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Two Tablescapes from Summer to Fall

Adding pinecones

So many people are posting fall items now, but quite honestly, it’s hard to think of autumn when it is over 100 degrees. Inspired by this dilemma of a hot summer but longing for cooler temperatures, here are two seasonal tablescapes, utilizing some of the same elements, but creating two totally different vibes.

Chloe from Celebrate and Decorate @celebrateanddecorate

There are two talented women who encourage me to think out of the box when setting a table. Chloe from Celebrate and Decorate oozes of talent and innovation. You may recall, Chloe using a large antler shed last November and making the centerpiece of a gorgeous table out in our orchard. See that post here.

Bonnie Chase Designs @bonniechasedesigns

Though I have never met Bonnie Chase from Bonnie Chase Designs, I follow her on Instagram and drool over her beautiful tables. Check her out at @bonniechasedesigns. So channeling my inner Chloe and Bonnie, I set forth in creating a summer and fall tablescape.

Summer Tablescape


My Stylish French Box

In the most recent My French Country Home box, the theme for August is Saint-Tropez. (If you are unfamiliar with this quarterly subscription, see more information here). A pretty raspberry and white striped fouta is made exclusively for My French Country Home and is just stunning. What is a fouta, you ask?

Pink and white fouta

The fouta is a piece of thin patterned cotton or linen fabric of Yemeni origin used in many Mediterranean countries and Yemen. Among other uses, they were worn, by both men and women, wrapped around the body while at the public baths in 19th-century Syria. However, this large fouta is perfect as a tablecloth.

Starting with a green basketweave dinner plate from Pier 1 Imports, I add my cherished Wild Strawberry pattern teacups from Wedgwood. I bought these at Harrod’s in London many moons ago. The embroidered “C” napkin is an online order by Jan de Luz linens in Carmel, CA.

Flowers from Safeway

There is something very summery about pink and green~perfect for a Sunday breakfast. Pink flowers, such as these very fragrant star lilies are cut short and placed in glass juice glasses. Have you ever seen this multi-petal lily before? My husband did buy them at AJ’ Fine Foods.

Wallace Napolean Bee Flatware

My trusty Wallace Napolean Bee flatware adds a bit of gold to the place setting. I just purchased another set of 8 as I find I am using this all the time. I cannot say enough about this flatware! You can find it here.

Since this is a breakfast table, I add my Wedgwood tea pot and sugar bowl. Pink etched glasses from Pier 1 are perfect for water (or wine or mimosas?).

Bejeweled frog box

I do like to add something a bit whimsical and unexpected to the table. Meet my bejeweled frog box. I don’t really like knick-knacks, but this little guy just makes me happy.

A Summer Breakfast table for two

So here is my summer breakfast table for two. Now let’s move into the fall season.

Fall Tablescape

This wool blanket reminds me of fall tailgating parties and has all the luscious colors for the season. I will use this as my tablecloth. Here are some similar wool blankets. You can use many things as tablecloths-shawls, scarves, throws or a piece of fabric. Use your imagination!

Using a blanket as a table cloth

Utilizing some of the same elements as my Summer breakfast table, it’s easy to change it up a bit for Fall.

Here you can see I am using the same green basketweave plate, but am adding a clear gold rim salad plate (from Leslie Roy) and Villeroy & Boch yellow and green plates and an espresso cup and saucer.

Same silverware, different napkins. These hemstitched yellow linen ones are from Sferra. See them here. You can also find similar ones on Amazon here. The wine glass has autumn tones in the stem but I cannot recall where I purchased these.

For flowers, orange hue roses and alstroemerias (from Safeway) are cut short and again, put into small juice glasses. Our huge pine tree in the front yard is dropping gorgeous pinecones every day. Using items from your yard or garden is such an affordable way to add nature to your centerpiece.

Even the frog looks at home in his new habitat!

Overall, just a few additions and you can use your dishes to change the look of the table from season to season.

Wherever you live, I hope you are enjoying the end of summer or the beginning of fall. Here it will be hot for several more weeks, but as it does every year, the cooler climate will be here before we know it.

Have a happy Tuesday!

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This post shared with Between Naps on the Porch Tablescape Thursday #675 and Thursday’s Favorite Things #560




Fall Decor Ideas

Autumn in Simsbury, Connecticut

Though I am not ready to give up on summer yet, I feel I could easily welcome cooler Fall temperatures. It doesn’t get Fall-like here in the Valley of the Sun until late October. We seem to be hotter now with all the new growth and development, which is unfortunate. I recall cooler weather in mid-September when I first moved here. Fall decor is on the store shelves and typically, by the time I am ready to decorate everything is gone.

Front Porch decor

So today I would like to share some inspiration as we dream about apples, sweaters and falling leaves. The front porch is always a fun place to decorate and the wreath is the first item that goes up. Since our front door is wider than a standard size, our larger wreath is an investment. As a result, I store them carefully year to year. I love the rich fall colors and surprisingly, they do work with my light blue front door.

Fall wreath using natural grasses

Or you can make a wreath using some natural materials from nature. To see my blog post on this, please click here.

Adding fall plants like wild grasses or coleus creates an autumn tapestry of textures and shades.

Pillows and Blankets

Wool blanket and orange pillow

Pillows and blankets are an easy way to bump up your fall theme. This is a welcoming spot by the front door to sit and just relax. You can find great pillows on Etsy or Amazon here. And I love this blanket from Amazon too.

Fall DIY

DIY fall trees

Making fall trees (see post here) is a simple DIY utilizing all the fall foliage that can be found at Michaels or Hobby Lobby. Keep some of your outdoor branches and with a drill and glue gun you are good to go!

Freshly cut maple branches

Fresh cut branches with colorful autumn leaves in a large glass vessel can provide an instant change in season. Since we don’t really have these lovely deciduous trees here in Phoenix, I cut branches on our trip to the mountains each October.

Accessories

Spicy Apple candle by Rosy Rings

A few years ago, I discovered these amazing candles by Rosy Rings. They are works of art~beautiful to look at and smell great too. This autumn candle is Spicy Apple and you can see the slices of apple, cinnamon sticks, leaves and berries in the wax. You need one, right? See it here.

Painting by me

Adding a few pieces of seasonal art brings new color to any room. Here is a painting I did a few years back…my first pumpkin!

A California autumn by Lynn Winans (1897-1982)

Decorating Shelves

I love adding a bit of fall decor to each room, but one of my favorite spots is the antique Hepplewhite secretary from the late 1700s which sits in our living room. From my Johnson & Johnson plates to the pheasant soup tureen, everything about this vignette screams autumn.

Last year I made fabric pumpkins, to replace the ones damaged by creepy bugs. This DIY is really easy and if you can get your hands on real pumpkin stems, then the possibilities are endless.

We have a huge pine tree in our front yard and for the first time it is dropping big, gorgeous pinecones. I cannot wait to figure out what I am going to do with this pretty gifts from nature.

Bleaching pinecones

Last year I did bleach pinecones and the results are a bit different but perfect for a more monochromatic theme. And you can use them into the Christmas holiday too. See that project here.

Well hopefully I have your fall decor juices going. I think my focus this year will be on making some of the mantels truly spectacular.

Do you have a favorite fall theme or color? Are you more traditional in the shades of oranges, reds and browns? Please share any fun projects that you are doing.

Happy Wednesday!

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A Summer Breakfast

Bee flatware by Wallace

Sunday is the official first day of summer, but school is out, gardens are growing and the weather here says otherwise. Even though it is a bit too warm to eat outside, that doesn’t stop me from wanting to create a cheerful summer breakfast table.

The Tablecloth

Drying on the line

I am so fortunate to have this brightly colored vintage tablecloth from my Aunt Gail’s belongings. Since it didn’t appear to have been laundered for quite some time, I did wash it in cold water on a delicate cycle and then hung it on the line to dry. I love how the fabric matches the foliage! With a quick iron, the table cloth is clean, fresh and ready to go.

Vintage linens

Vintage linens can be found in many thrift stores. The patterns and colors are so rich and beautiful. Even though there are many online, I personally like to see them in person so I can handle the fabric and view the colors. And they are so affordable. A few are for sale and can be found in my Store tab above.

The Dishes

Layering dishes gives the table setting some substance and I start with a buttercup yellow charger. These handpainted Italian chargers are from Pier 1 Imports many years ago. You can find similar ones here.

Blue/white plate and gold rim one

Next, of course is a blue and white plate. These are again, an old purchase from Horchow and each plate is a different pattern. You can find a similar plate from this incredible selection here.

For the smaller plate, I select a pretty gold rimmed clear glass on from Leslie Roy (no longer in business).

The Centerpiece

Since I love my tulipiere, it is the perfect blue and white vessel for the centerpiece. Filled with yellow bells from the yard, it is set off to the side in order to allow visibility between the place settings.

Tulipiere from The Enchanted Home
Top of the tulipiere

Not familiar with tulipieres? Click here.

I also add some daisies in small glasses for added color.

Daisies and yellow bells

The Meal

Since this is breakfast, a gorgeous juicy Ruby red grapefruit is a great way to start. The mint garnish adds a bit of contrast.

Ruby Red Grapefruit

Fresh lemon slices on the edge of the water goblet add just a bit more yellow to the table. The large size coffee mugs are a gift from my friend, Anne.

Vintage napkins from my collection
Nespresso latte

My homemade granola is sooooo good and you can find the recipe here. You can make it as is or add other ingredients…but it’s another recipe I can guarantee you will love.

Homemade Granola

Isn’t this just a summery setting?

Breakfast for two

Other small items complete the table. The mini pitcher is for milk for the granola and I like to have regular milk and oat or almond milk as alternatives. If you haven’t made your own nut milk (super easy), here is my recipe. And here’s a cute blue and white creamer on Amazon.

Coalport place card holder and blue/white creamer

The sweet vintage place card holder is a gift from my friend, Janie. I didn’t use a place card as I think it is perfect just as it is.

This table is set in our living room corner near the east and south windows. Perfect light in the morning to have our breakfast and celebrate the summer season.

Do you have breakfast on the run? Often, that is the case with me. It is nice to sit down at a lovely table and actually take the time to enjoy this meal.

Have a wonderful day, my friends!

If you enjoy this post, please feel free to share on Pinterest.

This post shared with Between Naps on the Porch Tablescape Thursday #664




Combining Real and Artificial Flowers

Easter centerpiece using fresh and faux flowers

Everyone probably already does this, but I am just recently discovering the flexibility one has with combining both real and artificial flowers in floral arrangements.

When I think of all those years of being a purist on fresh flower arrangements, combining fresh and artificial really makes sense. Faux flower quality is significantly better than ever. Artificial flowers last forever and over time, can be the more affordable choice. Access to a wide variety of faux flowers is now available on the internet. When real flowers are pricey, filing in with artificial ones gives you an abundant arrangement at less cost.

Faux hyacinths

For our Easter table centerpiece this year, can you tell which flowers are real and which aren’t? The blue hyacinths and the white peonies are the artificial flowers. The pops of blue and white help complement the blue Indian block tablecloth and china. Faux blue hyacinths here and beautiful faux peonies in many colors can be found here.

Fresh and faux centerpiece

These faux peonies are found in many of my photos as I always have a good looking arrangement available to enhance my shots.

Faux Peonies

Here is another arrangement in a pedestal bowl. Can you tell which flowers are real? Actually in this one, only the creamy white roses are fresh.

Even the sprigs of greens and the alstroemeria are faux.

Once the white roses are past their prime, it was easy to fill in with new fresh pink ones.

Using the same base of faux flowers, it is fun to branch out using more vibrant and vivid colors. Isn’t it interesting how different this brightly colored one looks compared to the previous two?

The red geraniums and tulips are not real. If you don’t have an attractive pedestal bowl, there is a wide assortment here.

Even for my recent Valentine dinner party where I tend to go all out with fresh flowers, in the areas that need beefing up, you can spot a faux peony or two. To see more about this Valentine dinner party, click here.

Mostly fresh Valentine dinner party flowers

Recently I did spend a bit much on box of 26″ long faux lilacs from The Enchanted Home. I LOVE real lilacs but they do not grow here.

The quality of these branches is very good and I actually did spray the faux flowers with a French Lilac micro-batch perfume by Pacifica.

My friend, Karen says this is the closest fragrance to the real lilac scent so I bought some here. Since these lilacs are a close replica, it is fun to watch our guests walk over and sniff them.

Real lilacs

My first choice is to create beautiful arrangements with real flowers, if for nothing else, the scent. But if you are like me, my home looks better with multiple flower arrangements. Like the pedestal bowl ideas above, faux flowers can be the framework and each week you can add a variety of fresh ones.

Have you tried combining and artificial flowers? If so, share your experience.

Flowers always make people better, happier and more helpful; they are sunshine, food and medicine to the soul.” – Luther Burbank

Happy arranging!

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This post shared with Between Naps on the Porch Tablescape Thursday #622




Patriotic Table Ideas

Memorial Day weekend is less than two weeks away. Not only do I love the patriotic colors of red, white and blue but this is one American holiday we should all respect. Memorial Day is observed on the last Monday of May, honoring the brave men and women who died while serving in the U.S. military.  This year Memorial Day is Monday, May 31st.

Here are some ideas on how you can recognize this holiday at your table, while enjoying the freedoms we share.

Layering

Indian Block tablecloth from Days with Darviny

This blue and white Indian block print tablecloth is perfect for the base of your table setting. I just love this shade of blue and the detailed pattern at the edges. Purchased through Days with Daviny – Instagram @dayswithdarviny.

If you are not familiar with Hester & Cook, they have so many lovely tabletop, party, stationery, and gift wrap items. See their website here. The paper die cut red Swiss dot paper placemat is a wonderful choice for not only a patriotic tablescape, but also for Christmas, Valentines Day and summer in general.

What is nice about a paper placemat is that is also protects the table cloth from getting stained. I am branching out and trying to do more pattern combinations with my place settings. It’s not without a bit of trepidation, but is fun when it all comes together.

Vintage linen napkins

The blue ceramic chargers are a long-ago purchase from Pier 1 but Amazon has an amazing and affordable collection here. The sweet flowered plates are a gift from my friend, Sandy. Made in Cauldon, England by Brown Westhead Moore & Co. between 1904-1920, I love the hand painted rose floral pattern.

Table for 4

A simple centerpiece of apples in an 1815 Meissen Blue Onion pattern serving bowl (for sale in my store) completes the patriotic look. Wine glasses are Waterford and the silver-plate flatware is from Oneida, Ballard Country Lane.

Additional Ideas

Hester & Cook table runner

More ideas for your Memorial Day table. Here is another Hester & Cook item~a 20″ x 25′ red and white striped paper table runner. Instantly you have a big pop of color and by adding vintage blue plates from Etsy, you have a patriotic table. To see more details on this table setting, click here.

Walmart finds for Memorial Day

Often we are at our cabin in the mountains for Memorial Day. At that location I do not have access to as many dishes or linens. But, after quick trip to Walmart, you can make a lovely patriotic table utilizing what you find. To read more about this disposable table setting, click here.

Flowers from Safeway

Happy Wednesday! I hope you now have some inspiration to create a patriotic table for Memorial Day (or Flag Day, July 4th and Labor Day). In spite of all of the division and problems our country faces, it is still the best place to live.




Easter Tablescape Ideas

Today, I am happy to share Easter tablescape ideas with many talented friends. Welcome to the Easter Table blog hop. At the bottom of my post you will find links to other holiday table ideas.

Since Easter is early this year, we will more than likely have our Easter dinner inside at the smaller round table located in our family room . We have always celebrated with family only and unfortunately not all our children are in town and can participate.

Tulipieres from The Enchanted Home

The Centerpiece

The set of tulipieres I purchased from The Enchanted Home a few years ago, is the star of the show. To see more about these tulipieres and how to fill them, click here. Since daffodils are now available and affordable vs. tulips, I find this to be the most attractive and economical solution.

Rose pattern damask

The Tablecloth and Dishes

With a neutral damask white tablecloth, this year I am experimenting with blue and white with the yellow daffodils. These blue and white dishes I have never used. This set remains out in our pool house for guests.

Each blue and white plate is a different pattern but in the same tones. I believe I may have purchased them from Horchow years ago. However, Amazon surprisingly has a great selection of new and vintage blue and white dishes. See here.

Stacked on top of a white beaded stoneware plate from Pottery Barn, provides a nice contrast to the gold charger.

I really struggle choosing the charger. The brushed gold ones did win in the end over the wooden scallop and silver ones. It’s time I invest in something neutral like white or wicker, which would look even better. To find super affordable brushed gold chargers, click here.

The Glassware

A simple Lenox water and wine glass with a gold rim complements the setting. Hard to believe these glasses are over 44 years old!

Pots de creme with a gold handle by JSC are small vessels for more fresh daffodils. I collect pots de creme and use them for many purposes.

Handmade nests and handprinted eggs as a place card

Easter Touches

The clay bunnies are a whimsical addition to remind everyone of the spring and Easter theme. Homemade nests from shredded paper and glue (see post here), hold a real egg shell painted with the guest’s initial~as a place card.

My favorite Wallace go-to flatware with a bee motif works well with this blue/white/yellow theme. Blue embroidered napkins are an antique store find.

Here are some fun overhead shots of the table.

I am so happy to share my Easter table theme and now onto the others!

If you enjoy this post, please share on Pinterest.

My sweet friend, Chloe from Celebrate and Decorate is hosting this Easter Tablescape Blog Hop. All you need to do is click on the names below and you will (hopefully) be taken to their website to see what they have in store for Easter. You will be able to open a new tab with each so you can return back to this page and just keep going. A fun way to see LOTS of other bloggers without having to search. Enjoy!

Celebrate and Decorate

Design Morsels

Home is Where the Boat Is

Living with Thanksgiving

Panoply

The Little Yellow Corner Store

My Hubbard Home

Everyday Living

Corner of Plaid and Paisley

The Sweet Sensations

Belle Blue Interiors

Red Cottage Chronicles

Zucchini Sisters

Life and Linda

Mantel and Table

Calypso in the Country

The Painted Apron

Blue Sky at Home

Me and My Captain

My Thrift Store Addiction

This post shared with Between Naps on the Porch Tablescape Thursday #652