Blue Bird

Sometimes a dish can whisper and sometimes it will ask for a colorful party table.  That's the case here.

See this little guy?  I found him at Homegoods and I did not intend to pull the green out of the dish, but it was kinda bossy!

So here we are!  You almost need sunglasses.

I started with a turquoise tablecloth from the Palm line of linens.  If you see them for sale, jump on them, as they are great quality and launder beautifully.  

I'm disappointed at how this charger photographed.  It looks so yellow, but it was really a bright grass green.  I think I got it at World Market.  The dinner plate was so large that the charger barely showed, but the turquoise tablecloth and the turquoise plate needed a break from each other.

The glassware was a mix of green glass stems from Swoosie's and Waterford white wines.

I know you are asking yourself two questions:

1.  Why didn't she iron this cloth?

2.  Why didn't she straighten this spoon?

The white wicker napkin ring freshened up these layered napkins.  I rarely do this, because guests seems so stumped as to what to do with two napkins, but today, I thought they could handle it!

I added a white porcelain bird at each place, and later sat a hand lettered placecard beside him. 

More white birds in the salt and peppers......

and atop the butter dish.......

and around the two vases that held screaming green mums.

In the center of the table, I sat a chicken wire cloche with ferns, eggs, and a little green bird.

Can you see him in there?

I had one more bird dish that I used for rolls.  I didn't even use a napkin in it, as I didn't want to hide the bird.

I wasn't sure I could handle all of this color, but it was perfect for this group and everyone's need for spring.

Besides, I've been using a lot of neutrals and I was getting in a rut.

Here's the tea tray.  Do you see that the lid for the sugar bowl is missing?  Do you have one I can buy?  Really?  Please leave me a comment if you could part with this sugar bowl.  It came from Homegoods a couple of years ago.

Every time I get this out to use, I am afraid that bird will break off.  Probably because I've had a run of klutzyness.

I used this for lemon and mint.

And look who else joined the party......

these little lovebirds in just the right color.

And on the other side of the room, the sideboard held my annual spring display.  You can see how I put it togorether here.  I have a string of spring entertaining planned, so the fact that this is all faux material will make it last.  Come around often and join us!

I guess I did this post just in time to join Cuisine Kathleen's April Let's Dish linky party on April 9.  She is inviting bloggers to join with posts that feature birds, nests, or eggs.  Should be inspiring!

Also joining:

The Scoop

at 

StoneGable

Feathered Nest Friday

at

French Country Cottage

Tablescape Thursday

at

Between Naps on the Porch

Seasonal Sunday

at

The Tablescaper

Chickens Again

My Mom is still visiting and since she loves chickens and loves blue, I decided to do this very casual table when we had one of Mr. Pressed Pant's golf buddies here for dinner.  It was not girly foo-foo fussy but Mom and I had fun putting it together.  I started with these napkins from Old Time Pottery, bought with her in mind.  Here's a link to the chicken table I did last year when she visited.

I just took those colors of cream, navy and red and started setting the table.

These place mats were from Old Time Pottery, too, and the red flatware was from some other discount store.  I can't even remember which one.

Then I added this squarish blue dinner plate, also from Old Time Pottery, and the red scalloped salad plate from Ballard Design.

The red water goblets are vintage, and these wine stems are Juliska.  They were a gift from a reeeeeealy good friend!

The napkin was gathered into a point at the center.......

and held with a chicken wire napkin ring from Pottery Barn.

Also from Pottery Barn, these chickens held simple placecards.

I chose two of these red pots with scalloped edges and..........

filled them Kroger daisies and nandina berries from our yard.  These simple flowers seemed like farm-yard blooms.

Boy!  I should call this post "Ode to Old Time Pottery", as this rooster is from there, too.  I used him for a post about a breakfast table I did a few months ago.  You can see it here.

Here's how the center of the table looked with the rooster and two pots of daisies on a cream twill runner.

I have some chicken salt and pepper shakers, but I couldn't find them.  I don't have Alycia Nichols' (Table Twenty-Two) inventory system!!!!  So, I used these, as I thought they had a farmhouse look.

And this held peach pie, as our guest, Corey, was leaving Atlanta after about five month's of business here, and returning to California.  I wish I had thought about serving him grits, too!

I'll be posting at:

 Tablescape Thursday

http://betweennapsontheporch.blogspot.com/

Tabletop Tuesday

http://astrollthrulife.blogspot.com/

Wow Us Wednesday

http://savvysouthernstyle.blogspot.com/

Fading Hydrangeas

Our hydrangeas are fading from the brilliant blue they were this summer to this smoky blue and lavender.  They were the inspiration for the table I set for dinner last night.  I put them in a galvanized container that I have sprayed with bleach to make it look more like old zinc.

I featured the lavender with cream and grey on a round tablecloth of cream burlap. 

Only a few minutes after I set the table, but before I photographed it, Mr. Pressed Pants called to ask me to join him at his business dinner.  I never turn down an offer like that, so I put on some lipstick and flew out the door, leaving the table as it sat.  I was not two miles from home, when the heavens opened and when I got home, I had a soaked table with an inch of rain in the glasses.

I pulled things inside to dry off and reset the table this morning as soon as it was light outside.  Doesn't the early light make things look interesting?

Here's the simple placesetting.

I did a quick stack of charger, dinner plate and salad plate.

I made these for several people for Christmas this year.  They are just inexpensive plastic chargers primed with spray paint, sprayed with grey paint, then rubbed with chalk and "erased".  Directions were several places in blogland.  Don't they look like lead?  This one is still a bit wet!

The white scalloped dinner plates are from Z Gallerie.

These beautiful old salad plates are Bavarian.

The flatware is from Neiman Marcus many years ago.

The crisp, lavender dinner napkin is from a restaurant overstock website.

Pottery Barn sold these chicken wire napkin rings this spring.  I couldn't resist!!!

This soft lavender glassware is so pretty.  I wish I knew how to photograph glassware well.  The stem has beautiful details on it like Juliska, but it was very inexpensive and I think I found them at T. J. Maxx years ago.

Then I chose these French seed pots to go with them as wine cups.

My mother gave me these individual pewter salt and pepper shaker many, many years ago for Christmas.

And I've had this pewter cruet set for many years.  It was a wedding gift.

This cute guy is a rather recent purchase.  I couldn't decide on using him, or the individual pewter salt and peppers.  I ended up photographing the table with both sitting on it!  Oh, well.  Dinner could have been well seasoned!

The wine coaster is actually a candle holder, but I love the look of it as a wine holder.

As you can see, we might not have had dinner at home last night, but we did manage to drink the wine.

Not an intricate tablescape, but restful.

The pots behind the table are filling in nicely.  Well, at least two of the three are!

So guess what?  This became a rather fancy breakfast table for Cheerios and fruit!  No, we didn't finish the wine with breakfast, but it was a nice way to start the day.

We should do this more often.

I'll be posting this with Between Naps On the Porch for Tablescape Thursday.

http://betweennapsontheporch.blogspot.com/