Thanksgiving Tablescape

I hope you had a wonderful Thanksgiving!  We sure did. A cozy evening with family and friends gave us much to be thankful for. Sarah and her Mom, Mary, prepared a delicious meal. The traditional family favorites that Tawn (Broccoli, Rice and Cheese) and Nani (Broken Glass - jello) added to the menu rounded out a feast that we all enjoyed.  My job was decorate and bring salad and cake.

 

The table's almost ready.  Sorry, I got busy helping and visiting and I forgot to go back for more pictures.

 

We alternated bowls and plates for the salad.  By mixing the limited amount of brown glass with clear we still got a nice look.  The Johnson Brothers Windsor Ware plates (heirlooms from Sarah's family) have an assortment of fruits and flowers on them.

The roses (they were actually more Rust than Red) matched the flowers on the dinnerware almost exactly.

The inspirational Thanksgiving sign that I made for the Sizzix Triple Play Blog Hop looked very nice with the colors of the dessert and the bronze antique mirror frame.  (It's so great when things work out the way you imagine them to!)  I often display the beautiful desserts on a side board as part of my party decor.

Isabella and Nani (Great Grandma) check to make sure the Chocolate Fudge Cake was O.K. to serve for dessert.  Bella LOVES "choc-o-late".  We love to hear her say it.  :)  She decided she would like to eat cake first before the meal.  That's my girl!  She waited patiently until after dinner though.

For more beautiful tablescapes, many that are more elaborate than mine, check out Tablescape Thursdays at Between Naps on the Porch. 

Autumn Napkin Folds: Chocolate Brown and a Sneak Peek

I have these beautiful, large Chocolate Brown napkins.  I showed you the French Fold (also called the Classic Three Point Fold) with one of the last yellow roses of the season in a previous post. Click here to see it.

I replaced the Yellow Rose with Pin Oak leaves and a simple knot of satin ribbon.

This is called a Diamond Arrow fold.  I tucked the bottom point back and under to create a straight edge.  I think the bright orange Maple leaves look so pretty against the brown.  I alternated the direction of each leaf to create a little interest and allow the colors to show.

Tomorrow is the 4th week of the Sizzix Triple Play Blog Hop!  Here's a Sneak Peak!  You won't want to miss all the creativity!

Autumn Napkin Folds: Cone fold

Here are a few more napkin folding experiments for Thanksgiving.  This fold is called a Cone Fold and normally looks a little like an ice cream cone but I straightened out the sides. 

In this version I tucked the smaller point in the back and attached a paper embellishment from the scrapbook store on the front with removeable Glue Dots.  (I'm not sure why it looks like it's tinted purple in this picture but it's actually brown)  I tucked in a few pieces of dried grass behind the paper.

 I turned this one over and tucked flatware behind the small pointed fold and a few leaves inside the fold.

A few close ups might help you to see what I did.  I'll try to get complete tutorials up soon.

The nice thing about this fold is that you can use a soft napkin.  Iron it flat before folding but you don't need to iron in the creases or starch.

I only had one Black and Tan napkin and I can't remember where I got it, darn.

Autumn Napkin Folds: Crown fold

I'm thinking about how we'll decorate the table for Thanksgiving this year and thought you might want to see a few of my experiments.  A few weeks ago I decided to play with some of the fall leaves and flowers that were still "hanging in there" before the first frost.  I used a golden orange napkin and made a Crown Fold.  Lee and I took a walk around the block and collected the leaves. It was a really pleasant evening and I enjoyed the walk even more than playing with the napkins.

I stacked and then tucked 3 different colors of Maple Leaves in the first one.

Little Marigolds filled the pocket of the second one.  Pretty but doesn't have the best scent for a tablescape.

And, finally, this bunch of Pin Oak leaves were my favorite.

NOTE:  When you use fresh botanicals, especially those from outdoors, wash and dry them by swishing each bunch in a bucket of water to remove any little critters that might be hiding.   Trim the bunches to make them look a little better and lay them on a few paper towels to air dry before adding them to the napkins.

To make the Crown Fold stand up, use a starched or heavier weight napkin.  Iron each fold to create this shape.  Fold and iron all the napkins one step at a time.  First fold: all the napkins, Second fold: all the napkins, etc.  

Autumn Rose and French Fold Napkins

We have a few rose bushes that always seem to compete with the fall leaves and their show of color.  Even though they bloom all summer, it's the first flowers in spring and the last few in autumn that are the sweetest to me.  I'll miss these happy yellow buds during their long winter rest.

I decided to use them to accent some brown dinner napkins.  If you do this for your guests make sure to remove the thorns from the stems and it would be nice to place a bud vase at each place setting so the flowers can decorate the table during the meal.

I used the FRENCH FOLD and turned it upside down.  A satin bow gave me a place to tuck in the stem and I like the way the folded napkin follows the curve of the stem and frames the bud.

Step 1: Fold the napkin in half into a triangle. The long, straight fold is on the left - point on the right.

Step 2: Fold the top point down and to the right of the bottom point (about 1" between the two points). This creates a new point on the right side.

Step 3: Grab the new point on the top right and fold in down and next to the second point at the bottom.  It helps if you hold on to the top left point to keep those folds in place while you pull the right point down.  Now adjust the points to be as close or far apart as you'd like.

This simple, yet elegant, fold is traditionally draped across the plate with the points facing the dinner guest.  Enjoy!

Nantucket Supper

There's a long corridor at the Antique and Garden Fair that is usually decorated with plants and flowers.  This year I was really happy to see a tablescape theme.  White kites were suspended all along the sky lights.

"Nantucket Supper" was designed and donated by William Heffernan Landscapes from Chicago.  Products from Pottery Barn, BBJ Linens and Heffernan Morgan Inc. were combined to created a delightful table.

The crisp white and blue checked table linens, pies on pedestal stands, bread baskets, plants and groupings of dinnerware made you want to pull up a pillow and join the picnic.

I loved the assortment of blue and white pottery that was combined with clear glass and silver all along the table. 

A loaf of bread, a glass of wine and blue hydrangeas.  Very nice.  Even though it's been a beautiful spring, the display made me long for a summer picnic.

"Summer afternoon - summer afternoon; to me those have always been the two most beautiful words in the English language" - 
Dame Edith Wharton

Painting Pears on a Napkin

I taught a workshop to the Quilting Ladies at church and they loved using the Fabric Fun products!  They use their napkins as placemats for lunch each week.  Well, one of the ladies couldn't make it to the workshop so I made one for her! Easy and fun!  Just sketch (or trace) and color. Blend with a brush and iron to make the design permanent.  Hope she likes it.

"There are only ten minutes in the life of a pear when it is perfect to eat." Ralph Waldo Emerson

Vintage Napkin Care

I love shopping for linens at resale shops and garage sales.  Most of the time I find single napkins that someone brought home from a restaurant but once in a while I hit upon a real bargain.  Many people get excited about their tablescape and buy a new set of beautiful napkins. They use them, wash them and freak out after they come out of the dryer. I'm sure that's what happened here.

But at the bargain price of $2.00 how could I resist?  I sure don't mind painting or sewing designs on something that costs about 17 cents!  And, with 12 in the set I don't worry about ruining them. In fact, if there is a small stain I can cover it with paint or embroidery.

In fact; one the the reasons I buy the napkins at this price is that if they get ruined in the washer/dryer I don't mind so much.  I don't want to use them if I can't easily clean them, which brings me back to the ironing dilemma that brought this set to the resale shop in the first place.

Here's my technique for quick napkin care.
1. After the party  I wash them in cold (or warm) water with a little Borax or Borateem added.
No...I don't always do it the same night. If you are worried about really messy stains rub in a little dishwashing liquid. Wash the napkins the next day. Think about it - dish soap is designed to remove food.
2. For napkins that need to be ironed I toss them into the dryer for about 10 minutes while I'm setting up my ironing station.  I have a large old beach towel, folded in half, that I lay on top of the dryer.  This gives me a large surface to work on so I don't to move them around to fit the top of the ironing board. (that takes extra time!)
3. Stretch out each napkin and iron it while it's still slightly damp.  This takes an average of 20-30 seconds for each one!  If you want crisp napkins use a little spray starch.  I like them soft.
4. I stack the flat napkins on the washing machine while I work.
5. Finally I clip them together on a pants hanger to store them.