Instagram...Me?!?

Well, I'm trying out the whole Instagram thing...yes, I know...welcome to the 21st century, Jami!

I tried it out on a photo of our dining table.  Have I shown you these plates before?  My sweet friend and neighbor gave the top plates to me...am I lucky or what??!?!  They're Botanical Fall Fruit appetizer plates from William Sonoma and they're just lovely on top of my Woodland Spode. Both plates are beautiful on top of my Johnson Brother Sovereign Chop Plates which were mostly purchased by The Enabler.  The brown wicker chargers from William Sonoma finish the simple place setting.  Oh!  I nearly forgot about the silver ware.  The brown handled pieces were again gifts from The Enabler.  The cream handled pieces were Ebay finds some time ago.  The napkins need ironing so they'll have to wait.

Are you on Instagram?

Would love to have a few friends join me!!!

Smiles!

Country Brunch

 A month or so ago, I hosted my friends out at Headwaters Ranch for a little R&R.

(Check out the wine glasses I made them HERE.)

One item on the agenda was to make them all brunch.

I have been wanting to see up a table under this big tree for a while now, but never had time/energy to pack up my dishes and haul them out there.  Well, this time, I did.  Of course, we had our brunch inside and went out to shop...but that's an entirely different story.  (Barbie doesn't like to eat outside.)

Anyway, I went ahead and set the table up another day for the photos.  (So cheesy, right?)

Well, I pulled this incredibly heavy farm table from the pool house to under the tree with the help of my 7 & 9 year olds...still owe them $5.  Then, I brought my box out and started setting up.  No sooner had I laid the last piece of silver ware down that a storm blew threw. " BOYS!!  We've got to move the table back!!"  Again, this is a HEAVY table...really HEAVY.  We stuck in under the eave of the pool house and waited out the storm.  Again, I had already come this far and was going to get my pictures so with a lot of cajoling and promising of more money and video game time, my little guys helped me move the table back.  I'm sharing this with you so you will not judge too harshly the table nor the photos...be kind.

 

This shot was purely because I thought the fireplace looked pretty in the background.

The ceramic basket in the foreground is actually a strawberry basket.  There is a jar for sugar and and little pitcher for cream.  Really sweet dish from Neuwirth that I found on Ebay for a few dollars.  Sadly, the strawberries did not ride out the storm very well and the grapes took their place. 

Love this one!  My daddy put up the swing for the boys and they have more fun on that thing! Isn't it true of us all?  The simple things bring such joy!

 

The place settings were a combination of  Johnson Brothers Old Bradbury, Sears/Harmony House Federalist Ironstone and Johnson Brothers Sovereign as well as my brother's Reed & Barton 18/10 stainless (looking for pattern name as we speak.)

 

The charger plates are Johnson Brothers Sovereign which mostly came from The Enabler.  (Check out her blog HERE.)  The dinner plates and berry bowls are old Johnson Brothers Old Bradbury plates that I found at an estate sale with...yes...you know...The Enabler.  The berry bowls are set on top of vintage Federalist Ironstone by either Sears or Harmony House.  An Old Bradbury platter holds the Federalist Ironstone creamer & sugar for the nonexistent coffee.  The coffee/tea cups are also Old Bradbury.  I used a mix of vintage white table cloths and my favorite vintage embroidered napkins as the foundation for the lovely outdoor country brunch that never was...well, not outdoors anyway.

 

Thanks for stopping by!

As always, I'd love for you to stop by and join us at the Tuesday To Do Party each week!

Smiles!

End Of School Brunch

Why an End of School Brunch post in July?  Well, it's very simple.  I just got to it.  And, I was putting together another brunch I did from last week and realized I never got to this one....soooo...here it is.

During the last school year I began subbing quite a bit at our boys' school.  It was such fun!  Being back in a school made me realize that I really did miss it.  Getting to know the kids, parents, teachers and staff better was such a gift.  Another gift was the friendships I made with the other subs.  They are the best!!  To celebrate the end of our year of working together, I wanted to treat them to a brunch during the final days of the school year. 

Because I was working so much, I had to keep the table simple.  The Enabler had given me the great toile cloth some time ago and I had been wanting to use it ever since.  The plates are Spode Bowpot in gray.  I've been watching for more on Ebay, but only see a cup and saucer ever now and then.  The napkins are the same pretty embroidered cotton napkins I got at an estate sale with The Enabler.  My silver is antique Gorham Chantilly received as a gift from my beloved Mrs. McGee.  We had iced tea in the Waterford Pallas Iced Beverage Glasses and mimosas in the Target champagne glasses.

For brunch we had Quiche Lorraine, Baby Blue Spinach & Strawberry Salad & Scones.

We had such fun talking and relaxing together that time got away from us!  It was getting near the time to pick up our kids from school so we had to end our time together.  As I'm writing this I can't help but be a little excited about school starting back.  Don't get me wrong, I LOVE the summer.  It is just that working with those ladies is such a treat.

 

Happy Summer Friends!!

Smiles!

Blue, White & Green Easter - 2013

Happy Easter Everyone!

After a powerful Easter service, we had fellowship with many of our dear friends.

Nineteen of us came together to celebrate Christ's resurrection and his everlasting promise of hope.

How grateful I am for these friends!

Our cup truly overfloweth!

 

Also, I can't go any further with out expressing my gratitude to "The Enabler."

I honestly thought about calling this post "An Open Thank You to Cherry Kay."

She is my MIL and has blessed me with many of the lovely items on this table.

I had such fun putting it all together and have her to thank.

Thank you Cherry Kay.  I love you.

 

Simple ramekins held the Easter eggs that served as placecards.

The blue Bordallo Pinheiro cabbage plates served as dessert plates and were removed before the meal.

Today's place setting...

 

Spode Savoy dinner plate,

 

Johnson Brothers Sovereign Chop Plate,

 

and, as always, Mrs. McGee's Gorham Chantilly graced the table.

 

The blue, green and white looked so fresh on the table.  The Waterford Simply Lime wine hocks paired with the Waterford Pallas iced beverage glasses completed the look.

 

Happy Easter y'all!

 

 

Smiles!

 

For some real table inspiration check out

my MIL's blog Entertaining Women and

Between Naps on the Porch.

Easter Menu & Table

I was searching my blog trying to find the pictures from last year's Easter table when I realized I had never posted it!  Wah?!?  So here it is.  (It's killing me that the knife is askew right there...oh well, that's how it is over here...askew!)

 

The Spode Mayflower plates were a gift from my MIL or as I call her "the Enabler."  She keeps me in dishes and I absolutely adore that about her!!!  Check out all of her pretties HERE.

The charger is one I picked up from Hobby Lobby and simply painted with a metallic green paint.  To make your own, check out my TUTORIAL.

 

These sweet little bunnies were also picked up at Hobby Lobby.  They hold some vintage cotton napkins that I picked up at an estate sale with...wait for it...yes, The Enabler.  (She's so good!  She has a gift for finding amazing deals at estate sales and on Ebay!)

 

Check out the glassware.  The wine hocks are Waterford Simply Lime and Waterford Simply Pink.  Again, my MIL introduced me to these and I began collecting them years ago when they were way more affordable.  Life go in the way and I'm short 4 hocks in the Simply Pink.  Now they seem a little too frivolous for me to buy for myself.  The other glass was a gift from, yes again, my MIL.  She picked them up at the VERY END of that same estate sale when she went to pick up an item she left a bid on.  I think they're called optic glass. Aren't the green stems gorgeous!   If you have more information on them, please share.

Let's see, what else is on that table.  The cute bunnies on either side of the roses were also a gift from my MIL.  She said they looked like something I would like...she really is the best, isn't she?  The roses were from my garden.  The silver is my Gorham Chantilly.  My dear Mrs. McGee gave it to me when she knew she was dying.  She had no children and wanted me to have it.  My mom and brother have also helped me collect more pieces.

 

We set the kid's up in the kitchen.  Nothing too fancy.  The pink  Ralph Lauren cotton tablecloth came from TJ Maxx years ago as did they green Ralph Lauren napkins.  The little bunnies were Hobby Lobby finds.  The roses are in a Waterford Rose Bowl that was a wedding gift.

 

The silver charger plates from Hobby Lobby are holding my Haviland Marseille luncheon plates.  Just needed to keep it simple for those kids.  The glassware is Ralph Lauren something something.  The pattern name escapes me.  Let me know if you know what it is.  I think they're beautiful, but the rims nick and chip at the drop of a hat.

 

Now, here's our Easter buffet...

 

Green Chile Casserole Recipe HERE

 

Buttermilk Biscuits and Oven Roasted Home Fries

 

Creamy Baked Macaroni & Cheese Recipe HERE

 

Spinach Strawberry Salad with Feta & Sugared Almonds

 

My Favorite!  Roasted Asparagus!  Yum!

 

We also had fresh fruit, sweet baby peas and the most delicious honey smoked ham from Rudy's.

Dessert was the Over-the-Top Carrot Cake.

 

We're doing it again this year and we can't wait!

Maybe I'll get this year's meal and table posted a little earlier than last year!

 

What's always on your Easter menu?

 

Partying with my friends in the side bar.

and

Between Naps on the Porch

 

Smiles!

 

Valentine's Brunch for Friends

This week I hosted a Valentine's brunch for a few of my dear friends.

It was such fun setting the table and preparing the food to honor these wonderful ladies.

I'm so lucky that they could take some time out of their busy days to stop by for a few hours of food and fellowship.

Mini iron urns from a Southern Living At Home party YEARS ago filled with mini carnations were placed around the birdcage.  

My bird cage (will have a post on this soon,) took center stage...yes, we did lean around it on occasion...probably should have set it to the back of the table...but it's so cool! 

 The iron birdcage was wrapped with a paper heart bunting.

My mil gave me the pink matelasse tablecloth just for driving down to Horchow to pick up a couple of them for her!  Is that a deal or what?!? 

The Waterford Simply Pink wine hocks look spectacular on this cloth.

Inexpensive champagne flutes for the mimosas were also part of the setting.

 Spode Billingsley Rose has such darling little details.

Several plates of various patterns were layered on vintage linen pull work place mats.

A Spode Savoy dinner plate was used as a charger for a Spode Billingsley Rose luncheon plate.  Next was a Johnson Brothers Richmond salad plate topped with a Spode Billingsley Rose berry bowl.

The silverware was Gorham Chantilly.

Personalized cookies were used as place cards as well as party favors.

Isn't this gorgeous?  My mil passed it along to us.  It was a wedding gift to my husband's parents from my fil's grandmother.  I'm not sure of the maker, but maybe my mil will fill in the details on the comments.  I feel so privleged to be the steward of this piece of the family history.The beautiful silver tray was a wedding gift from my cousin.

My birdcage again...the botton was filled with multi-sized pillar candles, unscented of course!  We considered lighting the candles, then we thought better of it as the bunting could pose a fire hazard...then there was talk about nice looking firemen....we quickly came back to our senses and left it as is!  

,

The prettiest part of the whole table were the lovely friends that sat around it.

I'm so fortunate to have friends that are real, with character and integrity.  Friends that are kind and that are trustworthy.  No hidden agendas.  No putting on shows or tooting their own horns.  They're such a wonderful bunch of ladies, full of amazing talents and many accomplishments!  (Trust me, these ladies have plenty to brag about, but would never stoop to such hideous behavior!)  People with those qualities can be hard to find...I'm sure you have a story or two YOU could tell!

They also indulge me in my tablescaping needs!

Thank you friends!

And finally, after washing the dishes and resetting the table for more pictures, I lit the candles for one final photo.  Lovely.

Hope you have had a wonderful Valentine's Day!

Smiles!

May share this with some of the parties located in the sidebar =>

Easter Brunch Table

We were delighted that our wonderful neighbors were able to enjoy Easter Brunch with us.  They have two of the most adorable little girls you have ever seen.  Girls make a pink tablecloth more tolerable for my two guys!

The base of this Easter table is a beautiful pink matelasse tablecloth my MIL gave me from Horchow.  It is ablsolutely the most gorgeous tablecloth that I own.  She has amassed a wonderful collection of the most divine tablecloths you have EVER seen.  I am so fortunate to have her as an enabler of my tablescaping addiction.  You must stop by and see some of her gorgeous tables HERE.

The floral arrangements are from ispirations found through out blogland.

The hurricanes are the same ones I made back in October from Dollar Tree pieces.  Click here to see the tutorial from The Elephants Trunk. 

Several bloggers out there shared the idea of using peeps & jelly beans in the base of their arrangements.  I can honestly say that this was the first time in my entire life that I have bought a peep.  Never bought one before, much less tried one, but they sure look cute in the floral arrangement!  For filler I used peanut M & M's and some shredded glass.  The beautiful tulips were a steal at Sam's.

I used my Billinsley Rose Spode China with the Red Stamp for our service.

My sweet MIL helped me pick it out and I just love it.  Its my hand-me-down china that I never had.  The peridot chargers really pick up the green in the plate as well as the other accent pieces.  Click here to see how to make the chargers.

Gorham Chantilly is the pattern of my silver which was given to me by a dear friend.  (One day I'll share that story as it is very special to me.)

Close up of the beautiful Jewel plates by Spode with the Billingsley Rose pattern.

Full table view.  Don't you just love that pink tablecloth with the green chargers?!?  Its even prettier in person!

Do you see that sweet bunny peaking out of his pitcher behind the flowers?

The water goblets are Simply Pink & Simply Lime from Waterford.

(Another great find of my MIL's!)

The peeps peeking out of their home in the hurricane!

The jadite candlestick holders were my grandmother's.  They were perfect on this table.  The little bumble bees were just a little extra I added.  You can find them at Hobby Lobby in the floral dept.

Another sweet bunny.  Imagine that!  Bunnies on an Easter table.

Picked up these napkins rings at Hobby Lobby when they were half-off.

Ahhh!  The Fitz & Floyd Bunny Pitcher.  It is such a sweet addition to the table.  I have a small collection of 5 bunny pitchers that I used through out the house to decorate for Easter.

Well, that pretty much wraps up the Easter Table this year.

Hope you had as lovely of a day as we did.

If you haven't had a chance, click here to check out the TUESDAY TO DO PARTY.

Smiles!!!

Linking to:

Get Your Craft On

Feature Yourself Friday

Tickled Pink

Tablescape Thursday

Frugalicious Friday

V.I.P. Party