Tabletop Stories: holidays

Showing posts with label holidays. Show all posts

Wednesday, December 5, 2012

Nice plates..if you can get them.

Oh, Target...not again! Remember the Missoni collection that sold out instantly?? This holiday season, Target teamed up with Neiman Marcus and a whole host of designers to feature a collection of gift items. Released just this past Saturday, I rushed over to my nearest Target to see the Tracy Reese dessert plates. You guessed it...GONE! I didn't even get a chance to see them! Luckily, they were still available online and are the inspiration for today's table. One is prettier than the next, and the quality is superb.

These gorgeous little plates are inspired by the brightly colored and elaborately patterned textiles that Tracy is famous for. They even are edged with an 18-karat gold trim.

So pretty, but I must admit, this table was a bit of a challenge...so many colors to work with...where would I even begin? In the end, I went for an eclectic look.

I thought the dessert plates had an ethnic look to them, so I decided on this ikat table runner

with its adorable chunky ball fringe (Home Goods).

I chose my plain white plates to show off the vibrant colors and patterns of the dessert plates.

These ruffly gold leaf(ish) chargers were also the natural choice. I played with many napkins before selecting these gold trimmed navy blue ones,

tucked under the plates and secured with shiny gold napkin rings. Gold, gold, and more gold! What a great opportunity to use my favorite vintage gold barware.

It's finds like this that makes shopping in antique, vintage, and resale shop so much fun. Every table needs some candlelight...gold mercury glass votives perhaps?

And finally, something gorgeous (and gold) for a centerpiece. I just love these oversized pears by Michael Aram, a favorite designer of mine.

I think this table is a nice start to the holiday season... The Tracy Reese plates would make a perfect gift for your favorite dish lover, if you can find them! I wish you luck. I'll be visiting the following parties this week, so please join me.

Centerpiece Wednesday (The Style Sisters)Tabletop Thursday (Between Naps on the Porch)Feathered Nest Friday (French Country Cottage)Home Sweet Home Friday (The Charm of Home)Potpourri Friday (2805)Seasonal Sundays (The Tablescaper)Let's Dish (Cuisine Kathleen)Open House Party (No Minimalist Here)

Take another look, one year ago: Champagne and Curling Ribbon

Wednesday, November 21, 2012

Pilgrim-Style

It's almost midnight and I've just finished setting my table for the big day tomorrow. You may recall that I "rehearsed" this tablescape, knowing that I'd have to simplify a bit. You will have to excuse the pictures on this posting (taken with my phone!)...but my photographer happens to be spending the holiday in Colorado with her whole family. Hope you guys are having a great time. And here's my pilgrim-style table for 22!

Sorry folks, but with a group this big, you will only be getting...

...one plate,

...one wine glass, and no chargers or placemats!!

Do you like my napkin rings?? I made them using this adorable burlap striped ribbon from Hobby Lobby...glued around a cardboard tube. How easy was that?

And for fun, I simply printed up some place cards and decorated them with polka dot Washi Tape.

A few gourds,

and mercury glass votives, and a few more candles...

and I'm calling it a wrap! Have a wonderful Thanksgiving. I can't wait to see your tables. Join me at...

P.S. Hurry home, Laura! The blog's not the same without you!!

Wednesday, November 14, 2012

The (Ugly) Truth About Acorns

You've probably seen them...the packages of half-faux acorns from Pottery Barn...the perfect little autumn decoration. Fill a jar, scatter across the table. But at $14, I thought they were a bit pricey,

especially when the real thing is lying on the ground for the taking (as long as you beat the squirrels to them). So on one of my walks, I filled my pockets with the nicest acorns I could find. I was quite enamored with my collection...until several days later when (gasp!)...I discovered white worms crawling out of my pretty little acorns!! Talk about unwanted house guests. Thank goodness they were not on my dinner table! So as you can imagine, I look at these pest-free acorns from Pottery Barn in a totally new light. They are worth every penny! Nonetheless, the acorns are the inspiration for today's autumn tablescape. If you ~~need~~ desire fresh, inexpensive and seasonal table linens, march right over the Home Goods.

That's where I found this lovely rust and floral Ralph Lauren tablecloth. Instead of a runner, I dressed up the middle of this table with this charming burlap striped ribbon from Hobby Lobby.

They really had an interesting collection of natural fiber ribbons of various width. All you need is a little imagination. And while I normally don't feel the need to match my napkins, I couldn't pass these up. So they would not get lost on the cloth,

I turned them into a pretty little raffia-wrapped bundle and set them atop my plain white plates. These plain white plates were in turn set atop my favorite navy blue plates

(The Blues by Arabia of Finland). And because I love to layer, I added simple jute mats...

...they really help the blue plates to stand out. I know I've been using them a lot lately, but tis the season, so here are my gorgeous

brown Lenox wine and water goblets. Oh...I just remembered these chunky acorn candle pots.

I've had them for years, Crate & Barrel, I believe. A Fall tabletop is so easy to accessorize. The more the merrier. I'm so glad these cute corn husk flowers from...

...(Serenade in Wheaton) get to come to the party again. Of course, a bit of candlelight is in order, especially since it's dark at 4:30! I chose these shiny mercury glass tea lights and nestled them here and there, and also these antique Chinese brass candle sticks.

These were always on display in my parent's home for as long as I can remember! What a nice memory to bring them out again. And last, but not least (they are the star of the story today)

I've scattered handfuls of darling little Pottery Barn acorns all over my plates. You have most likely started your holiday preparations, but please spend a few relaxing minutes checking out the fabulous ideas at the following parties.

Take another look, one year ago: Marigolds and Lemons

Wednesday, November 7, 2012

Dress Rehearsal

"Seriously...cooking that huge meal isn't enough? Now you're telling me I have to practice setting my table!" Now don't get me wrong. I thoroughly enjoy preparing Thanksgiving dinner, but as you all know, my true passion is setting the table. So I take my time, I play around with this and that, and most importantly, I have fun. Oh, where will I begin? On the actual day, I'll be setting one very long "Pilgrim-style" table for 22, but today I'm working out my plan on my dining room table. Rather than renting linens for the big table,

I stumbled across these plaid tablecloths at Home Goods...reasonably priced, pretty, seasonal...they'll do just fine. Last year I purchased these "Gobble, Wish, Give, Thanks" salad plates at West Elm.

Not your traditional turkey plates...I just love them and am happy to get to use them again. The turkey plate season is unfortunately quite short!

It is really nice to have a large stack of plain white plates for an occasion such as this one. While at Home Goods, I also pick up these golden napkins, and figured out a new way to display them...quite by accident.

I rather like how they look, simply gathered up on one side with these cute...

...Ravi pewter napkin rings from Crate & Barrel. I wanted my table to have a natural look, so I chose some jute placemats, but my white plates initially looked so dull on them. Maybe this table needed a bit of glamour. Yes...I like these shimmery red beaded mats (Pottery Barn, many years ago)...

...and I like them even better layered along with the jute mats!

We'll be sipping from my gorgeous brown Lennox water and wine goblets.

I still cannot believe these were a resale shop find. I think creating a centerpiece for an autumn table is really rather simple.

I found this very interesting grape vine garland at Hobby Lobby and just kept building upon it...my favorite oh-so-versatile candle holder,

this time entwined with red berries,

followed by mini pumpkins and gourds

and acorns and dried oranges and colorful leaves. While I will most likely need to modify and simplify my "Pilgrim-style" table, I hope it still retains the look I have achieved here today.

So go ahead...play with your dishes...those turkey plates only come out once a year after all! Need more ideas? Check out the following parties for Thanksgiving ideas galore...

Centerpiece Wednesday (The Style Sisters)

Tabletop Thursday (Between Naps on the Porch)

Feathered Nest Friday (French Country Cottage)

Home Sweet Home Friday (The Charm of Home)

Potpourri Friday (2805)

Seasonal Sundays (The Tablescaper)

Let's Dish (Cuisine Kathleen)

Open House Party (No Minimalist Here)

Like my turkey plates? Please take another look..."Gobble, Wish, Give, Thanks".

Wednesday, October 24, 2012

Chameleons - Part 1

Some time ago, my dear friend Beth gave me a gift certificate to Crate & Barrel for my birthday. For months I pondered over what to buy...can I just have one of everything? Finally I decided...I wanted these placemats. Placemats, you say! Don't you have enough? Well, perhaps I do...but just look at these! Can you blame me? At that, I couldn't make up my mind...so bought both kinds! For this tablescape, I have chosen to use these Casitas placemats as a table runner.

They are adorable... covered in colorful embroidered spirals on a light brown linen background. These Stria round mats really caught my eye. So many colors...I think these mats can take on a whole new life depending on the accessories you place with them.

They are chameleons! Today, I'm pairing them with autumn colors. But in my mind, I'm conjuring up a whimsical holiday table. I think they'll work great in the summer also. So stayed tuned...you will be seeing these again! One of the reasons I love Fall is having another chance to use my Constellation dinnerware by Joseph Abboud.

They haven't been out of the cabinet in quite some time. Instead of the solid colored napkins featured with these placemats at the Crate, I opted to sew some of my own, and chose this very autumnal striped fabric.

I think they are rather charming scrunched into these shiny golden napkin rings. How I love these...

... South Beach water and wine glasses, also by Joseph Abboud. If you ever need some new votives, head on over to West Elm...their selection is quite vast.

This season I added another pattern to my collection. At first I thought about just plopping a chunky candle into this gold tiled vase,

but in the end could not resist these orangey mums. Trader Joe's does it again. For a final golden touch, I wove this cute gold and orange garland into my tablescape.

If you're like me, you probably have lots of ideas about the upcoming holidays. I feel Chameleons - Part 2 coming on. Or if you just need a little inspiration, please join me at the following blog parties. I guarantee you will find ideas galore.