A Thanksgiving Tablescape

It's November, and we are so close to Thanksgiving, so a tablescape is definitely in order. This table is comprised of vintage, new and reinvented, which is always my favorite.

This is a lovely lantern I picked up at Hobby Lobby, it is metal and I really like the glass panels with the Tudor characteristic, very charming. Inside, I put 2 flameless candles inside along with moss and a little white pumpkin.

A couple of vintage turkey finds that I spray painted white. Take a look at the before below.

Pretty cheesy, right?

No more cheese! ;) Use moss to help steady wobbly candles.

A turkey container, that wasn't too bad, yet just not my thing...

...turned into my thing with glossy spray paint. I thought I was going to make a little arrangement in it, but decided to use more moss and a pumpkin and keep the focus on the gobbler.

These place mats were my Mom's...gosh, they have to be 50+ years old, I remember them being on the dining room table growing up (you know, a few years back). They are really neat...woven, fringed and reversible. Some of the flourishes appear black in the photos (at least on my monitor), but it is a really deep hunter green.

Plain white Gibson dishes....I bought these to go in my booth but couldn't resist doing a table with them first.

My turkey friends again.

The napkins are new from Target from the 'Threshold' Line. I think the new plaid and old damask looks fantastic together. For place card holders, I used a small pine cone and cut a leaf shape from book paper and hand wrote names.

I hope this gives you some ideas you can use on your table!

***

I had chemo on Monday and it wasn't too bad and ONLY ONE DAY!!! I won't have it again for 21 days! I did go to sleep immediately after I got home, but still no nausea and vomiting (knock on wood). The neuropathy is still pretty bad in my hands (which is why this is short and sweet)...the doctor is hoping that it will fade with a little more time and I need to keep taking the neurontin. Thank you for the emails and suggestions on coping with the condition, you guys never cease to amaze me with your helpfulness.

I am working on getting my booth ready for Christmas so be looking forward to seeing that. Because of chemo, I wasn't able to 'shop' as much this summer, so I haven't found a ton of Christmas....so I've been making things. Hopefully, people will enjoy the handmade aspect along with the vintage things, I know I do. 

I hope to do at least one more tablescape outside before the leaves completely drop. I'll talk to you soon! Thanks for being here.

31 Days With ME:Halloween Tablescape and HI!

 HI!! How have all of you been? I've been doing OK. I'll catch you up to speed on how I'm doing probably tomorrow, but THANK YOU for all the sweet emails and comments I've been reading them all and my heart feels so good because of you all!

Somehow, Halloween snuck up on me, well it didn't sneak, I just wasn't paying attention. I have been planning this tablescape for weeks and I wasn't going to let a little chemotherapy get in my way . :) I thought maybe I'd save it for next year, but nah, I got it done. Planning it out certainly helped. 

First though, I wanted to show you the chalkboard door in the kitchen. Logan and I did some chalkboard art for Halloween. I did a similar spider on the bi-fold doors at the booth, you might remember. Logan did some free form art from his height and below ;) He wrote the word Fall a few times and "I love Fall" towards the bottom (I didn't quite get it in the photo). A kid after my own heart.

 We have had so much fun with this chalkboard door, I highly recommend doing it if you can. This is the door leading to the garage, so it's perfect.

What better way to catch up on my 31 days series than with a tablescape??? I should have done it before chemo, but of course just didn't get around to it...but I had stuff gathered and a plan in my head and knew exactly what I wanted to do. So the weather was cooperating, the sun was shining, it wasn't too windy (it is often VERY windy here), I had some strength...so outside I went.

You know, I think what I like best about doing tablescapes are the centerpieces. I mean there are only so many ways to do a place setting, but you can get really creative with the centerpiece.

I started with two vases. You might remember them from a mantlescape I did a couple of fall seasons ago...I had spray painted them white, but I sprayed them black for a change. You guys know I'm a spray painting fool. Take a look at the vases before HERE.

 While I was at it, I spray painted this little compote too. Tis true, nothing is safe from me and a can of spray paint.

 A dollar store crow perched upon a painted pumpkin, see the painted pumpkin project HERE, did those last year.

 Place settings very simple, vine chargers (Mary Carol Home Collection), White Gibson dinnerware, black napkins, vintage silverware and topped it all off with a splash of orange with a pumpkin I glittered.

 Here is the other vase. This is very simple to recreate. I literally got those branches from a downed tree, and picked up so fallen leaves and put them in the vase, that's it. Spooky looking right? And a side note, that tree in the background just refuses to turn, he's got a brother in the front yard that is completely red but this guy is still green.

A little concrete birdbath made a fun pedestal for the painted pumpkin, and natural excelsior softens around the pumpkin.

 Pumpkin wands and vintage jars, you've probably seen those labels from Martha Stewart a bazillion times, I printed those off a couple of years ago, coffee dyed them and stuck them on a few bottles. Still love them. See how to make the wands HERE.

 Jack-o-lantern luminaries I found at a yard sale...juuuuuust didn't quite make it to the booth this year. :) I actually saw them for sale at Target from Smith and Hawken.

 A two-tiered serving piece that will be going to the booth for Christmas. I found that skeleton hand at Michael's this year.

 Isn't this 3-D glitter candelabra cute? That is from Walmart, but they didn't have anything nearly that cute this year.

 I know it's awfully close to Halloween, but I hope you are inspired! I will talk to you tomorrow and show you pictures from War Eagle Craft Festival. It was a lot of fun but then it was not a lot of fun. I was really crazy to go two days after chemo...but I'll show you tomorrow. See you then.

Potting Bench Tablescape

Hi, my name is Michelle and I love to do tablescapes.

It's been a while though, such a long while, this is the first this year....

Here in Missouri the weather is still quite warm with slightly chilly mornings. The leaves have not started turning yet, so I didn't do a full on Fall tablescape, just a hint of the season to come.

I took advantage of the warm, slightly overcast day to photograph outside on my table, the table that I have yet to find any chairs for. I'm still working on it.

Let's talk about the centerpiece first. It's a big table, so a big centerpiece is in order, but a lot of the elements can certainly be used on a smaller scale to fit any table.

I used standard terra cotta pots, a 12" and a 10", each with a cylinder vase, that you've seen me use, oh, about a kajillion times. But darn it, I just love them. I also used some broken pieces of terra cotta to lay on the table as well.

 To soften the edge where glass meets terra cotta, I used lichen (aka reindeer moss) in a BRIGHT green. I think they sell this type at craft stores, but I found this bright green at saveoncrafts.com. It comes in nice big bags too. Some moss is nestled along the broken pieces of terra cotta too then berries and pumpkins tucked in. Finally, grapevine circles around everything, sort of a halo effect.

 The napkins (Home Goods) tucked in a vintage walnut napkin ring and my Mother's flatware.

Now here is a question. Can you Mix vintage Mikasa and Dollar Tree plates together? Yes! The crackle Mikasa salad plates really help the cheap inexpensive rusty orange plates have some class. :) 

 Charger/placemat (I can't decide which) from Pier One. Glassware from Nell Hill's.

 Isn't the green and orange great?

 I didn't use a tablecloth or anything, I really like the old rustic wood to show and it plays off the color of the grapevine

 I hope you are inspired to create your own "Potting Bench" tablescape!

Joining Layla at The Lettered Cottage

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Thank you for the comments (and emails) yesterday on my health update, you guys are so supportive and are really helping me, thank you!

Tablescape Highlights 2011

It's been really fun looking back over the year, it's hard to believe that in a few days we will be kissing another year goodbye. This week projects and Before and Afters are highlighted, and I could'nt leave out tablescapes. In a strange way they are like a hobby. I really love pulling a look together with doable, affordable ideas in hopes to inspire...and of course to eat! :)

Yellow Tulip


Monaco Breeze


America the Beautiful

Woodland

Harvest Green

Chevron Table

Russet Red Evening

Smokey Quartz

Yuletide Christmas

Old World Christmas

Blue Willow

Thanks so much for stopping by!

Joining Susan for Tablescape Thursday

Need a design boost? For advice and guidance on style, contact me!