Forget-Me-Not Blue

These pretty hydrangea-print napkins and table runner caught my eye in a Sur la Table store, so when they went on sale, I ordered them.  (They also carry melamine dinnerware in this print, in both blue and green, if you're interested!)

When the order arrived, I decided the linens would be pretty with my Sophie Conran dishes in forget-me-not blue.  Villeroy and Boch's My Garden glasses added more blue, and the delphiniums my husband brought home from HEB last week were the perfect blue, even a few days past their prime.

 A diner's view. . .

 Closeup of one of the Arthur Court grape candlesticks, a long-ago gift from my in-laws

Closeup of the etched vase that my mother gave me from her collection.  Mama also has a tall pitcher in this pattern.  Please let me know if you know the name of the pattern!

View from the entryway

Delphiniums!

A simple summer table, but I do love the colors!

Thanks for stopping by!  I will be linking to Tablescape Thursday at Between Naps on the Porch.

Wedding China

I've been looking forward to seeing all the links at Cuisine Kathleen this week, because she challenged us to show our wedding china.  I decided to show you ALL the wedding china chosen or inherited by my grandmothers, mother, mother-in-law, daughter, daughter-in-law -- and, of course, MY wedding china! 

My very first tablescape post four years ago featured my Grandma Rachel's wedding china, Heinrich H&C's Admiral pattern, which I have inherited.  Grandma married in 1927 and was given 24 placesettings of this pretty pattern by her family and friends.  I treasure her handwritten list of all the pieces she owned and keep it in a locked box along with our marriage certificate and birth certificates.  Here's a closeup of the pattern from my recent Touch of Pink post.  I have found this pattern to be very versatile, using it with greens and golds, as well as pink.

My maternal grandmother did not have wedding china, to my knowledge.  She and my grandfather eloped!  I do remember her colorful everyday Fiestaware and wish I had inherited some of it.  I have fond memories of hearty breakfasts served on those dishes at her kitchen table.

My mother, who married in 1951 (and who with my dad will celebrate their 63rd anniversary this month!) has two pretty wedding china patterns, both from Castleton.  I've had fun playing with her dishes when I visit, going so far as to bring table linens with me on the plane!  I think both of her patterns look very fresh and modern.  Here is her Ma Lin pattern:

 And here is her Mayfair pattern:

My mother-in-law chose Haviland's Rosalinde as her wedding china, and now our daughter has inherited it.  We have enjoyed setting modern tables with this beautiful traditional pattern.

I married in 1972, and I chose a "good" china pattern, Lenox Windsong, along with crystal (Lenox Moonspun) and silver (Lunt Belvedere).  I still love this pattern and set my Easter table with it this year.  Below is an earlier table set with my wedding china, crystal, and silver.

I also chose an everyday pattern, Royal Doulton Fireglow.  I still own these dishes, but we no longer use them every day.  I do enjoy pulling them out occasionally, though!

As I mentioned earlier, our daughter inherited her grandmother's Rosalinde, but she chose an everyday pattern when she married in 2000.  I really love her Villeroy and Boch Switch 3 pattern.

Our daughter-in-law, who married our son in 2010, inherited a large collection of Johnson Brothers' Friendly Village from her grandmother.  When I went to help out after our granddaughter's birth, I enjoyed setting a Christmas table with this delightful pattern.

And there you have it -- four generations of wedding china!  It will be fun to see the china patterns my young granddaughters choose when they grow up!

Table for a 91st Birthday Dinner

When my father-in-law turned 90 last September, we had a big dinner party for his friends and our family at a restaurant, but for the 91st, we had a small family party at our house. Our daughter's family drove up from Houston, so we had four generations around the table -- always a treat!

I knew I wanted to use my late mother-in-law's Wedgwood Potpourri dishes, because I love the pattern, and it always brings a sweet remembrance of her to the gathering. Her collection includes these darling demitasse cups, which were perfect for serving the first course, a tiny serving of rich brie and crab bisque.  The demitasse spoons are also from her collection, in the Gorham Chantilly pattern.  My daughter and son have the rest of her silver, but I held onto the demitasse spoons for now, figuring they don't need them yet!

Here's a "diner's view" across the table.  The blue water goblet is Villeroy & Boch's My Garden pattern.

Dark red alstroemeria work well with the Potpourri pattern, and I used a single blossom in the bud vase napkin rings my daughter gave me for Christmas one year.  I use these a lot!  They are perfect for adding a little more color to the table.

I cut the flower stems short and arranged them in two julep cups.

Here's how the placesetting looked.  I think the dark blue hemstitched linen placemats make a good backdrop for these dishes.  The silver pattern is Lunt Belvedere, chosen 41 years ago -- now vintage, I guess!

Here's a look at the table, set for seven in the dining room.  The candelabra was a surprise from my husband earlier this year, and when the candles are all lit, it really looks pretty.  Alas, this bad blogger failed to get a photo!  Besides the bisque, the menu included ham, cheese grits, green beans, yeast rolls, and the birthday boy's favorite dessert, chocolate meringue pie.

Thank you for stopping by!  I will be joining the Let's Dish party at Cuisine Kathleen, so be sure to check there for all the pretty tablescapes.

Cool Blue and Green

Once again, I must apologize to my faithful followers for falling off the tablescape wagon for a few weeks. BUT!  While in Chicago recently, I bought some new everyday dishes.  This makes my third set of everyday dishes in 38 years of marriage, which isn't TOO indulgent, is it?

The wonderful Bloomingdale's Home store in downtown Chicago had these dishes on sale, so we decided to get them and had them shipped home.  I've admired this Dansk pattern since first seeing it a few years ago.  The salad plate (and mug, not shown) have a slightly different design than the dinner plate and rim soup.  The salesman talked us out of buying bread and butter plates, saying that most customers don't use them, but we've decided we DO need them, mostly for serving appetizers and small desserts.

I have a lot of blue table linens, since my second everyday pattern included a lot of blue, but this time I went with this bright leaf green.  The placesetting also includes our everyday blue glasses, but I chose to use our silver instead of the everyday stainless, because the pattern includes a flower similar to the one on the dinner plate.

Here's a view of the table.  For a simple centerpiece, I pulled the preserved boxwood topiaries from the mantel and added some white mums in a pansy ring, a gift from my in-laws that I have enjoyed over the years. (Can you spot Mr. Champagne, our enormous cat, resting on the cool floor just outside the dining room?)

 

You can see the pansy ring a little better here.  It is perfect for short-stemmed flowers like pansies, but works with lots of other flowers, too.

Here's an overhead view.

Another angle...

And a last view of the whole table.

The details:
Dishes: Dansk Kristina and Florencia
Glasses:  Villeroy & Boch My Garden
Silver:  Lunt Belvedere
Placemats and napkins:  Crate & Barrel Outlet
Preserved boxwood topiaries:  Williamsburg catalog

Thank you for visiting my table this week!  I hope you will leave a comment before you leave to visit all the wonderful tablescapes at Susan's Between Naps on the Porch!