September 2014

"First things first...We are truly blessed to have the means to set a pretty table and invite our friends to join us for good food and fellowship. I am mindful that many are not so fortunate. My daughter has a passion for the work of the Food Bank. As a singer-songwriter, she has written and recorded a song that is the anthem for the world wide Crop Hunger Walk project. Her song, "Raise Your Voice" is featured in their video. I've included a link in the side margin of my blog. I hope that it will encourage you to support projects in your community that contribute to the effort to overcome hunger.

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A few of my dear friends called today, so I invited them to drop by for an easy lunch from the fridge...chicken salad, tuna salad, egg salad, fresh strawberries, and cookies. Time for a 20 minute tablescape. I know it's Fall, but I'm only ready to flirt with Fall...not embrace it.

By the time Thanksgiving rolls around, I'm generally completely over pumpkins, gourds, and all the rest, so this tablecloth seemed to meet me right where I needed to be today. I wonder if this 90" round cloth might meet you in the right place, too? I've been editing my linen closets, and this beautiful cloth has lingered too long without being put to work. Therefore, I've decided that it's time for it to find a new home. Will it be yours? Make sure that you are a follower and leave a comment. If you'd like to go explore my archives and leave comments from older posts, you'll increase your chances to win in a random drawing. I'll draw the winner's name to be announced in my tablescape post next week.

I think that this is actually a great four seasons cloth.

Come a little closer...

Let's examine the elements of my tablescape design...

Once again, I've built off the gardener's philosophy....a good mix of greens will yield a pleasing gardenscape...

...no matchy matchy here!

Shall we dissect the stack?

An old standby, the Bordallo Pinheiro Cabbage Leaf charger plate provided my first shot of green...

...a nice blend of the florals in the cloth...I chose the Luneville Louis XV dinner plate to hold our lunch. Tip: Luneville Louis XV can usually be found for incredibly reasonable prices on eBay. I bought mine a few at a time, and it didn't take too long to collect them. They are regularly available.

...Successfully drawing the eye to the colors in the cloth, the Bordallo Pinheiro leaf salad plate was eventually used for our dessert. The Argent Sophia gold were found through Tuesday Morning and Horchow. Horchow still sells them online.

Thank you Italy and France...a continental stack.

The leaf green hemstitched napkin is caught in a ring of beaded fall leaves and berries. It's really a candle ring, but today it has a new job description!

Stemware for today was the Vietri Optic green goblet and the Bohemian orange wine goblet. Tip: If you're in the market for a new crystal goblet, the Vietri is reasonably priced and probably available in a gift store near you. It comes in a great assortment of colors. Check it out!

Do you think this tablecloth needs to go home with you?

The cabbage leaf tureen is Italian, but I don't think that it's Bordallo...

I found the pair of majolica spill vases in a local antiques shop.

I always call this my "Marlis angle" (Marlis @ Creative Journeys). She likes the McGuire Empire folding screen with the Fortuny inserts.

My friends should be here any time now...

I'm ready...

...I love the opportunity to "Stop the World, I Want to Get Off"...

...and enjoy some precious time with friends for good food and blessed fellowship. You're welcome at my table, too!

This week I'm joining:

Tablescape Thursday with Susan @ Between Naps on the Porch

Thursday's Favorite Things Blog Hop @ Katherine's Corner

Flirting with Fall & a Giveaway, 9.14

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It was a warm summer day, and some of my friends wanted to go out for lunch. I told them that I had plenty in the refrigerator. Today's spontaneous luncheon featured corn chowder and an assortment of sandwiches, egg salad, tuna salad, and chicken salad.

Come on in, we're seated at the games table in the living room...

...and I'm happy for the opportunity to create a tablescape with my long standing favorite color combination...blue, white, and yellow.

Since the menu was under control, I was able to take a few minutes to run to the grocery store...

...and pick up two bunches of yellow roses...

...snip...snip...pop them in my pair of Hobby Lobby compotes...combine them with a pair of Wedgwood blue and white sauce tureens and a Luneville teapot and strainer...and...

...Shazam...my centerpiece was ready. The yellow, blue, and white tablecloth was a fortunate eBay find.

The Argent Sophia blue flatware framed the Maryland China Company Minuet charger plate...

...topped by the Coalport Athlone cobalt dinner plate, another eBay acquisition,...

...and crowned by the Meissen Blue Onion rimmed soup...

Voila! The stack is complete.

A few more details...the open salt cellar was a gift from my friend Debbi. It had belonged to her mother-in-love. I've had the crystal pepper shaker for many years. The navy Williams-Sonoma linen hemstitch napkin is held by the Coalport Countryware napkin ring...

The AJKA Xenia cobalt wine was paired with the Godinger Sutton Place goblet; both were found on eBay.

Get ready...get set...we're on a roll.

It might have been hot and sultry outside in the summer afternoon...

...but we stayed comfortable and cool at our little table for four...

We dined, visited, and laughed into the afternoon. Had you been passing my way, I would have set another spot for you!

This week I'm joining:

Tablescape Thursday with Susan @ Between Naps on the Porch

Thursday Favorite Things Blog Hop @ Katherine's Corner

Blue, White, & Yellow

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Wow! It's been quite a while since I've posted. I've missed all of you, and I'm so glad to be back. I am touched by the many of you who have taken the time to contact and check on me. I'm humbled and I thank you. Although I've been unable to edit, post, and publish, I have been able to continue to entertain periodically through my time away. During the last half of July, we hosted a fairly spontaneous dinner party for my niece Catherine. Catherine's wedding was the first weekend of August, in Colorado Springs. A number of her family and family friends were going to be unable to make the trip, so we invited 24 to share an evening of good food and fellowship. For many of our guests, it was the first opportunity to meet Catherine's fiancee.

Given the option, I'll always choose to seat my guests.

This evening, I utilized our dining table....

the games table in the living room...

and the breakfast room table.

The Waverly black and white toile tablecloths...

made it easy...

to create continuity in my design for each table.

Each place setting featured the Caspari rattan charger...

the Wedgwood Countryware dinner plate...

hot pink handled flatware and the Mikasa French Countryside goblet. We knew that only a few of our guests would drink wine or liquor, so we had wine glasses available away from the table.

The hot pink hemstitched dinner napkin, caught with the Coalport Countryware napkin ring added another shot of strong color to the design. For my centerpieces, I chose to stay smack in my comfort zone by using a tureen to anchor the centerpiece on each table...

Mottahedeh "Golden Lion" for the dining table...

Rosenthal "Sansoucci" for the games table...

and Hartley-Leeds Chestnut Bowl for the breakfast room.

Continuing to make it easy on myself, I grabbed the Hobby Lobby black tole jardinieres to host my floral pieces and filled each one with a pre-made bouquet from La Grocery Store...

I've pretty much fallen head over heels for these mid-sized jardinieres...

...you've seen them more than once this summer...

...and watch for them one more time in mid-October.

Do you remember that Maximilian, Napoleon's brother, was the Emperor of Mexico? I decided that he probably served Mexican food on a table that might have looked just like this...so that's what I served, too! It works...right?