Spring, Wherefore Art Thou?

Waiting for spring is really trying my patience.  I am tired of the cold.  I'm sure everyone else is tired of the cold.  If spring doesn't arrive soon, I am going to scream.  Loud.  So I pulled out some spring flowers, dishes with happy colors, and put together a little simple table for four--dreaming that soon flowers will be blooming and the sun's warmth will bring the world alive again.

Using materials I found in my stash, I put together three spring florals.

I pulled a spring runner from the closet and used greenery down the center.

A nest of eggs is the focal point in each arrangement.

White tapers fill in the spots between each of the florals.

A dainty porcelain napkin ring holds each sage green dinner napkin.

Candleholders are vintage with a delicate silver overlay.

Dishes are sage green and  pink.  I believe they came from HomeGoods or TJ Maxx.

Silver flatware is simple as well, nothing too fancy here.

The fleur-de-lis glasses match the pink plates, and the pattern on the stems reminds me of dogwood.

The runner has a basket of spring flowers at each end, you've probably seen these in the stores.

Bird's eye view!!

At least it's a sunny day, even though you can't hardly open the door because of the frigid temperatures.  This does not feel a bit like Virginia weather.

I think this has cheered me up a bit.  Stay warm, my friends, and let's hope spring arrives soon!!

Thanks for visiting!  

~Betsy

Christmas Breakfast Setting

Now that Christmas has come and gone, I have more time to play.  Lots of time.  More time than I want or need.  The kids have gone, the hubby's hunting, and I'm hanging out with my little buddy, Scout.  But enough of the January blues, I'll have plenty of time for that, let's get these Christmas pictures out before Easter gets here.

We did not host a Christmas party this year.  I have to say, I felt a lot less stress, even though I enjoy seeing my friends and it's my little way of saying Merry Christmas to them.  Instead we had a few people over at different times and that way, I was able to spend more time visiting with them individually.  We did have Christmas Eve dinner with my brother-in-law and the kids, Christmas breakfast which included my brother and niece, and a family get-together Christmas night, with about 30 of my cousins.  It was an enjoyable time, especially the one-on-one times I had with my kids.  Since I don't get to see them as much now, I like to be able to focus on them when they do get home.

Below are pictures of the Christmas breakfast table in the kitchen.

Last year I used antler candelabras from Pottery Barn, but I found these silver ones at Tuesday Morning and had to bring them home.

I used woodland themed plates that most people use at Thanksgiving, paired with a paisley runner and napkins from Pottery Barn.

Down the center of the table, I used greenery decorated with bittersweet, feathers, and iced stick thingeys.

Grapes, pinecones and gilded fruit were also used here and there, as well as small clear ornament balls.

I hung greenery, icicles, and glass ornaments from my chandelier.

In the center, I used my bowl which is on a silver stem and has silver arms which hold candles.  I hung greenery from it and placed a large glass red ornament in the bowl.

Lots of red tapers were used.

I like using this set of glasses for breakfast because they feel substantial and they are just the right size for juice and water or milk.  We had coffee earlier in the morning.

This sherbet is the perfect size for yogurt parfait.

A close-up of the centerpiece and the red tapers.

We eat pretty unhealthy Christmas morning, but hey it's just once a year.  Our menu consisted of fried oysters, sausage, bacon, monkey bread, biscuits, Breakfast Before Casserole and yogurt parfait.  I actually didn't feel so great after eating all that!

The red chargers with a little bling worked well with the red votive holders.

I try to put something on the small table outside, because the sliding door is right in view from the table.

My little buddy, Scout, before he got his Christmas haircut.

Hope your Christmas was special!  Thanks for visiting me today, look forward to seeing what you've been up to!--Betsy

A Garden Setting

Child number 2 is now home from his freshman year at college.  The year seems to have flown by!  We spent the day yesterday in the car, packing him up, and bringing him back home.  He will transfer next year to Virginia Tech, so off we went to Blacksburg to look for apartments.  Unfortunately, they had closed for the day, so we had a quick dinner, and started on our journey home.  My dilemma is always what to do with all the "stuff" they accumulate in a year.  Right now, it is still in the SUV, and will stay there until I can get everything into the laundry room and cleaned up. Next week Child number 1 will be back in town, for a while, anyway.  She has been on tour with a Children's Theatre group as an actress in their productions.  They have been to many states and I believe it has been a great experience for her.  She will also be in a play in Williamsburg in June called "Curtains", so if you are coming to Williamsburg, check out the production by the Williamsburg Players.  She will play Bambi.
Now, on to tablescapes.  I had planned to do this tablescape earlier, but I never got around to it.  So here it is, a garden tablescape.

My husband asked me why I wanted to use this old table, but I believe it still has charm, with it's uneven boards, and rustic feel.  I used three short runners and added cute little garden-themed pots.

I just bought some herbs to plant, so I popped them into these containers and used them as centerpieces.  The actual plants don't match the words, but we can always pretend... 

My herbs of choice are cilantro, basil, and parsley.

Salad plates were made in Italy and I purchased them a while back at Home Goods.  The dinner plates are Fitz and Floyd.  Each place had a bulb placecard holder with a tiny bouquet, which added a bit of color.  I decided not to use chargers because the table is narrow, and there wasn't much room.

Since rain threatened, we did not eat at the table, so I didn't write on the placecards.

Each plate has a different design.

I used a simple silverplate pattern along with a plain stemmed iced beverage glass.

I found these napkin rings at an estate sale.  I had every intention of spray painting them with oil rubbed bronze spray paint, but never got around to it.

Water glasses or as I like to use them, red wine stems, are Fostoria Pagoda.

I hadn't planned to use candles, but I remembered these little garden chair votive holders, so I used them on the table.

A few more pictures . . .

Thanks for stopping by!!  Drop in anytime, you are always welcome at my table!!  As always, I appreciate your kind comments,

--Betsy