Change Accomplished and Dessert Setting for Mother 93rd Birthday

In my September 4 post I indicated that a great Craigslist find yielded and in-progress change. Well this past week I was able to complete that change.

The Drawer Chest was moved from the living room and is now in the dining room and is stocked with flatware and linens. I at last have a server in the dining room, plus easy access to table setting items. The two small top drawers hold sets of napkin rings:



The next drawer holds three sets of flatware:

Next is napkin storage.

And finally, the bottom drawer holds placemats. I still need to arrange these drawers so they are much neater!


The display on top of the drawer chest complements the dessert table setting for my mother’s 93rd birthday held at my house on Sunday. We ate at her favorite restaurant, then returned to my home for cake and ice cream. The Royal Albert “Lady Carlyle” teapot, sugar and creamer take center stage, while the teacups and saucers are displayed on a wire teacup stand.

The flowers are Rose of Sharon and Sedum Autumn Joy from my garden.

As you may recall, this tablesetting incorporates the china and linens from my pink tea setting on the living room coffee table shown here. My mother loves to wear pink on her birthday as well as Mother’s Day and she had on a lovely outfit in shades of pink. The setting turned out very dainty, as I used silver plate chargers and candlesticks with deep pink candles, gilt-edged flatware, Lenox "Autumn" goblets, and pinkish green hydrangeas from the garden.



The cake (which got smushed while transported in the car) was placed on a ruffled-edge Princess House Crystal cake stand. It was nice to have the drawer chest nearby so I did not have to keep it on the table once it was sliced.

Visit Susan at Between Naps on the Porch for more Metamorphosis Monday posts and for Tablescape Thursday. I am also linking to Show and Tell Friday at My Romantic Home with hostess Cindy.

Fabulous Craigslist Find Yields In-Progress Change

"This is a great buy…five people called about it!" So said the delivery man as he and a younger man brought in my new piece of furniture last Friday. On Monday I was looking through the furniture section of Craigslist.com and saw this listing (with this spelling):

"$60.00 Moheganoy 5 drawer desk. Very nice and clean. Has glass top and pull out writing shelf. Will deliver for small fee."

I emailed right away asking for the dimensions and for cost of delivery to my town. Tuesday came and went and no reply. On Wednesday I wrote again asking if it was still available and got the reply, yes, and shipping would be $40. I wrote again asking for the dimensions. You see, I was looking for a piece to serve as a small buffet in my dining room; I’m tired of serving from the nearby kitchen counter and or stove.
On Thursday I got the measurements, and I quote:

"42 inches wide,19 deep,34 high.like new condition,not a scratch.come take a look."

I called, said I wanted it, and set up delivery for the next day at 3 pm.
Meanwhile I had measured the space but it was just too small. [My dining room is just 11’ x 12’ and I have a large-scaled Drexel table and eight chairs, plus a large breakfront cabinet.] Now, when I spoke to him on the phone he had reiterated that it was is great condition, and worth at least $300. I could not let it go at such a great price -- $60 plus $40 was just $100 for a fine piece of mahagony furniture (even though I had only seen the following not too clear photos in the Craigslist ad.

Anyway, I cleared a space in the Living Room between two chairs in front of the windows. Previously, I had had this 22" round skirted table between the two chairs (Not having planned all this, I didn’t think to take pictures while the table was still in place in the living room.):

The doorbell rang about 1:20 pm (he had called to move up the delivery time) and there was a small truck with two men who brought in the "desk," all wrapped in quilted padding. Unwrapped, it looked brand new. The seller showed me the Century Furniture tag in the left top drawer.

I was amazed at the beauty and quality and newness of the piece. Also, that it would work perfectly as a serving piece in the dining room – if only I could make room somehow. Indeed it was not a desk at all, despite the slide out shelf! What exactly was the piece – a console, a chest of drawers….??? Here are some pics I took of the details, including the glass top shaped to the curves:

Here it is in place between the chairs:

Well, as someone who loves researching things, I soon got online to determine what the piece is designated as by the manufacturer. After some futile searching of the Century Furniture industries website, I finally found a store that listed and pictured my piece. Now I knew just what it is:

Century Furniture Living Room Drawer Chest 679-704, from their Traditional Classics collection. This is the catalog photo I found on a furniture store website: The Product Description read:
"Features chamfered corners with decorative fret overlays. The serpentine drawer fronts are trimmed in beaded molding and accented with brass drop-bail pulls. Pull-out tray at top provides additional display space."

Yes, this excellent piece would be perfect for my dining room.… As soon as my brother, nephew, or brother-in-law comes by here, I’ll try to squeeze it in. In the meantime, it looks nice in the living room --

As the seller indicated, the piece fits in and looks great with the other mahagony and cherry furniture in my living and dining rooms. Here is a mosaic I've made of the furniture in the two rooms.

I plan to store some flatware in the two smaller drawers, and place mats, napkinsas well. However, I have not put anything in it in case I do move it to the dining room. So this change is still very much in progress!

Visit Susan at Between Naps on the Porch for more Metamorphosis Monday posts.
Also, visit Mary at Little Red House to see the mosaics prepared by other participants, and Rhoda at Southern Hospitality for more Thrifty Treasures.