Asian Aubergine

Ooooommmmmm.

I've been sitting on this beautiful piece of fabric for a couple of weeks.  I wasn't sure how I was going to use it, but I thought it was stunning.

And the best part was the price. My friend, Amy Barfield,(who is so talented and fabulous that you could almost hate her), told me about a small fabric outlet that has designer fabrics.  Designer fabrics?????????  Can you say Scalamandre?  Holy smokes!  Hold onto you hats.....it was less than five dollars per yard.  I scooped it up and ran for the hills. (I was afraid they would change their mind.)

Then, the other day, I was at T.J. Maxx and I found this perfect piece to go with it.  I had planned to use my white orchids and some river rocks, but I wasn't too excited about that, and I was still thinking about it, so when I found this, I knew I could make it into a centerpiece.

So I did!

Kroger had these lovely white dahlias with just a touch of lavender on the edges, and I filled in a bit with white alstroemeria that had lavender stripes and spots on them.  The other material was a neighborhood "donation".  I cut the bamboo from my next door neighbor's without even asking him.  It's bamboo, people!  It grows and spreads faster than kudzu!  Anyhow, he loves me and would give me anything!  And our nearby nursery has a large area of reeds which they said they were happy to share with me.  I offered to buy some, but they told me to just go snip!  Thanks, Autumn Hill!

Simple and serene.

I first tried to use a purple toile plate that I recently found at Target.  I did a post about it here.  But it was WAY too busy, so I tried these taupe scalloped plates from ZGallerie.  They almost matched the browny-lavender color in the fabric.

Here's how they looked.

I needed a light colored flatware, so this cream cutlery worked fine.

These light lavender napkins worked, too, and I tucked some reeds and bamboo into the corner of the fold.

Glassware needed to be simple, too.  I used a light purple stem and a stemless Riedel wine.

Can you tell it has a light purple hue?

Here's a placesetting.

I brightened the table up a bit when I added these carved soapstone votives with a definite Chinoiserie vibe. These were on clearance at Yankee Candle last week.  I was lucky to find them, because I rarely go into the store.  I just can't stand the smell.  I know it's  lovely to some, but my senses are always screaming, "Let's get out of here!".  Fortunately, they had them displayed just inside the door, and I saw them from the mall.  They were meant to be used with oil, but I took that part out, and used a small candle.

Here's the result!

Fabulous as the fabric is, this little lady makes the table.

Even the back is pretty nice.

You probably think I'm cooking Japanese food or serving sushi tonight!  Nope!  

Is it wrong that we're having hamburgers, potato salad, and baked beans?

Is our feng shui good?

Here's a photo that shows the details better.

Wishing you serenity, peace, balanced energy and good fortune.

Joining:

Tabletop Tuesday

A Stroll Through Life

Wow Us Wednesday

Savvy Southern Style

Open House Thursday

No Minimalist Here

Tablescape Thursday

Between Naps On the Porch

Inspiration Friday

At The Picket Fence

Feathered Nest Friday

French Country Cottage

Fridays Unfold

Stuff and Nonsense

Seasonal Sundays

The Tablescaper

Let's Dish

Cuisine Kathleen

Seaglass Inspired Tablescape

Happy Summer Solstice!!!!!

I'm entering an old post today to Cuisine Kathleen's Let's Dish party.  Since the theme is "Beach", I thought this one would fit the bill.  It is one of my very earliest posts and still one of my favorites. Thanks, Kathleen.  I can't wait to see how everyone is ushering in summer! 

Seaglass Inspired Tablescape

It seems that everyone is outside again enjoying the summer weather. We were able to have the nicest evening outside tonight. This table design is a tribute to the ocean front beaches that I love.  They truely feed my soul.  A morning walk there is even more enjoyable when you find those precious pieces of seaglass.  They have inspired an entire genre of decorating, especially in the costal areas.

I've arranged dinner for two outside on what we call the white deck.  It is semi-circular and has the best view. All of the colors on this table are of the sea and sand.  No patterns, just greens, blues, and creams.

I used a light cream colored burlap tableskirt from Ballard's  that goes to the ground, and covered it with a woven runner in a light straw color.

The centerpiece is a glass bottle that has a faint turquoise tint.  I got it at Star Provisions in Atlanta.  Ferns, ornamental grasses, and hosta leaves fill it for a natural, non-floral look.

I started with a dinner plate that is an opalescent green and is irregular in shape.  It came from Homegoods last year and I only found two of them.  I would love to have more. I love how the shadow from the greenery shows up on the tabletop in this picture.

Then I topped it with my trusty cream salad plates from Target.

Next  is a shell shaped plastic bowl, which I think was from Target, too, last year.  I served a white gazpacho in it topped with sliced green grapes and almonds.  So pretty!

I photographed the glasses on the railing so you could see the colors. The frosted stem is aqua and the base is blue.  I don't remember where they came from, but I've had them a long time.

The cream hemstitched napkins are from Macy's and the green napkin rings (which don't show very well in this photo) are irregular shaped and made out of a resin material.  I got them from Boxwoods Gifts.  There is a natural scallop shell for a bread and butter plate, and the flatware is from  B. D. Jefferies.

On the straw runner, I set frosted tea lights with shells and seaglass scattered about.

I chose some old jadite salt and pepper shakers.  They were the perfect color for this table even though they are a little large for a dinner for two.

For desert, I used a glass plate that has a very faint aqua tint to it.  I got it this summer at Homegoods.

And the best part of the evening......

is this view over the deck.  We feel so fortunate to have this peaceful place.

I hope you have a joyful and safe last weekend of summer!

Father's Day

I'm reposting the table I set last year for Father's Day.  We're eating out at Mr. Pressed Pant's favorite restaurant tonight, so there's no table to photograph.  My love and respect for this man will never change!

There are not enough words to tell you what a great father my husband is.  We have raised two beautiful daughters and they would be the first to tell you how great a dad he is.  I wish they could have been here today, but it was just the two of us for a lovely dinner at home.  

I set the table on the lower terrace since it was such a beautiful night.  We have had two bad storms this week, so things are a bit messy outside, but it still felt nice.

For a masculine look, I chose our Portmerion fish plates.  It is the "Complete Angeler" pattern.  Our dinner was grilled sea bass, so this was sort of ironic.  These usually hang on the French plate rack in our bar room. 

There are six different fish designs on these dinner plates and different ones on each salad plate.  I used them with wicker chargers on a dark brown tablecloth.

Aren't they pretty?

I love the ferns painted on the edges.

The bright apple green linen napkin shows up nicely on the brown cloth.  I tucked a bobber into the wicker napkin ring just for whimsy. 

These apple green wine glasses are some of my favorites.  The water glasses are Bobby Flay's from Kohl's.

In place of a bread and butter plate, I used a wooden bowl for the rolls.

Faux bois salt and pepper shakers.

Since there were ferns on the dishes, I used them in the flower arrangement.  These are just two sleeves of spider mums from the grocery store and the rest of the material came from the yard.

You can't see it very well on the table, but I used this beautiful antique wooden bowl as a container....with a plastic liner, of course.

Here it is peeking out a bit.

This is the only serving piece I bought to go with this pattern.  It's a small covered casserole.  Aren't the colors great?

One woven coaster was used for the wine, and one for the water bottle.  Here's to you Mr. Pressed Pants.  I salute the father that you are and the way you love all of your girls!