degrees), along with the tablescape and decorations, I hope we managed to capture the Succos feel!

Floral Chandelier

For this stunning piece, I purchased a hanging floral frame, which is a great base for a suspended floral chandelier. I decorated it mainly with faux greenery so it could be used from year to year, adding a few fresh flowers for added beauty.

You will need:

• 25-inch rectangle floral chandelier frame (available from Craftoutlet.com)
• greenery garland (available from Hobby Lobby)
• fresh flowers in floral tubes or faux flowers
• floral wire

Wrap frame with garland.

Secure with wire.

Stick flowers into chandelier.

Fall Flowers

The muted colors of these flowers reflect the transition between summer and fall. I like how this particular palette feels seasonal but at the same time is reflective of the faded blossoms of summer. I added preserved green ferns to match the dishes.

Bird Napkins

Let your table decor “soar” with these gorgeous hem-stitched, bird design needlepoint napkins. There are many paper napkins with bird designs available as well.

Gold-Patterned Tablecloth

This tablecloth design reminds me of wood grains, which was the perfect starting point for a succah tablescape. At the same time, the gold metallic threads give it an elegant look. Fabric is double wide.

Succah Success

While Mr. Litton was assembling the succah, we had a conversation about how his business started.

He told me that from the time he and his brother were little, their father encouraged them to help their neighbors on the block build their succahs. Before long, they became known as experts in the field, and the entire neighborhood started hiring them to help build their succahs. Having worked with so many different types of succahs over the years, they were able to create a perfect succah panel system.

This reminded me of Malcolm Gladwell’s book, Outliers, which discusses what makes people successful. Malcolm believes that 10,000 hours is the “magic number of greatness,” meaning that to be considered elite and truly experienced in a certain skill, you must practice it for 10,000 hours.

I don’t know if the Littons actually spent 10,000 hours building succahs, but I do believe that the magic of their success was the numbers of hours they spent doing chesed, which eventually turned them into the experts in the field.

Credits

Tablecloth courtesy of Stitch ‘n’ Sew Fabric Centre, info@stitchnsew.com, 732-363-2220

Flowers courtesy of Tali’s Global Flowers, located in Howell (6520 US Highway 9), Monsey (249 Route 59, Airmont, NY), and Lakewood (1797 Avenue of the States)

Vases from HomeGoods

Green floral earthenware plates from Zara

Table and chairs courtesy of B & B Tent and Party Rental,
732-886-5510

Bird napkins from Amazon

Chargers and stemware courtesy of Classictouch.com

Cutlery courtesy of Kitchenclique.com, or Kitchen Clique of Brooklyn and Lakewood

Succah courtesy of Litton Sukkah, littonsukkah.com

(Originally featured in Family Table, Issue 812)