Coalport Cathay, 4.7.14

"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.   ************************************************************************************************************* 

I'm excited to join Cuisine Kathleen's Spring Challenge...Birds, Nests, & Eggs.  Here we go...


I set a table for eight in the dining room.  I still can hardly bear to cover our new dining table.


If we've been hanging out together in blog world for any time at all, I'm pretty sure that the moment that you saw "Birds" as a part of Kathleen's challenge, you were at least half way expecting to see the Mottahedeh Musee Decoratif Tureen as part of my centerpiece.  This is probably my favorite tureen.


Flanking the tureen, a pair of white porcelain nests with love birds were a gift from my dear friend Marsha.  She brought them back from a trip to Nell Hill's in Kansas City...


 I filled them with faux eggs and acid green berries.  Thank you, Marsha!


A quartet of faux topiary balls were placed in white reticulated jardinieres, bought several years ago on the clearance aisle at Michael's.


The Val St. Lambert crystal candlesticks complete the centerpiece.  I've had them for many years.


Centerpiece done...it only took minutes to achieve.


The Maryland China Company "Minuet" charger plate brought a touch of brightness and light to the place setting...


...and was the perfect frame for the Coalport Cathay dinner plate.  I couldn't resist the vibrant green birds.


I liked the frosted palm fronds on our Nana's antique Lalique tumbler.  It lent another gentle touch of white to the tablescape.  Today it is paired with the AJKA Arabella Green goblet.

To complete the place setting, I laid the Pottery Barn linen hemstitched napkin with the  L'Argent Sophia white flatware.  The Haviland Ranson butterpat  was a last minute addition....I just liked the look of it.


All done...


Birds ✔...Nests ✔...Eggs ✔  I'm ready for Cuisine Kathleen's Spring Challenge!

 I always sit at this end of the table.  Why don't you sit here to my right, so we can get to know each other better.  I'm so honored to have you at my table!

This week I'm joining:

Cuisine Kathleen's "Let's Dish"
Tablescape Thursday with Susan @ Between Naps on the Porch
Seasonal Sundays with The Tablescaper

Spring Inspirations and Spode Peacock

"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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I love that inspiration can come from so many different directions...sometimes just around the corner...sometimes it's right outside your window!

 When I opened my bedroom window shades yesterday morning, a smile formed on my face.  I grabbed my camera to capture these brand new buds.  Years ago, Sweet Mister planted a pair of ornamental pear trees outside our bedroom windows as a surprise for me.  Every April, they signal that Spring has finally arrived...

 This morning when I opened the shades, all those buds had burst forth in a symphony of delicate white blossoms.  My inspiration for this week's table was not to be denied.


Friends are coming for an easy lunch on Friday...


...Back to the games table in the living room.

I love this mix of colors.

The Luminarc "Zest" cobalt charger was an eBay find.  It was the perfect staging ground for my place setting. 

Also lending a nice foundation was the Royal Worcester Regency dinner plate.  This pattern is available on the secondary market in a number of color choices.  In addition to the ruby, you can also find a lovely cobalt and a great green.


The crown jewel for today's table is the Spode Peacock (my name for it) luncheon plate.  I  found a set of 11 of these on eBay several years ago.  Someday, I'll find the 12th one!


Some of my favorite crystal patterns....Waterford Simply Red, & AJKA Arabella Cobalt...both found in a variety of places including eBay, Replacements, & Tuesday Morning.


Part of the 'crowd scene"..Nana's silver and cobalt salt cellar, red hemstitched napkin (eBay), my mother-in-love's Reed & Barton Francis I flatware, and a cream matelasse tablecloth.


Although I've had the Spode Peacock luncheon plates for a number of years, ...

 ...the pair of Spode Peacock spill vases are a relatively new addition.  I was thrilled when I came across them on eBay.  I filled them with a profusion of the ornamental pear blossoms.  I made the arrangements wild and free...much like they appear on the trees.  Why are they called 'spill vases"?  I've always wondered about that.

 I combined the vases...

 with a pair of the cobalt depression glass candlesticks to flank...

 ...a ruby glass bowl.  Did you notice the "stand" underneath the bowl.  It's the base of one of my silver lidded butter dishes!  Remember...always be willing to think outside the box.

 We'll see if the blossoms last until Friday, and hopefully we won't have one of our raging thunder storms,  which will instantly wreak havoc on the ornamental pear blooms.  We often have them to enjoy for what seems like mere moments.

Ready to enjoy good food, hours of laughter, and blessed fellowship.  If you're passing my way, let me know...I'll set an additional place just for you!

This week I'm joining:
Thursday Favorite Things Blog Hop @ Katherine's Corner
Tablescape Thursday with Susan @ Between Naps on the Porch

Lavender Blue, Dilly Dilly, 3.25.14

"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.  ************************************************************************************************************* - 
Today was a welcome and fairly laid back day at home.  My friends called to say that they were bringing takeout, so I set a table for four at the games table in the living room.  My thoughts were turning to Spring....

It's another beautiful day out here on the prairie...

 ...We're all beginning to think of lovely blooms in the softest of colors, ...

 ...one of my recent eBay finds set just the right mood.  The fabric is P.Kaufmann, and I was fortunate to acquire a pair of them...back porch here I come...soon.


I've been seeing some lovely examples of Hydrangeas here in blog world.  This will have to be my contribution for yet another month or two.

 This was one of my thirty minute tables, so no time to go buy fresh flowers.  I used this unmarked tureen. as my centerpiece.  The crest says, "The Court of Versailles."  I don't know if it's old, or if someone picked it up at a tourist souvenir shop in Paris.  I just know that I like it.  The background color is actually the palest of blues.

 I wanted to create my design using the yummy colors in the table cloth..

 The Bormioli deep purple glass charger plate was too good to leave in the cabinet...

 ...It was a lovely backdrop for the Castleton blue rim, pearl edged dinner plate, discovered on eBay.

 Picking up more amethyst and lilac/pink, I used the Waterford Simply Lilac goblet with the lilac/pink scrolled goblet from Home Goods.

 Spring has sprung!

 Thank you, Nana...yet again.  And thanks to my mother-in-love for the Reed & Barton Francis I flatware.

 Good to go.  Hey, I know that some of you see every detail in every room, so maybe you've wondered about the strange little object under the piano garage...

Sweet Mister brought this home from a benefit auction one night, saying "I just couldn't help it."  Beatrice Emaline is just now old enough to really begin to enjoy it, so here it will live until she has no further use for it.

Another blessed day spent with precious friends...good food, good fun, and priceless fellowship...hard to beat!

This week I'll be joining:

Tablescape Thursday with Susan @ Between Naps on the Porch
Seasonal Sundays with The Tablescaper

Arita Imari Fan, 3.19.14

"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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I'm pretty sure that my admiration for Asian design is in my blood.  My daddy, an architect, and my Aunt Ida, who lived in Tokyo for some years after World War II, both collected some lovely Japanese things. I've continued the love affair with many things oriental...especially dishes!  Tonight, I wanted to share Arita, Imari Fan with you.

 Spring is beginning to shine, just outside the back door.

 Come on in...I've set a casual table for four today...

 No tablecloth this time...I decided that the Persian carpet provided just the right "undercloth".

 Imari Fan is quite an exuberant pattern.  I don't think that it would take much effort to go straight over the "design cliff" with it.  I chose to emphasize the green in this delightful plate.

 A simple centerpiece....I elevated the Imari Fan bowl and chop plate on one of my antique oriental stands.  I pick up assorted sizes of these stands at estate sales.

A really important element in today's design, the MacKenzie-Childs soft green enamelware charger plate was a fortunate and reasonable eBay find.  I chose it to calm down the Imari Fan.

 The Arita Imari Fan is quite the attention getter...no shrinking violet here.

 Fire King Jadeite was originally restaurant ware.  You wouldn't know that today.  It's quite pricey on eBay and other on-line sites, but I've been able to score some great deals at several estate sales.  This is called the Lotus plate...

...and this is the Lotus bowl.  I thought that they were the perfect partners for the Imari Fan.  The scalloped edges pick up the scallop motif in several of the panels on the plate.

 Lately I've been interested in introducing some orange into my tablescapes.  I've started acquiring an assortment of orange wine goblets on eBay.  They don't show up often or in quantities, so I've decided to mix and match orange goblets by assorted makers.  Most of todays group are made by AJKA.  I've paired it with the Vietri Amber goblet.  The Vietri is still in production and comes in some great colors.  Reasonably priced, you'll probably find it in a nice shop near you.

 Finishing the place setting, the "antique" hemstitch napkin is caught by the Waverly beaded napkin ring, my often used gift from Cuisine Kathleen.  The dark bamboo flatware was found at Big Lots, and the D&Co. Limoges salt cellars belonged to Nana.

 Sunshine bright...this design looks like the Spring days that all of us are eagerly awaiting...

 I think that we'll leave the patio door wide open as we dine and visit long into the afternoon.  Have a seat; I'm so happy that you're here!

This week I'm joining:

Tablescape Thursday with Susan @ Between Naps on the Porch
Seasonal Sundays with The Tablescaper