Everyday Living

Tablescape Tuesday: English Country

~ Food & Entertaining, Tablescape Tuesday

“Blessed is the man who remains steadfast under trial, for when he has stood the test he will receive the crown of life, which God has promised to those who love him”
James‬ ‭1‬:‭12‬ 

Welcome back to our dining table where we love having family, friends, and you…our readers! English country has long been a style that I have embraced and often replicated through my years as a decorator.  The look emphasizes coziness and function while exuding warmth and comfort!  Furniture is usually traditional and rooms are full of color, pulling hues from nature. The color palette usually features three or four colors with plenty of patterns, especially floral!  I admire that the English are more interested in a room showing its age, rather than the latest fad!  Nancy Lancaster, the doyenne of English country, said it this way:
“If every piece is perfect the room becomes a museum and lifeless.”
I would definitely describe today’s tablescape as English country…with its floral tablecloth, abundance of color, and warmth!1 The vintage style floral tablecloth was the inspiration for setting this vibrant table! As you all know…I love mixing patterns…paisley salad plate juxtaposed with a floral cloth!   I gathered Queen Anne’s Lace from our pasture before it was cut for hay – and snipped lilies to add cheerful color to the trio of vintage mason jars!!  How simple and easy is this little floral arrangement!  The water hyacinth placemats are a new purchase.  I couldn’t resist a bargain!  The placemats add texture…napkins bring out the yellow in the floral cloth! The stemware, mason jars, and votives are the same color and are perfect for the vintage-look tablescape!  The pair of English porcelain figures complement the cream dinner plates!
 A cheerful setting on a very cloudy day!   “There is nothing like staying at home for real comfort.”
Jane Austen This tablescape could move outdoors to my garden!  “It’s the sense of what family is at the dinner table.  It was the joy of knowing mother was in the kitchen making our favorite dish.  I wish more people would do this and recall the joy of life.” 
Paul Prudhomme  Some of life’s greatest pleasures are shared around the table!

   “A word fitly spoken is like apples of gold in a setting of silver”
Proverbs‬ ‭25‬:‭11‬  

 The Details:
Indian cotton tablecloth/napkins – April Cornell from TJ Maxx (last year)
Water hyacinth place mats – Tuesday Morning (recent)
Dinner plates – American Atelier “Baroque”. Horchow.com
Salad plates – Tracy Porter “The Artesian Road” Horchow.com
Stemware – Tuesday Morning (a few years ago)
Flatware – Reed and Barton stainless

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Linking with Pieced Pastimes, Silver Pennies, Life on Lakeshore Drive, Thoughts From Alice, Mod Vintage Life, Coastal Charm, My Uncommon Slice of Suburbia, The Dedicated House, Dwellings-Heart of Your Home, Savvy Southern Style, Ivy and Elephants, French Country Cottage, From My Front Porch To Yours, Stone Gable, Confessions of a Plate Addict, Worthing Court, Between Naps on the Porch, Cedar Hill Farmhouse, A Stroll Thru Life, The Style Sisters, The Charm of Home, The Winthrop Chronicles, Cornerstone Confessions, A Delightsome Life, Imparting Grace, Posed Perfection, Katherines Corner, My Romantic Home, Chic On A Shoestring Decorating, Rooted In Thyme, Share Your Cup, The Enchanting Rose, Alabama Women Bloggers, 21 Rosemary Lane, Northern Nesting, Oh My Heartsie Girl,  Cozy Little House, Rattlebridge Farm, The Turquoise Home

Tablescape Tuesday: Seashells & Lanterns 

~ Food & Entertaining, Tablescape Tuesday

 “God called the dry land Earth, and the waters that were gathered together he called Seas. And God saw that it was good”
Genesis‬ ‭1‬:‭10‬

Since our visit to the beach a couple of weeks ago, I have had the colors of the sea and its landscape on my mind.  It seems that we are in a daily rain pattern and these bright colors add a little sunshine to the otherwise gray weather!  Hope you enjoy!! The inspiration for the table was the older tablecloth with its white background and  coral pattern!  The white lanterns are a new purchase!  They will serve inside and outside for candles and it will be fun to find other uses for them!  I placed a candle in the center lantern and a collection of seashells in the other two!  I always like to layer a table…so there are coral colored placemats on top of the tablecloth!  The place settings contain many of my regulars, but by mixing in a different color scheme it appears new and fresh!  Two of the lanterns have a diamond pattern!  The center lantern is a rectangle pattern.  I can’t wait to use the lanterns in my new garden when it is finished.  So much rain is holding up progress!  Seashells provide interest with their colors, shapes, and texture!  The color of coral speaks summer season and the addition of cobalt adds a burst of unexpected color!  “The sea, once it casts its spell, holds one in its net of wonder forever.”
Jacques Cousteau “All streams run to the sea, but the sea is not full; to the place where the streams flow, there they flow again”
Ecclesiastes‬ ‭1‬:‭7‬ Butch surprised me many years ago with these beautiful glasses!  He has excellent taste!!  “We ourselves feel that  what we are doing is just a drop in the ocean.  But the ocean would be less because of that missing drop.”
Mother Teresa    “A word fitly spoken is like apples of gold in a setting of silver”
Proverbs‬ ‭25‬:‭11‬   The Details:
Tablecloth/napkins – TJ Maxx ( two years ago)
Lanterns – TJ Maxx (recent)
Placemats – World Market ( couple of years ago)
Faux woven wood chargers – Kirkland’s
Shell napkin rings – At Home (few years ago)
White dinner plates – Home Goods
Stemware – Noritake Sweet Swirl pattern in Midnight
Tortoise flatware – Horchow.com

pam closing

Linking with Pieced Pastimes, It’s Overflowing, Be Different Act Normal, Silver Pennies, Life on Lakeshore Drive, Thoughts From Alice, Pink When, Mod Vintage Life, Coastal Charm, My Uncommon Slice of Suburbia, The Dedicated House, Dwellings-Heart of Your Home, Savvy Southern Style, Ivy and Elephants, French Country Cottage, From My Front Porch To Yours, Stone Gable, Confessions of a Plate Addict, Worthing Court, Between Naps on the Porch, Cedar Hill Farmhouse, A Stroll Thru Life, The Style Sisters, The Charm of Home, The Winthrop Chronicles, Cornerstone Confessions, A Delightsome Life, Imparting Grace, Craftberry Bush, Posed Perfection, Katherines Corner, My Romantic Home, Chic On A Shoestring Decorating, Rooted In Thyme, Share Your Cup, The Enchanting Rose, Alabama Women Bloggers, 21 Rosemary Lane, Northern Nesting, Oh My Heartsie Girl,  Cozy Little House, Rattlebridge Farm, The Turquoise Home

Tablescape Tuesday: I Spy Summer!

~ Food & Entertaining, Tablescape Tuesday

“Therefore you are great, O Lord God. For there is none like you, and there is no God besides you, according to all that we have heard with our ears”
2 Samuel‬ ‭7‬:‭22‬

Although summer doesn’t start for a few weeks, Memorial Day seems to usher in the season!  After visiting Seaside last week and enjoying the colorful exteriors of the homes that line their little beach town (see here), I started thinking coral and turquoise for a tablescape!  Hope you see how simple this setting is!

 Last week while shopping in Fairhope, I purchased the burlap table runner, so I had to use it immediately!  Am I the only one who does that?  My oak leaf hydrangeas are in full bloom-they became the centerpiece!  I love mixing colors, patterns, and textures…cotton coral and turquoise napkins were used! The napkin rings are a new purchase, also.  Cream dinner plate with no charger-unusual for me! I like the ruffles on the burlap runner…softens the fabric!  Blooms are large on the oak leaf hydrangeas!  There are three hurricane containers of hydrangeas on the table along with four cream votives!  I used two stemware patterns and alternated them as I did the napkins!  This photo shows how basic the table setting is-but by simply alternating napkin colors, it gives the table some vavoom! I used a pair of cream tole florals between the hydrangeas!  The china and flatware are a staple for my tablescapes!  You can easily make it look fresh by adding different napkins and center pieces!  The “Mr. and Mrs.” burlap chair back covers were made for Seth and Allie’s wedding…thought they added fun to the table!  You can see more photos of their wedding here:  The Wedding Edition “A word fitly spoken is like apples of gold in a setting of silver”
Proverbs‬ ‭25‬:‭11‬  The Details:
Table runner/napkin rings-Green Gates Fairhope, AL
American Atelier dinner plate/clear stemware-Horchow.com
Turquoise stemware-Tuesday Morning
Cream votives/Tole florals-Wisteria.com
Coral napkins-TJ Maxx
Turquoise napkins-ordered online

pam closing

Linking with Pieced Pastimes, It’s Overflowing, Be Different Act Normal, Silver Pennies, Life on Lakeshore Drive, Thoughts From Alice, Pink When, Mod Vintage Life, Coastal Charm, My Uncommon Slice of Suburbia, The Dedicated House, Dwellings-Heart of Your Home, Savvy Southern Style, Ivy and Elephants, French Country Cottage, From My Front Porch To Yours, Stone Gable, Confessions of a Plate Addict, Worthing Court, Between Naps on the Porch, Cedar Hill Farmhouse, A Stroll Thru Life, The Style Sisters, The Charm of Home, The Winthrop Chronicles, Cornerstone Confessions, A Delightsome Life, Imparting Grace, Craftberry Bush, Posed Perfection, Katherines Corner, My Romantic Home, Chic On A Shoestring Decorating, Rooted In Thyme, Share Your Cup, The Enchanting Rose, Alabama Women Bloggers, 21 Rosemary Lane, Northern Nesting, Oh My Heartsie Girl,  Cozy Little House, Rattlebridge Farm, The Turquoise Home