New Year Greeting

This New Year’s Eve I wish to thank all my blogger friends for your generosity and good will thoughout 2009.

For 2010 I wish you all a Prosperous and Healthy New Year, full of Creativity and Personal Growth.

A Christmas Prayer by Robert L. Stevenson

Tablescape Thursday – Ivory, Green and Gold

The Dining Room table is set for Christmas dinner with family tomorrow.


As I stated last year, this tablesetting has been used for many years (with few variations) and enjoyed by family and friends. Its monochromatic color scheme mutes the opulence and provides a pleasant setting for a festive holiday meal.
The theme begins with Lenox “Holiday” china on gold lacquered chargers. The cream dishes have a border of green holly.

The centerpiece is Lenox China Jewels nativity set on a runner of embroidered Lenox “Holiday” linen. Strands of gold and silver beads add sparkle. Narrow green ribbon is strung with green glass ornaments which pick up the color of the green goblets with clear stems. So do green stars scattered on the runner.


The ivory Lenox “China Jewels” nativity is quite extensive with many pieces, each embellished with jewel toned decorations and gold.



The bowls set on each dinner plate include rimmed soup, cream soup and stand, and occasional bowls on dessert plates. The gold flatware coordinates with the gold rim on the china.


In the corner of the room is a tabletop tree with musical instrument ornaments, The garland to the kitchen and the one into the dining room also display musical instruments.

Be sure to visit our hostess Susan at Between Naps on the Porch for more Tablescape Thursday posts.

Merry Christmas to One and All!

Holiday Trees

I put up four trees this year. The tree in the study is a new tree which holds mostly vintage ornaments.

The ornaments include nativity ones also. There is a green Jewelbrite one in the middle, and a gourd-type above it, both displaying the Holy Family:

Here is another green Jewelbrite with the Three Wise Men. To the left is a clear plastic with shepherds.

Just below the red strawberry and in front of the green star, is a red plastic ornament with white Holy Family:

My dining room tree has ivory blown glass balls and musical instruments, many of which are red:

This post is also linked to Vintage Thingies Thursday. See more Vintage Thingies Thursday posts listed by Suzanne at Coloradolady.

I am also linking to Rednesday at Christmastime, sponsored by Sue Loves Cherries.
http://suelovescherries.blogspot.com/

Vintage Christmas Tree Ornaments

Blue Monday is sponsored by our gracious Sally at Smiling Sally. This post is also being linked to Vintage Christmas Monday, hosted by Joan @ Anything Goes Here.

Here are some of the vintage ornaments I bought in December 2008. I just enjoy the colors.

In November 2007 I visited a local antique shop and selected these blown glass indent ornaments. The redflective indents really look pretty on the tree.

My finds included a few Santa ornaments. A couple of them look like they’re made of bread dough. One cute little Santa is in an unopened package from Grant, a store which went out of business years ago.

The vintage and other ornaments seem to combine well with the tinsel tree I bought in 2007 at Home Depot:

Merry Christmas to all our blogger friends and their loved ones!

Tablescape Thursday – Holiday Breakfast Table Setting

For Tablescape Thursday I’d like to share changes to the breakfast table in the kitchen. The linens, flatware and water goblets remain the same as the October setting, but the dishes were switched out for Spode "Christmas Tree" plates and bowls.

A matching pair of candlesticks with red candles and candle rings, join matching goblets, sugar and creamer, a crystal angel and crystal tree.

The Spode cake plates and serving forks and handy for serving biscuits, rolls, etc.

Although I have a dozen "Christmas Tree" mugs, I don’t have any cups and saucers. So the off-white Canonsburg "American Traditional" serves our tea drinking needs.

On the counter near the stove small Spode votive cups are grouped with tree-shaped candles.

On top of the stove three sets of tree-shaped salt and peppers stand with two pairs of snowmen shakers and a framed menu.

I have not been able to go to the backyard to get fresh greenery (we had a big snow storm last week, and the snow is hard and slippery), but the holiday items gives the place a festive touch. However, since the family will gather at my house for Christmas, my mother and I have been hanging garlands on the fireplace, over the dining room entrance, etc. Happily, we still have a week to get everything (including the food) done.

Thanks for visiting today. Be sure to visit our hostess Susan at Between Naps on the Porch for more holiday Tablescape Thursday posts.

NOTE: I am late in posting because Blogger did not allow me to load photos -- until I bought more storage!

Vintage Thingies Thursday – Holiday Aprons

Having been side tracked by a very bad head and chest cold for the past week and a half, I have not been able to do any holiday posts (quite in contrast to holiday 2007 and 2008). Then, just as I was writing this today, the power went off for three hours.

For VTT today I’m sharing a couple holiday aprons – one fairly new, the other vintage from Ebay. Since my kitchen has a Christmas tree theme with dishes, candles, salt and peppers and figurines,

I bought the matching linens from Spode, including a bib apron:


The second is a green gingham half apron with cross stitch embroidery forming trees on the pockets.

Note the row of pockets across the apron:
Darker green and red thread makes a pretty pattern.

See more Vintage holiday Thingies Thursday posts listed by Suzanne at Coloradolady.
Happy Holidays!

Tablescape Thursday – Thanksgiving 2009

When my mother and I arrived at my sister’s house on Thanksgiving day, my sister had the table mostly set. Since she had had a very busy night on call at the hospital, we had planned to do it together. However, she had a surge of energy after arriving home and just kept on going.
Each year at Thanksgiving she uses the Royal Worcester "Evesham" dishes. This year she used a simple white damask tablecloth.
As she had last year, she also used her large ceramic cornucopias and bowls of ceramic fruit. Only, they were placed differently. There were two new candlelabras on either side of a taller one as the centerpiece. The cornucopias were placed at opposite corners, while the smaller fruit bowls were at the other two corners.
As I started to take a photo, I noticed that the flatware was missing:
We soon corrected that...

Amid the "Evesham" goblets and other items were several bottles of the family favorite Martinelli sparkling cider – regular apple flavor, grape and cranberry in another brand.



The table looked lush with color and warm beauty. Soon after this, the table was full with laden plates and eager eating and laughter from the six of us.

I am glad you visited today and hope you will come again soon! Please leave a comment.
Be sure to visit our hostess Susan at Between Naps on the Porch for more Tablescape Thursday posts.