Fall Brown and Amber Tablescape

You might think that I only use green and brown on my tables, but those are the colors that I am so drawn to these days and they are so appropriate for fall.  It is hard to believe that for most of my life I never liked either color.  I was a blue and yellow girl.  We have lived in eleven different houses and I really believe that every house tells you what it wants.  Well, this house wanted a natural, mountain look, rather than the English feel that our last home had.  Here's a small dinner party that we had  on Saturday night.  I was really ready to do some cooking, and this table just seemed right to go with a pork roast!

Here's the warm, rather rustic look that I was going for.  These colors are also good for my dining room.  No fighting with the drapes!!

Here's the table midway.  I was going to make a pumpkin soup to go in these bowls, but I changed my menu to a roasted pear salad as a first course, so these bowls went back on the shelf, and I used the shallow salad bowls shown in the first picture.

This centerpiece came together so quickly.  A dear friend was in town last week, and we ran across this cachepot at Boxwoods.  Love the color, love the texture, and love the size.  I knew I was using this somehow.

Here's a close-up of the flower selections.  Mums, of course, a really unusual color of small Gerber daisies, and these cool unfurled fern fronds.  Then I added rosehips that look sort of like baby pumpkins.  I love either a minimal flower arrangement, or a really lush one.  This one sure leans toward  lush!

This celluloid handled fish fork is one I often use for a salad fork.  I used the luncheon knives that match this for the dinner knives and my every day French hammered flatware for the dinner fork and spoon.  I don't know why the tablecloth photographed so washed out in this picture, but it is a limey-green linen cloth from the Palm Restaurant (yum!) line of housewares that Homegoods carries.

The bread plates are amber glass from Pier One years ago.  The knives I used as butter knives are old ones with antler handles.  I think they are really fruit knives.  I often use flatware in ways that  it was not intended.  The Victorians would probably faint, but I urge you to be fearless about that.

Tenille and Company carried these bittersweet placecard holders a few years ago.  Perfect for fall!

I use placecards for almost every dinner party, even for four people.  I think it makes people feel welcome to see their name on the table.

Man, the proportions are all wiggy in this picture.  It makes the water glass look so tiny.  It's glass tourtiseshell that I've had forever.  The amber wine glasses have been around a while, too.  I think they came from pottery barn.

These cute little guys jumped into my cart at Michaels last week.  I think they were only a couple of dollars.  If I can find more, I think I'll get them and maybe use them for individual s/p shakers.  You know how I feel about acorns!

See?  Here's some more!

You've seen these dark brown hem-stitched linen napkins a lot, too.  The napkin ring is an antique celluloid that I have collected for years.  I mix them with a few ivory and bone ones that I have.

Same great candlesticks that I've shown you before.  They are always being used somewhere in the house.

This dinner and salad plate are the Kashmir Leopard pattern by Gibson.  I got them at Old Time Pottery.  They are on wicker chargers which can be found many places.  The bowl came from Tuesday Morning this fall.

I really like these pieces used with this shallow salad bowl which is also from Tuesday Morning.  These colors seem meant to be together.

These are the bone and antler serving utensils I used. 

This covered tureen goes so well with these pieces.  Tuesday Morning again!

Here's the coffee tray that I served in the living room.

This coffee pot and cream and sugar set finish off the collection pretty nicely.

Here's the bird's eye view.

Menu:

Parmesean/Procuitto Palmiers

Roasted Pear Salad with Saga Blue Cheese

Roast Pork Roast

Apples and Onions in Roasted in Cider

Mashed Potatoes

Store bought dinner rolls brushed with Herb Butter

Apple Tartin