Gold and White Thanksgiving

I am posting two Thanksgiving dinner tablescapes today.  One is white and gold and the other is bold fall colors.  Here's the serene, light colored one.

This whole table is refined and a bit sophicated.  It is somewhat more formal than I usually create.

I'm only planning on a small number of guests, even though it is Thanksgiving.  Our family is many states away, so we keep it simple and small.

This beautiful gold on white Indian design was the inspiration for this tablescape.  I found it at Homegoods and it is made by Belle Luxe.  I haven't used much gold in quite a while.  A few years ago, I was gilding everything in sight, but recently, I've been much more casual and rustic.

The first layer is a gold charger.  I've had them for a number of years.  I remember when I bought them, they were thirty dollars apiece, and now you can find them for two.  It is a bit nicer than the inexpensive ones, but they probably give about the same look. Next is the cream and gold china plates from Lenox.  This is a great pattern for a basic china, and I recommend that everyone start with this with either gold or silver banding.  Then I added this great new salad plate from Homegoods.  I thought I was so lucky to find plates that go so well with the tablecloth, but when I checked, Belle Lux made them both.  Duh!

I debated about what flatware to use, and decided on this faux ivory handled pattern.  I wanted everything to be understated and calm. 

Here's another thing I've been dying to use!  These wonderful napkin rings are a gift from a beautiful young bride when I gave her a wedding shower.  Not only are they beautiful, but they will always be a special memory.

Even the box they came in is special.

The glassware is all gold, but slightly different.

The red wine tumbler is etched with dots.  It's from Homegoods.

This large stem with grapes etched has a bit of opalescence to it.  I used them for water.

Placecards keep the look simple.  I used gold pigment ink and stamped and embossed the design.

The dessert plates are old "wedding band" china.

Doesn't this work well with all the old gold look?

The centerpiece is just frosted metallic fruit....

in a cream pottery urn.  These are from our daughter's wedding and I use them a lot.

And yes, of course, there are acorns in here.

Here's where I used flowers.  I put white roses, wax flowers, and daisies in a candlecup of oasis.  As I look at the photo, I realize that the candle could be heftier.  I should of used the fatter taper.  The proportions would be better.

A little bling tied the arrangement into the rest of the table.

These turkeys were cheap and looked it when I bought them.  They were multicolored when I bought them from Michael's.  I painted them with gold metallic paint and dry brushed over them with copper paint.

The aerial view shows how the table looks lush and interesting, but not quite crowded.

This whole table could be used for any other celebration.  If you took away the turkeys and changed the placecards, you could add a bit of red berries, some evergreens to the flowers,  and call it Christmas!

I'm linking up with Susan's Tablescape Thursday at Between Naps on the Porch.  Be sure to hop over and see some fabulous settings. 



Fall Pheasant Dinner Party

We had the most lovely people for dinner Saturday night.  In keeping with the fall season, I used a reproduction  Black Forest carved pheasant as part of the centerpiece, and a theme for the table.  It is made from a resin composite, but it has a rustic, unrefined quality that keeps this tablescape from being too stuffy. 

I started with a cream and taupe damask tablecloth that I got from Pottery Barn last year.  Note the oak leaves and acorns!!!!  Love it!!!  These colors keep the tablescape cooler than most fall collections.

Since I only had six taupe straw ruffled placemats, I used cream linen under the placesettings at the ends of the table.  The cream plates from Crate and Barrel are embossed with oak leaves and acorns.  They don't carry them anymore, unfortunately, because I would love to replace the one I broke.  I topped them with these dark brown pottery salad plates from Target.

Tennille and Company carries these etched glasses that I used for water.  Acorns, again!  Then I used plain stemmed glasses from Tiffany's for wine.

I've also used these dark brown linen napkins quite a few times, but this time I put these carved bone napkin rings at some placesettings and celluloid rings with others.

I love the detail on these painted metal placecard holders.  The bittersweet makes them wonderful on a fall table.  This is one guest who couldn't make it, but I really, really wish she could have.  Maybe soon!

Here's the centerpiece.  I sat it in the center of an oasis ring. 

Most of these flowers are real, but I added some artificial items like the bittersweet, acorns, velvet leaves, wheat, and velvet seed pods.

I tried to restrain the color palate to keep the tones pale and subdued, but I wasn't able to find the exact flowers I was looking for. 

This is a close up of this same "scape" I did last year, and I was more successful in limiting my colors and tones in this arrangement.  I like it much better.

These old wooden candlesticks are filled with faux bois candles.  They are actually dark brown, but look a little striped in this afternoon sunlight.

                                     

 These woven straw wine coasters are hard workers, too.

Here's the whole table.  We actually had too many guests to fit at one table, so we used the one in the breakfast room for four more.  We teased that group that they were at the "kid's table".  I'll post about that table soon.  It was another green and brown arrangement.  I promise I'm about done with those colors.  I'm afraid you don't think I can do anything other than green and brown.  I'm about ready to move on!  

I almost never use paper products, but these cocktail napkins were just too perfect to pass up. 

Here's the coffee tray.  Since we were split up for dinner, the whole group got back together in the living room for coffee.

This teapot was a hostess gift a year or so ago.  Sometimes people really hit the nail on the head.  I absolutely love it!

 

With the leftover flowers, I made a small arrangement for in one of the guest bathrooms.  Doesn't that wallpaper look like the dining room tablecloth?  It's my very favorite wallpaper pattern.  It's a classic Osborne and Little design and I've had it in three houses and in two colorways.

This black tole display piece holds more gourds and mini pumpkins in the living room.

This little arrangement went into the other guest bath. 

Menu:

Goat Cheese Stuffed Dates

Topped with Walnuts

Roasted Pear Salad with Saga Blue Cheese

Pork Tenderloin Stuffed with Fall Fruits

Rosemary Oven Roasted Heirloom Potatoes

Carrot Souffle

Pumpkin Bread Pudding with

Caramel Sauce

I'm linking up with Susan at Between Naps on the Porch for her Tablescape Thursday blog party, and the Style Sisters' Centerpiece Wednesday party.  Be sure to visit them and you'll be amazed at the creativity you'll see.

Halloween Dinner Party 2010

I've been know to celebrate nothing more than the sun coming up in the morning, but the truth is, the one dinner party I feel I really must give each year is for Halloween.



Many of the dishes and accessories I use are really non-holiday specific, but when put together, they work for this holiday.  I really don't care for the over-the-top look where every single thing is screaming "Halloween". 

Starting with a black tablecloth, I next use an orange straw placemat for contrast.  Then I use a French wire charger.

Doesn't it look like a spider web?

These napkins are vintage.

Plastic fangs can be found at any party store.  I like to use them for napkin rings.  Yes, our guests have been known to be smiling at each other with them in their mouths!

My very favorite flatware is this antique silverplate collection of mis-matched pieces.  I just stay with the same shape and buy whatever pieces I run across.  Our sterling stays in the bank lockbox and I use this almost every time I would use sterling.  I think it is so much more interesting.

See?  Same shape spoon handle.  This one even has our initial on it.  Then I chose knives with mother-of-pearl handles.  I don't use these if I'm serving beef, or anything hard to cut since these do not have a very sharp blade.

I always try to find persimmons for this dinner party's centerpiece and I was surprised to find them at Krogers this year.  These were actually much fresher than the ones at the floral wholesaler.

They look so much like baby pumpkins.

Then I found orange roses and put them in two chippendale-style cachepots.

They really show up against the black tablecloth.

These water glasses are etched and trimmed with black.  They are from Homegoods, and the wine glasses are Waterford, the Lismore pattern.

I just love these zinc tombstone-shaped placecards.  I found them at a darling store called Stash Style in Chagrin Falls, Ohio.  I just write on them with chalk.  I couldn't find any white chalk last night, so I used yellow.

I've had these salt and pepper shakers for years.  When our girls were little, they would even try to eat pepper on their food just to use the black cat.

How about this wine bottle? Christian Audigier designed this for Montpeyroux Estates. It's a 2006 Syrah from France.  We don't usually get so excited about "the perfect wine" but this sure is the perfect bottle!!!!

There were seven of us for dinner, as the husband of one guest is in Kenya on a mission for the House of Hope.  It's an orphanage that the United Methodist Church is supporting and I respect him so much for his work there.

A friend of mine who knows how we love to entertain for Halloween gave me this great apron.  It is made by her friend, Laurelei. I bought another one of her designs for my daughter for Christmas.

Look at how perfect this is.  Sparkly orange print fabric and these fabulous trims.  I love it!

These glasses were waiting for our guests out in the bar.  This tea towel was a gift from another friend.

These are more vintage napkins.  They are the perfect cocktail size.

Pardon my shadow in this one.

This is the way I served water.  The labels are from Martha Stewart's line from Michael's.

Here's the way the coffee tray looked.  The cream and sugar set is from T.J.Maxx, I think, from many years ago.

The coffee cups are by Waechterbach and come in four different designs.

The living room had a small facelift for the evening.  It was too warm for a fire, but this candelabra gave the same ambiance a fire would have.  I always have one candle that has a mind of it's own, don't I?

I glittered these bones last year. Sorry, Barb.  (She hates glitter!)

These are just grocery store mums in my new French pot. 

Here's a close-up of the candelabra.  I think it came from Michael's a few years ago.  I have another identical one that I didn't put out this year.

In the guest bathroom, I gave this sconce a little Halloween decor too.

The corner shelf unit got a lift from a small pot of mums,........

and this vulture eying a pumpkin.

And another thing I have tons of are guest hand towels.  Just one small thing that makes them feel welcome, I hope.

Menu:

Spiced Pecans

Savory Pumpkin Puffs

(Martha Stewart on-line)

Surprise Salad

(see my post from Oct. 28)

Cajun Beach Shrimp

(The Summer Book by Susan Branch)

Roasted Corn, Mushroom and

Spinach Risotto

Pita Bread "Bones"

Pumpkin Sponge Cake Roll

with Molasses Filling

I'm linking up with Between Naps on the Porch for her Tablescape Thursday blog party.  Please hop over here and see all the fabulous posts of some very creative bloggers.

Click here:
http://betweennapsontheporch.blogspot.com/2010/11/tips-for-setting-beautiful-table.html