Happy 4th of July tablescape

 I don't even know if we'll be home next week for 4th of July, but I wanted to play around with the red, white, and blue possibilities.

I've used everything on this table before. Just showing you another way to change things up.

I used a French Country style runner and candlesticks for some red, along with goblets my brother gave me last Christmas.

I used Mexican margarita and wine stems for some blue, along with an old glass pitcher for a bouquet of herbs. 

I used JB Denmark Blue plates for some white, along with white linen napkins in my blue and white Russian napkin rings.

As usual, my rattan chargers from Walmart and stainless Wallace Antique Bead made their appearance again.

Here's a tip...if you can't get out to buy flowers and you don't have any growing, but you do have fresh herbs, use them! They're beautiful and make your house smell lovely!

I like the finished look, a subtle look of patriotism

 without having to go buy a thing!

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Enjoy and Happy Independence Day!!

Russian Easter Eggs

 I showed you these cute little Russian egg papers and boxes last week. These are the papers. I boiled my eggs first, then put the paper around the egg and dipped it in the simmering water til the paper adhered to the egg. Beautiful decorated eggs for our Easter table. 

 This sweet little bunny egg holder was on sale at World Market. I bought the S&P last year. 

Right now it's 25% off, plus I had a member 10% off coupon.

 I'll post the rest of the table tomorrow. I'm using some of my mom's Limoges and Bavaria plates. I just love shopping in her china cabinets, especially when she says I don't need to bring it back!

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Easter possibilities

   This week, I'm throwing around some ideas for an Easter brunch. I will probably just be hosting my parents, brother and a couple family friends. The only 'new' thing on the table are the beautiful Russian egg paper boxes...details at the end of the post.

I used the blue and white quilted runner my mom made, with the matching napkins. The napkin rings were a gift from her also...on her last trip to Russia. 

I set the table with rattan chargers, Italian Countryside dinner plates, Denmark blue dinner plates, Saxony saucers by JB and an egg box. 

A friend asked about my dishes last week. Perhaps, it's a bit deceiving when I mix things up. I only have complete sets of Italian Countryside and my infamous Indies Blue. These Denmark Blue, for example, I have 4 plates. They were on clearance at TJMaxx and I thought they were pretty and I could mix them in with dishes I already have. The saucers, I have 4 of them also, no cups. I hope to get some tea cups, but I'm patient:) They were a great buy on eBay, so I'm holding out!

The glasses are my usual goblets and cobalt blue swirls. As opposed to last week's mix of blue glasses which I only have two of each.  I have 8 of each of these, but I've had them for almost 10 years.  The silverware is my grandmother's eclectic mix. 

I got out the Easter basket...this is at least 5 years old from Target. It's filled with plastic eggs and nestled in with two bunnies from my collection when I was little. The salt and pepper bunnies are from World Market last year and the birds are from Pier One. 

   I'm still looking at recipes, buy I know I'll be making salata de boeuf. It's a Romanian potato salad with carrots and peas and pickles. It really is amazing! I'll post the recipe soon! I finally got a new dutch oven, so I'll probably be making a pork roast. My mom and friends will also bring some lovely things to the table!

  Here are the egg paper boxes. I think she thought they'd all be blue and white...but surprise! surprise! The details are exquisite! Each box has a plastic shrink wrap like wrapper that you can boil on an egg to made it cover the shell. 
I'll probably make the eggs and put them in a pretty dish and use the boxes for candy!!

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Irish Chain and Ivy

It's almost March and I don't have any green dishes, but I thought about this quilt and these Italian Oven King ivy border salad plates my mom gave me that she bought probably 30 years ago or so and I love the outcome!

It's so spring-like in South Texas. My mesquite tree is blooming, so I started planting seeds for my vegetable garden yesterday! The hot sun and lack of summer rains makes our harvest short, so I thought I'd try early this year and see how it goes. I cut the centerpiece flowers from our gardens. The ivy was established when we moved in and I planted everything else last summer.I love how the flowers coordinate beautifully with the plates. 

My mom made this quilt almost 5 years ago. If you look closely, the end border of the napkins, she made to match a quilted runner for my birthday a few years ago, is the same material as part of the 'chain' in this quilt. I used these plates in the fall and the red berries popped out. When used with this quilt, the blues and greens show beautifully. I love the versatility. 

 I used Mikasa Italian Countryside dinner plates, my grandmother's silver, my mom's wedding crystal and my wine goblets I've had since I got married, not crystal, but I still love them.

My mom gave me the teapot a few years ago too. It's from Marshall's.

 ***oops! After talking to my mom this afternoon,

this quilt pattern is called "Around the World", not "Irish Chain"!!

Apparently she made the Irish Chain for her brother and my cousin:)

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Valentine's Potluck Buffet

Our church community group is coming over Sunday for a Valentine's Potluck. I decided to play around now to see what I'll need to buy before the weekend. 

I didn't set each place setting since I'm expecting 10+ adults and about that many children. I  put a simple red patterned runner (World Market) down the middle with my grandmother's silver tray, a milk glass tray I found recently at an estate sale and a red glass hurricane. (World Market)  I added my love bird s&p (Pier One) and a couple serving bowls in the same pattern as the plates I'll use...Johnson Brothers Indies Blue.

Since I don't have a set of red dishes to accommodate this many, I thought the sweet pattern of birds of flowers would be lovely for Valentine's!

I put my forks in two mason jars and my napkins, the white ones from an estate sale, the blue ones made by my mom, in a pretty blue rimmed bowl. I put a stack of JB Indies Blue plates for the adults and a stack of Valentine melamine plates for the children on my trunk. The trunk, and old piece my uncle gave me when I went to college to hold my clothes, is topped with a French looking red tablecloth from HG a while back and a lace one of my husband's aunts made. 

I'll set up drinks on the other buffet, but didn't do that yet.

My pie wrack is ready to hold some desserts for company!

Lastly, I set up a coffee section, next to our pot. I'm debating leaving it like this or putting the coffee in the JB tea pot and setting it on the buffet with the other drinks. 

Thanks for stopping by! Happy Valentine's Day!

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More of my grandmother's dishes...

 This weekend I asked my mom if I could shop her house. I came home with a box of Spode Wickerdale, a beautiful plate, a teapot and an Italian vase. The Wickerdale was my grandmother's and my mom said she bought pieces years ago to add to or replace broken ones. She has a full set for four, some extra plates and a whole lot of saucers! I'm also using my mom's wedding crystal again. I thought this was Fostoria Wedding Ring, but the base of the stems are different, so I'm still searching for the pattern.

  I also used all of my grandmother's silver. These dessert forks and butter knives are my favorite. The butter knives, resting on the bread plates are Narcisus and the dessert forks are New Orleans. (If I remember correctly,)

 My grandmother had a spoon collection...probably hundreds. I used a set of gold floral spoons today.

  This plate was probably my great grandmother's. My mom said she had a very different taste than my grandmother. Floral, intricate, delicate, ornate...sums up most of her pieces. She owned the Mason Ironstone I used in this Thanksgiving post. I think based on the mark, the plate is from Czechoslovakia. My mom wasn't sure how old this teapot is. She said my aunt had given her a teapot, but she can't remember. 

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Between Naps on the Porch
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Enjoy all the pretty tables!