Mottahedeh Duke of Gloucester, May 10, 2018

Spring was slowly beginning to rear it's gentle head, and it was a nice sunny day, still not warm enough to dine al fresco, but nice, none the less. I invited the Garden Friends Bible study to celebrate my dear friend Kathy's recent birthday. Today I prepared a table for six in the breakfast room. Come on in and join us...

I had a great time designing this tablescape. As I do so often, I found myself turning to lovely appointments that can be found in my repertoire because of our dear Nana. She was quite the entertaining woman, and I am blessed to shepherd her treasures until it's time for them to move on to the next generation.

 I was also eager to share one of the newer denizens in China Town...

...the classic Mottahedeh Duke of Gloucester. I have long admired this pattern, and the more I play with it, the more I understand that there are a myriad of ways in which it can be used. It's really an amazing design. It reminds me of that priceless little black dress in the back of all of our closets. You know, the one that can be dressed up or down, and it will always be perfect for any situation.

I kept the plates to a minimum this day, and the first layer of my design was Nana's antique lace placemat...just the right touch of texture. The flatware is my wedding silver, Reed & Barton Grande Renaissance.

Duke of Gloucester offers four different center designs that share the same rim design. This pattern has quickly worked it way to one of the top spots in my favorites list.

I was in a mood to use clear crystal, and I selected what I call the "Lost and Found" crystal goblets. These are Nana's goblets which were stolen by a woman who pretended to be a friend of my sister-in-love. They were missing for years, and then one day I spotted them among the pictures marketing an up-coming estate sale for a pawn shop that was going out of business. There they sat on a shelf where they had gathered dust for years. I made sure that I was one of the first people at the sale, and I was able to get my hands on most of them, so now they are back with the family. I say a little prayer of thanks every time that I use them. 

A linen napkin caught in a gold beaded napkin ring and the whimsical individual s&p's that I use so often completed my place setting. Simple, but effective, I think.

My mind kept thinking about the gardens of early spring with buds suddenly appearing . I had a great time slipping crocus buds into the small assortment of Glastonbury Lotus gold vases. The Lenox urns were simply "snip and slip" prepared bouquets that I bought at Whole Foods.

 

Being a less than accomplished gardener, I really appreciate the bounty to be found at our local grocery stores. Currently I'm praying that my hydrangea bushes are going to make a come-back from a particularly late and hard freeze that we experienced in April. Thank heaven for good old fish emulsion. They are finally starting to fill with their lovely leaves, and I'm beginning to see the hope found in baby buds nestled in the leaves. Now if they would just hurry, hurry hurry! I have two luncheons in the next two weeks, and the second one is supposed to be served al fresco. Maybe it will, and maybe it won't.  It's yet to be seen.


The centerpiece is completed with the Royal Copenhagen Gold Fan tureen, which is elevated on the Schumann Empress Dresden Flowers reticulated compote.



Everything was ready before my precious friends arrived for our Wednesday morning Bible study.

The birthday girl had requested a light salad luncheon, so the chicken salad, tuna salad, egg salad, broccoli salad, and fresh berries salad were waiting for each one to fill one of the dinner plates.


Dessert was a delicious Tiramisu birthday cake. It was so incredibly light, I'm fairly certain there were few if any calories. Sure. As happens so often, I was blessed to have my friends gathered around my table long into the afternoon. I sent everyone home with flowers and left overs for their husbands, so they didn't have to worry about fixing dinner.


Remember that entries are still being taken for Entertaining Women's 8th Blogiversary Give Away! Just make a comment on today's post, and for extra entries take a stroll back into my archives and leave as many comments as you want on older posts. The drawing will be made the week of July 7, so you have plenty of time.

This week I'm joining:
Tablescape Thursday with Susan @ Between Naps on the Porch

The Scoop with Suzy @ Worthing Court

Announcing a GIVE-AWAY for My 8th Blogiversary!!!

Several weeks ago I was blessed to gather a few close friends around the games table in the living room for an easy going luncheon. I call it one of my dine and dash renditions because I think we all have those times when everyone is running in a thousand different directions. Still, it's nice to stop for even a short respite to have a bite to eat and spend some time, however brief, with your favorite people. This was one of those days. Lunch consisted of chicken salad, tuna salad, egg salad, and broccoli salad, all served on the kitchen counter from their refrigerator storage containers. Regardless, it was a precious time filled with cherished moments, and sometimes that's the most we can ask. We're about to grab our plates and head into the kitchen.  I'll grab another place setting just for you, so please, you're invited to come on in and join us at the table. I hope you're plenty hungry!!

The centerpiece consisted of one of my favorite jardinieres and flowers left over from a luncheon earlier in the week.  Centerpiece...check. As so often happens, I was in the mood for something blue and white...

The Williams-Sonoma Sofia dinner plate perched happily on my Anna Weatherly cobalt charger.

The Williams Sonoma Sofia Boat luncheon/salad plate was made available for anyone who cared for dessert...today it was a yummy slice of coconut cake.

Many of you are no stranger to my Pier One pearlized pink goblets. Today they were the perfect choice for Nana's pink and white Madeira placemat and napkin. The L'Argent Sofia cobalt flatware (no relation to the dinnerware) completed the place setting.

And especially short and sweet for me, that's the complete setting for today.  But wait!  You didn't really think that I was going to fade away that quickly, now did you? Come on now!  So here's the deal...On July, 7, 2018, I'll celebrate my 8th Blogiversary!  It doesn't seem possible!  I published my first post on July 7, 2010. I've so enjoyed sharing my tablescapes with you, and have come to think of many of you as dear friends. You need to know that I'm serious each time I invite you to come sit at my table. Because it is my blogiversary, I want to celebrate with you by announcing an Entertaining Women give-away!! During the week of July 7, 2018, I'll announce the winner of a set of 12 Williams Sonoma Sofia dinner and luncheon/salad plates, as seen in this week's post. Everyone who leaves a comment on my posts between now and July 7, 2018, will be entered to win the set of dinnerware. If you want to earn additional opportunities to win the set of Sofia, you could also take a stroll back through my archives and leave a comment each time you visit an older post. I hope that I'll be hearing from you!

This week I'm joining:

Tablescape Thursday with Susan @ Between Naps on the Porch

Dishing It and Digging It with Christine @ Rustic & Refined 

Summer Gold + Give Away Winner!

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.



Entertaining Women's first blog post was July 7, 2010.  It's hard to conceive that I've been blogging my tablescapes for two years.  I never dreamed that I would be "published" in any format. It was always my Aunt Ida's dream for me, and I think that she would be happy.  I'm having even more fun with my blog today than when my daughter-in-love, Jamiann at THE BLACKBERRY VINE, graciously helped me figure out how to even start a blog.  I look forward to my third year.  I adore the many new blog buddies that I've come to care about, and I am humbled by your support and unending encouragement.  Thank you seems so inadequate.  I introduced my blogiversary give-away several weeks ago... HERE.  I used the random generator to select a name, and  I am pleased to announce that the winner of the 12 Mottahedeh "Sacred Butterfly" Dinner Plates is SARAH @ HYACINTHS FOR THE SOUL  Sarah, please email me your address, and I'll carefully pack the dinner plates and send them your way. I think that you'll enjoy them for many years.  Congratulations!

The Mottahedeh "Lion" Tureen, another of my eBay finds for a great price, has been residing on the dining table for the past few weeks...

...with a pair of white reticulated and lidded lanterns. The floral arrangements left over from the Fourth of July table still look nice, so I removed the red roses and added them to the dining table vignette.  By this point, my brain was on a roll, and I visualized a tablescape design in my mind.  I call it "Summer Gold."

I recently came across this inexpensive pair of long green crinkled fabric runners at a local shop.  Tip:  These runners are twice as wide as shown here.  I simply folded them in two to create runners approximately the height of a place mat.  It would be so easy to buy 54" or 60" wide home dec fabric, split it down the middle and hem it with your machine or pull out the Stitch Witchery and steam iron.  I also plan to criss-cross them on a round table for a party of four.  So versatile and fun!  I think that I'll go shopping for more fabric.

    Once I chose to go with the tureen and it's gold accents and the green runners, my color story was set...white, gold, and green...perfectly cool and inviting for a hot summer day!

The Acrylic Woven Gold Charger Plates were a $.99 for 12 eBay find.  They're light, so shipping was minimal...a great deal.  The gold sets the mood for the table.  I used a plain white dinner plate with a gold rim beneath our Nana's wonderful vintage crystal  accent plate with the green border.  At first, I placed the crystal plate directly on my workhorse dinner plate, the Wedgwood "Countryware" dinner plate, but the embossed rim of cabbage leaves "fought" with the crisp design work in the accent plate.  I added an additional layer by inserting the Limoges 10" white dinner plate with its simple gold rim.  Tip:  Why did I leave the Countryware plate in the stack?  The gold charger is quite large, and I left the "Countryware" in place simply to improve the proportion of white to gold.  Proportion can make or break a design.  If something looks "dinky" to you when you're creating your tablescape, your eye is telling you that you have a proportion problem.  Think about a room that you've fitted with furniture that ends up being too large...or too small.  We've all done it at some point.  I've been guilty of buying the huge, extremely comfortable sectional...only to get it home and realize that it's way too large for my room.  I don't care how many years it sits there, it never looks right when it's out of proportion.

The crystal accent plate dictated the composition of the stack.  Its crisp stylized motif demands companions that don't distract.  Tip:  The Limoges Gold Rim White dinner plate was picked up for a pittance at a local antique store.  I bought a stack of them.  Some of them are the Limoges, and some of them are virtually the same plate by Johnson Brothers.  When shopping for vintage plates, don't be afraid to mix different brands.  Any minor differences will not be noticed by your guests.  Remember, in the final analysis, each person will be examining only one plate...the one that's directly in front of them.

The gold-tone bamboo flatware continued the tone for my design, and the Williams-Sonoma hemstitched linen napkin in a slim tri-fold added a nice crisp pop to the table.

The Waterford "Simply Lime" goblet 'played well with others today.  Can you see the horizontal 'slash' cuts at the base of the bowl?  I liked the way that they co-ordinated with the palm fronds in Nana's Lalique tumbler.  I also chose the Lalique because the frosted cut-work added another impression of white to the table.  I like the shape of the goblet mixed with the Val St. Lambert crystal candlesticks strolling down the center of the table.

  Our son and his family are coming tomorrow to spend the night before driving their older son to Kamp Kanakuk in Branson, Missouri.  Our younger grandson is going to spend a few days with us while they make the trip.  We are so excited, and we've been making plans to do some fun things while he's here.

I can hardly wait to have our family gathered around the table for supper.  It will be a kid friendly meal; Sweet Mister is going to grill chicken and hamburgers on his new grill.  I'm headed  to the grocery store to stock up on fixins' that we'll need while our dear ones are here.  Do you have family coming soon?  I hope that you do!

Thank you, yet again, to Susan at Between Naps on the Porch for hosting her magical meme, Tablescape Thursday.  I'll be linking my post to "TABLESCAPE THURSDAY."   Hop on over and check out the myriad of marvelous tablescape designs, after 10:00 AM on Thursdays.  You'll be glad that you made the trip...it's a wonderful adventure.

When I think of June, I think of lazy summer days and time to share a meal with friends.  How about you?  With thankfulness for her dedication and efforts, I'm joining the multi-talented Tablescaper for her fabulous meme SEASONAL SUNDAYS.  Hope to see you there!

Wednesday evening is the fifteenth edition of Cuisine Kathleen's meme, "LET'S DISH".  So excited to be a charter member.  Pop over (pun intended for the Chef Supreme Kathleen) and join the fun!


It's always a treat to learn something new when I go exploring in blog land.  Tonight I'm excited to join Yvonne @ Stone Gable for her new meme, TUTORIALS, TIPS, & TIDBITS.  Bring your notebook...there's so much to learn!

You can check out KC's music at www.kcclifford.com, on iTunes, and on YouTube.  I hope that you'll take a few minutes and give her a listen.  You'll also enjoy reading back through her blog on this site.  The girl can really write!  KC has just released her 5th studio CD project, "The Tag Hollow Sessions".  The sold out CD release concert was this past weekend.  "The Tag Hollow Sessions" is available on iTunes or through her website.  I hope that you'll give her music a chance.  I know that I have zero objectivity where she is concerned, but I think that you'll fall in love with her music and her!  

  

  

Fourth of July, 2012

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.



Entertaining Women's first blog post was July 7, 2010.  It's hard to conceive that I've been blogging my tablescapes for almost two years.  I never dreamed that I would be "published" in any format. It was always my Aunt Ida's dream for me, and I think that she would be happy.  I'm having even more fun with my blog today than when my daughter-in-love, Jamiann at THE BLACKBERRY VINE, graciously helped me figure out how to even start a blog.  I look forward to my third year.  I adore the many new blog buddies that I've come to care about, and I am humbled by your support and unending encouragement.  Thank you seems so inadequate.  I introduced my blogiversary give-away week before last...a set of 12 Mottahedeh "Sacred Butterfly" dinner plates.  To read about it and learn how to be the winner, click HERE. 

We have a couple of good friends coming for dinner tomorrow night to observe Independence Day, 2012.  This tablescape kind of grew like 'Flopsy, Mopsy, and Peter Cottontail.  Other than knowing that I wanted to use the red and white striped tablecloth, I really didn't have a grand plan....

...but I'm happy with the end result. The pair of Uncle Sam's on the refectory table are actually Christmas Decorations, and don't most of us have a stash of the small American flags that we've had forever tucked away someplace?

I haven't used the Burleigh "Calico" tureen in quite a while; I liked the dark cobalt color with the white flowers that were a bit reminiscent of stars (just chalk it up to poetic license).  I found this at the tail end of a good estate sale for $30.00 for the tureen, ladle, and under plate.  The little fabric dolls were also an estate sale get...four for $1.00.  I think that they're quirky and fun...

Susan B. Anthony...

Daniel Boone...or maybe Davy Crockett, both fine Americans...

Samuel Clemens, a.k.a. Mark Twain...

...and of course, Betsy Ross!

I surrounded the tureen with a quartet of my Lenox Urns.  Flowers from the grocery store made simple floral poseys.

...Centerpiece...✓...Now that wasn't too hard...just a bit of digging in cabinets and closets.

The Royal Doulton's Restaurant Ware Brand Steelite Cobalt Charger is making yet another appearance as the base of my place setting.

They're becoming like Hepburn and Tracey.  I've once again used the Wedgwood "Countryware" as my dinner plate.  I've bought a number of this pattern on eBay over time.  This is one of the patterns that I go to for large groups.  Tip:  Different china companies will often make the same design.  For example, "Countryware" was originally produced by Coalport.  When Coalport closed their operation, Wedgwood bought the molds and continued to produce this pattern.  Here's my advice.  The plates are exactly the same from Wedgwood to Coalport, but the Coalport version often sells for two or three times more than the Wedgwood.  Now Coalport is one of my favorite china manufacturers, but in this instance, I didn't hesitate to collect the Wedgwood.  Just do your homework and take your time!

The Royal Worcester "Regency Ruby" luncheon plate was another of my eBay discoveries.  Red, white, and blue...yep, I like it.  For our celebration, this will be removed before dinner and returned with our dessert.

Held in place with the Coalport "Countryware" Napkin Ring, the navy and white stars napkin is a bandana, found at Hobby Lobby.  I think that I paid $1.00 each for them.  I folded the bandana to conceal the remainder of the napkin which is red and white stripe.  I thought that this turned out to be an important component for my design....Who knew?

 If you've followed me for any time at all, you know that I'm fond of the L'Argent "Sophia" flatware from Horchow and Tuesday Morning.  I've bought it in a number of colors.  It sells for $10.00 per 5 piece place setting...sometimes less.  I've purchased it a little at a time...a lot of punch for a minimum investment.

The cutwork design and the faceted stem in the AJKA "Arabella" Cobalt Goblet reminded me of bursting fireworks lighting up the night sky on Independence Day.  The Lenox "Holiday Gem" in red was the perfect partner for our red, white, and blue celebration.

  Ready to roll.  We'll share a no-fuss dinner of Pork Tenderloin, Fresh Asparagus, Baked Potato, Garlic French Bread, Homemade Ice Cream and Fresh Summer Berries.

Those of you on the coast who experienced the damaging straight winds have been on my heart and in my prayers this week.  It is not uncommon for us prairie dwellers to experience 100 MPH straight winds on occasion...and we had more than 50 days over 100º last summer, so we understand your predicament.  I continue to pray for your situation and for your safety.  If you could get away for a bit, I'll be glad to add extra place settings to the table.  I would be honored to have you as a guest at my table.

May we all embrace this magnificent country of ours, The United States of America...one nation, under God.  I'm grateful to our military men and women who sacrifice themselves that we might live free.  Happy Independence Day!

Thank you, yet again, to Susan at Between Naps on the Porch for hosting her magical meme, Tablescape Thursday.  I'll be linking my post to "TABLESCAPE THURSDAY."   Hop on over and check out the myriad of marvelous tablescape designs, after 10:00 AM on Thursdays.  You'll be glad that you made the trip...it's a wonderful adventure.

When I think of June, I think of lazy summer days and time to share a meal with friends.  How about you?  With thankfulness for her dedication and efforts, I'm joining the multi-talented Tablescaper for her fabulous meme SEASONAL SUNDAYS.  Hope to see you there!

Wednesday evening is the fifteenth edition of Cuisine Kathleen's meme, "LET'S DISH".  So excited to be a charter member.  Pop over (pun intended for the Chef Supreme Kathleen) and join the fun!


It's always a treat to learn something new when I go exploring in blog land.  Tonight I'm excited to join Yvonne @ Stone Gable for her new meme, TUTORIALS, TIPS, & TIDBITS.  Bring your notebook...there's so much to learn!

You can check out KC's music at www.kcclifford.com, on iTunes, and on YouTube.  I hope that you'll take a few minutes and give her a listen.  You'll also enjoy reading back through her blog on this site.  The girl can really write!  KC has just released her 5th studio CD project, "The Tag Hollow Sessions".  The sold out CD release concert was this past weekend.  "The Tag Hollow Sessions" is available on iTunes or through her website.  I hope that you'll give her music a chance.  I know that I have zero objectivity where she is concerned, but I think that you'll fall in love with her music and her!