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One of the quickest and easiest ways to dress up any dinner party is to make your own cheese platter.(Of course, if you don’t like cheese then this tip may not work out so well for you.)  I happen to love cheese and I think a cheese platter is a really nice way to expose people to new kinds of cheese they may not have tried before.  Here are a few suggestions for setting up a really great cheese platter for your next party.

1. Pick 3 different cheeses - usually people like to have a gorgonzola, a triple cream cheese (like Brie), and a nice piquant goat cheese.  (But feel free to try any other cheese you might like, the point here is to have a nice mix.  That way if your sister really hates gorgonzola then she can try something else.)
2. Find some nice greenery to set your platter up.  The contrast of the greens with your cheese will really make your platter pop. (Most people suggest using something like lemon leaves, you can find them at a florist.)
3. Dried fruits are always a nice compliment to cheese.  You can try anything you like here from figs to dried cherries.  The dried fruits provide a nice sweet balance to the sharpness of the cheeses.
4. Nuts are an almost must have on cheese platters.  You again have freedom to choose here - you can go with walnuts, almonds, hazelnuts, etc. 
5. When laying out the platter place the greenery down first.  Then position your cheeses and place the nuts and fruits around the cheeses.  Try to keep everything in clusters.  This means keep all the almonds in one spot.  The reason you cluster things is to keep the platter looking clean and neat.  You don’t want everything to be a hodgepodge. 
6. You can serve crackers or breads with your cheese platter.
7. Have fun, be adventurous, try something new!