In Praise of Pansies

Pansies bloom throughout the winter in our part of Texas, and even our recent VERY cold (for us!) weather has not daunted their spirit.  Planted in October, when the weather finally cools off, they brighten the flower beds when most other flowering plants are dormant.  We are lazy gardeners, so we've started buying hanging baskets of pansies and planting those, rather than flats of the smaller plants.  Much less kneeling and digging required!  In past years, I have chosen the yellow and purple varieties, but this year, the purple and white ones spoke to me.  Here's one bed, at the end of our driveway.

I have been wanting to do a table celebrating pansies, but I have very little purple in my house.  In fact, I have trained my husband to bring home any color of flowers EXCEPT purple, because it just doesn't go with our decor.  So.  Time to hit Pier 1!  They had mailed me some good coupons, so off I went.  Just inside the front door on the Clearance table were purple hemstitched placemats and napkins.  Sold!  With my coupon, the napkins were under $3 each, my kind of steal deal.  They also had three different kinds of stemware in purple, but I reluctantly realized that a) I would not use them very often and b) I do not have room to store them.  Such restraint!

I knew that I wanted the pansies to be the star of the table, so I limited the color scheme to purple and white.  For the centerpiece, I pulled out my pansy ring and elevated it on a white cakestand.

I also wanted to use my bud vase napkin rings.

Here's a look at the placesetting.  Simple white plates with our wedding silver and crystal.

Also new to my collection are the silver pea pod place card holders.  I couldn't resist them in Williams-Sonoma's clearance sale.  I will also use them to identify dishes when we serve buffet-style.

Here are a few more photos of the table.  The host's view:

 The pansy ring looks like a cake in this one.

 A guest's view:

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

Reading in 2013

Inspired by a number of my favorite bloggers who have posted a list of titles read last year, I decided to join in and post mine.  I love to read and have always read for fun, even in the throes of graduate school and while working full-time and raising children.  Reading keeps me sane, I think!

Unfortunately, I did not keep a comprehensive list of everything I read last year, but since the vast majority of my reading is done on my iPad, my Amazon digital orders provided a list of all the books I bought there, and that's the list you'll see below.  (Of course, that also allowed me to tally up how much I spent -- yikes!  "One-click" shopping can be dangerous!)  I did read several "actual" books, usually gifts, and I also was delighted to  learn how to download library books to my iPad.  If you aren't using Overdrive.com to borrow from your local library, you should be!

One indication I'm reading too many e-books?  More than once I've found myself tapping the side of the page of a real book, expecting that to turn the page like it does on the Kindle or iPad!

Title	Author
Yesterday's News	Kajsa Ingemarsson
The House at Riverton	Kate Morton
The Forgotten Garden	Kate Morton
The Sound of Broken Glass	Deborah Crombie
Downsizing Your Home with Style	Lauri Ward
Winter of the World	Ken Follett
The Violets of March	Sarah Jio
Coming Home	Mariah Stewart
Home Again	Mariah Stewart
A Week in Winter	Maeve Binchy
Devlin's Light	Mariah Stewart
Sand Castle Bay	Sherryl Woods
Three Sisters	Susan Mallery
A Different Light	Mariah Stewart
Starting Now	Debbie Macomber
Down the Garden Path	Beverley Nichols
Tapestry of Fortunes	Elizabeth Berg
Life After Life	Kate Atkinson
Semi-Sweet:  A Novel of Love and Cupcakes	Roisin Meaney
The People Next Door	Roisin Meaney
Life Drawing for Beginners	Roisin Meaney
The Daisy Picker	Roisin Meaney
One Summer	Roisin Meaney
Something in Common	Roisin Meaney
A Room Full of Bones	Elly Griffiths
Wind Chime Point	Sherryl Woods
A Dying Fall	Elly Griffiths
Villette	Charlotte Bronte
The Coffin Trail	Martin Edwards
The Cipher Garden	Martin Edwards
The Arsenic Labyrinth	Martin Edwards
The Serpent Pool	Martin Edwards
The Frozen Shroud	Martin Edwards
The Hanging Wood	Martin Edwards
The Yonahlossee Riding Camp for Girls	Anton DiSclafani
A Little Salty to Cut the Sweet	Sophie Hudson
A Single Thread	Marie Bostwick
All the Lonely People	Martin Edwards
The Burgess Boys	Elizabeth Strout
How the Light Gets In	Louise Penny
Red Sparrow	Jason Matthews
And the Mountains Echoes	Khaled Hosseini
The English Girl	Daniel Silva
As Always, Julia	Joan Reardon
This is the Story of a Happy Marriage	Ann Patchett
Faithful Unto Death	Stephanie Jaye Evans
Safe from Harm	Stephanie Jaye Evans
Lowcountry Boil	Susan Boyer
Lowcountry Bombshell	Susan Boyer
Dear Life	Alice Munro
Miss Buncle Married	D.E. Stevenson
Miss Buncle's Book	D.E. Stevenson
The Goldfinch	Donna Tartt
Cool-Season Gardening in Central Texas	Melody Fitzgerald
The Wedding Machine	Beth Webb Hart
Sycamore Row	John Grisham
The Racketeer	John Grisham
A Bird in the Hand	Ann Cleeves
King and Maxwell	David Baldacci
What My Mother Gave Me	Elizabeth Benedict
Whole Latte Life	Joanne Demaio
Snowflakes and Coffee Cakes	Joanne Demaio
Only the Innocent	Rachel Abbott
The Sixth Man	David Baldacci
Split Second	David Baldacci
Hour Game	David Baldacci

That's 66 books, so a little more than one per week.  December was the big winner, with nine books read that month.  Yay, Christmas holidays!  Many of the books are "light" fiction -- good escapism and relaxation!  You'll also see that when I find an author I like, I read a lot of his/her books. I love discovering a new prolific writer!  Also, there's very little non-fiction here.  I read a lot of that for work, so stick primarily to fiction for recreational reading.  

I am always up for book suggestions, so please comment with any titles you'd recommend!  

Christmas Around the House

I'm posting a few pics of our Christmas decorations this year, as a reminder for future years. I've enjoyed being able to look back and see what worked -- and what did not! The baker's rack in the breakfast area is always fun to decorate.  I usually like a whimsical theme for this area, and this one includes polka dots and candy -- sure to be the favorite of my grandchildren when they arrive. 

This year I copied an idea seen on Pinterest for using small  houses, figures, and trees to create a mini Christmas village in my covered trifle bowl.

Here's a closer look:

This counted cross-stitch piece is old, but I still embrace the sentiment.  We are blessed to have both our children and their families with us this Christmas, as well as my 91 year old father-in-law!

Moving on to the living room, I used my late mother-in-law's Father Christmas collection on the bookshelves.  Last year, my sister found the little plates featuring Father Christmas at Kroger and sent them to me, and I think they are the perfect complement to all the figurines.

The mantel I kept simple, adding candy-striped candles and berry candle rings and tying ribbon around the topiaries.  Since taking this photo, my husband surprised me with a large lighted faux boxwood wreath, so we replaced the bluebonnet painting with the wreath.

I set up another mini Christmas village on a side table, using the tray from my silver service as a base.  This was a fun way to "play" without setting up a whole village.

The photo below appeared in my previous post, but I'm including it here, too.  I've had the horn candlesticks for eons, and I made the peppermint topiary several years ago.  The Norfolk Island pine spends most of the year outdoors, but it's inside for the winter, so is decorated with a few red bows.

Thank you for stopping by!  I hope everyone has a lovely Christmas with friends and family!

Red and White Christmas Table

Welcome to my house!  Here in the entryway, we have a peppermint theme going on.  I made the peppermint topiary several  years ago, and I still enjoy it.  In the mirror you can get a glimpse of the simple red and white table set for December meals.

My inspiration for the table came from a Martha Stewart image I pinned, although my table doesn't really look at all like the original one.  I like the simplicity of the table, as well as the red and white color scheme.  I also love this china pattern and would probably choose it if I were a bride today!

I knew I wanted to use the red linen table runner and the faux white amaryllis for a table that could be used throughout December.  Plain white plates and the candy cane striped napkins continue the theme from the entryway, and my Georgian Ruby glasses add a little more red.  The table looked a little too plain, though, even for minimalist me!

Then I remembered these little tidbit plates I found a few years ago in the after-Christmas sale at the Crate and Barrel outlet.  Better!

Here's a closer look at these cute reindeer plates.
Here's a look at the table.  As we get closer to Christmas, I will replace the faux flowers with either real white amaryllis or lilies.  I will also add some votives for evening meals.  I like the combination of tall flowers with low candles.


I will be linking to Cuisine Kathleen's Let's Dish this week.  Be sure to visit her to see other copycat tables!

A New Look for Old China, Part II

After my daughter saw the table linens I made to set a modern table with my (now vintage!) wedding china, she wanted a set for the Haviland Rosalinde china she inherited from her grandmother.  Here's a closeup of this pretty pattern from an earlier post.  (Click the link below the photo to see that post.)

Rosalinde for a New Generation

Taking a plate along, we headed to the home decor fabric section of JoAnn's.  We first looked for a geometric pattern in green, to complement the soft greens in the leaves of the china pattern.  But my daughter spotted  this pretty fabric that really highlights the lavender flowers in the design.

I made two runners and five napkins before running out of fabric.  I probably should have made the runners a bit narrower, but I wanted to be sure to have room for the silverware.  The fabric is Waverly Lovely Lattice in Violet, and it's a cotton sateen.  It comes in several other colors, and I'm tempted to buy more!  Here's a placesetting, with Gorham Chantilly, my mother-in-law's pattern that my children now have.

I set a quick table on a recent overnight visit, just to see how the new linens would look, so there's no centerpiece.  But imagine purple mums and white pumpkins for a fall table or daffodils for a spring table!

Here's another look. 

A guest's view. . .

Another closeup.  Here you can see that some of my mitered corners are better than others!  But focus on the pretty scalloped edge of the plate and the graceful lines of the silver pattern! 

My daughter was pleased with the linens as a way to set a modern-looking table with this treasured gift from her grandmother, and I know her grandmother would love seeing her beloved china enjoyed by another generation.

Linking to Let's Dish at Cuisine Kathleen

Big Birthday at the Beach

I had a BIG birthday the last weekend in October, and my family gathered at Sandestin to help me celebrate. My husband and I arrived on Wednesday morning and headed straight to the outlets, as we couldn't get into the condo until 3:00 p.m.  I had fun using my birthday bonus at Talbots, on top of their great sales!  We had a lavish late lunch at Cuvee Bistro before heading to the condo.  We usually rent the same one-bedroom condo when it's just the two of us, but for the family weekend, my husband rented a three-bedroom, 3.5 bath one with a huge wraparound balcony that seated 20!  Here's one view of the balcony, where my older granddaughter and I were enjoying the view.

The condo was beautifully decorated, but after we all moved in, it tended to look more like this.  (Baby Emily brought a lot of her favorite toys!)

It was Emily's first trip to the beach.  Here we are hanging out under the umbrella with her mama.

Emily gets her toes wet.  The water was still warm, and the older grandchildren were in the water almost non-stop.

Except when they were playing in the sand.

Emily preferred the heated pool!

It was wonderful just spending time together.  Here my two granddaughters are enjoying one another!

On the morning of my birthday, we scheduled a dawn photo shoot at the beach.  Yes, my family members are all good sports!  It was 55 degrees, so our photographer worked quickly!

Here are some photos that we took ourselves.

Here we were all trying to get Emily to smile.  No doubt she was thinking, "Why am I freezing in this strange chair at this hour of the mornings??"

Here I am, helping to keep her warm! 

We did get some great photos, and I highly recommend Amanda at Jubilee Photography.  Here is one of the whole group.

It was definitely a memorable birthday! 

Gifted Gift Givers

Are you blessed with family and friends who are good at giving perfect gifts?  I wish I had that talent! My friend Michele, who blogs at Adventures in Thrifting, definitely has a gift for gifting!  For my birthday this year, she created a special, one-of-a-kind gift that was both charming and practical.  Michele knows that the children's books by Russell Hoban featuring Frances (a badger) are among my favorites.  A Baby Sister for Frances is what I usually give to the older sibling when a baby joins a family.  But another favorite Frances book is Bread and Jam for Frances.

In case you aren't familiar with the story, Frances is a picky eater who turns up her nose at the meals her mother serves.  Her very wise mother begins serving her bread and jam and ONLY bread and jam, three meals a day.  At first, Frances is thrilled!  She sings,
Jam on biscuits, jam on toast,
Jam is the thing that I like most!
By the next day, after a couple of meals of bread and jam, her enthusiasm is dwindling: 
Jam in the morning, jam at noon,
Bread and jam by the light of the moon.
Jam . . . is . . . very . . . nice.
By dinner that evening, when everyone else is served spaghetti with meatballs, but she faces only bread and jam, Frances starts crying at the table and softly sings,
What I am
Is tired of jam.
Of course, at that point her mother quickly brings her a plate of spaghetti and meatballs.  The next day at school, Frances lays out an elaborate lunch, complete with a tiny vase of violets and a miniature salt shaker.  She and her friend Albert agree that it's nice there are all different kinds of breakfasts, lunches, dinners, and snacks.

Okay, that was a long introduction to Michele's very cool gift!  First, I opened a lovely insulated lunch bag.  Inside were several individually wrapped items, each with a clever rhyme to explain it.  I've grouped most of the items below.  (Not pictured are finger wipes and Shout wipes -- does Michele know me, or what?)  She included a tiny bud vase, to which I've added a rose, two Rubbermaid containers, a Vera napkin and napkin ring, and a tiny salt shaker.  It wasn't until I got to the salt shaker that the Frances connection occurred to me!  The little rose compact in the front right of the tray is Barbie-themed, as Michele knows I also like Barbie.  The attached verse read, "To powder your nose, Barbie offers this rose."

And there you have it -- I'm perfectly equipped for taking my own elaborate lunch to work.  Thank you for such a clever gift, Michele!