Thanksgiving in the Meadows and Ponds

Among all the holidays during the year, Thanksgiving has always been my favorite. Gathering with family and friends to share memories and laughter over memorable dinners creates a special kind of holiday! While others do the cooking and baking, I'll focus on setting a table that is welcoming and festive, comfortable with a touch of elegance. 

 

  

Today I'm joining a group of stylists who are sharing their ideas for setting special Thanksgiving tables!

A Shadow on the Floor — The Raven

It was the evening of October 31. I had planned an elegant dinner and set a table that was inspired by friends I had joined in a blog hop to celebrate All Hallow’s Eve. (You can access all their wonderful ideas below.)   

A Dozen Fall Tables to Celebrate the Season

After enduring the long, hot days of summer, I'm more than ready to enjoy the delights of autumn, which officially arrived today with the equinox! I thought I'd share a dozen fall tables that approach autumn design in different ways to celebrate the new season and inspire you (and me!) to design tablescapes with lovely colors and wonderfully iconic themes. Just click on each title to view the complete post!

 

1.  We'll start with a table that showcases the last of summer's wildflowers and the reign of fall's chrysanthemums in Acorns and Flowers. Deeply colored plates feature dramatic depictions of fall flowers and unique acorns on pretty linens highlight the last wildflowers of summer.

 

 

Set a Captivating Table when Summer Turns to Fall

Are you ready for fall? Although we're nearing the end of August I confess I'm not ready to let go of summer just yet. But in my defense, summer here ignores the calendar and stretches well into September, some years even into October!

Nonetheless, I've begun to plan for autumn decor throughout the house. I want the transition to the sights and scents of autumn in the house to have the same leisurely pace that the world outside takes.  As part of the process, today I've set a captivating table for when summer turns to fall.

  

I'm delighted to be joining a number of friends who are also welcoming fall by styling tablescapes with different autumn themes.

Tea and Muffins on the Bistro Table

Welcome to the deck! Today I decided to have breakfast at the bistro table, before the heat and humidity sends me back inside. It's been a while since I set a table on the deck; I'm not sure why that's the case. I enjoy being on the deck, particularly in spring and fall. We had replaced our original deck and made it larger when we totally renovated the back yard.  I described the structural transformation of our yard in Backyard Renovation Reveal and the long process of finishing the deck in Deck Update: Railing Installed.

 

A Landscape Renovation, From the Beginning

Are you faced with a boring landscape? Or worse yet, an empty yard or overgrown/rundown garden? Here's how we tackled my MIL's yard, one phase at a time, from the beginning.

 

Blues and Blooms for a Country French Table

In recognition of Greg's French heritage today, I've set a table in a country french style for Sunday brunch. I chose today because they're celebrating la fête nationale on 14 juillet with parades, fireworks, music, performances and of course wonderful suppers! Le bleu, blanc, rouge flutters from staffs and houses and finds its echo on the table which incorporates all three colors.

 

 

There is always a beginning for setting a table,

A Stylish Table in Red, White and Blue

Are you planning an exciting Fourth of July celebration? Or are you going to enjoy the holiday with a casual gathering? We tend to stay home, have a typical summer cookout, and enjoy our neighborhood's fireworks. Whichever way you celebrate Independence Day you can design a stylish table in shades of red, white and blue!

I've set the table in the casual garden room

Summertime Gardens for the Table

Hello! What says summer to you? For me it's the long hours of daylight that energize the garden. So I've chosen gardens as my theme for today's summer tablescape blog hop where I'm joining a wonderful group of stylists who'll inspire you with the variety of their designs celebrating this season. Organized by Rita of Panoply, all nineteen participants in the blog hop are listed at the end of this post with links to their tablescapes.

I chose lovely linens bedecked with summer flowers as the base for the table setting. The flowers are primarily pinks and lavenders with an array of different types and colors of leaves. I was lucky to receive the runner and napkins as a gift from my sister. 

   

The place settings begin

An Easy Solution for a Table Setting — and — Another Pup Emergency!

We had planned a low-key Mother's Day dinner for my MIL. I wanted to style a table that would be special, yet simple for me to put together, since I was still hobbling around in a walking boot post-surgery. I was thankful that I had left the crutches behind, but I wasn't steady enough to take the stairs down to my stash of table styling elements.  So I needed an easy solution for my table setting!

I began with the beautiful bouquet of flowers

Bunnies in the Garden — A Springtime Table

Spring is the season for experiencing warming temps and lengthening days, and for an explosion of new growth in our gardens and in nature all around us. To bring the season indoors we brighten our interiors and replace winter's deep colors with all the shades of new blossoms and the verdant colors of new grass.

 

I'm welcoming the season with a springtime table starring a beautiful jacquard table runner and napkins in a shade that can only be described as spring green! It's patterned with varieties of blooming flowers including tulips, daffodils and lily of the valley. The linens are a deeper colorway than those I used in my first springtime table of the season which was a study in pastels.

   

Spring Flowers are Everywhere — in the House and in the Garden

Have you noticed that spring flowers are suddenly everywhere?! Longer days, warmer temps and recurring rainfalls have together created magic in my garden. And that inspired me to add flowers throughout my house!

Come with me to see where I’ve transformed areas of my home with the magic of spring flowers.

  

Celebrate Spring's Arrival with a Pastel Tablesetting

Spring officially begins tonight at 11:06 pm, but no one has told my garden which had slowly begun to awaken in mid-February with the yellows, whites, and purples of crocuses and daffodils. So I'm more than ready to celebrate Spring's arrival today!

   

Pretty Table Settings for Savoring Tea

Rain-soaked days are perfect for taking some time for myself and relaxing with a cup — or two! — of tea. Rather than just pour some into a mug and flop on a couch, I like to set a delightful tea on a pretty table. Alone with my thoughts, perhaps some soft music . . .

Celtic Heritage Table Style

Early spring is arriving with clumps of daffodils blooming in my garden! March is just around the corner, bringing with it one of my favorite reasons to set a table  — St. Patrick's Day.

     

The Year of the Dragon

In the midst of the dark days of winter comes the first new moon. This year it will occur on February 10, which begins the next lunar year. Millions of people around the world follow the lunar calendar, In many cultures, each year is also associated with an animal from the zodiac. This year it will be the dragon — believed to be an auspicious and extraordinary creature, symbolizing power, nobility, honor, luck and success. To channel a bit of all that I set a table to enjoy a celebration of our own!

  

A Valentine's Table with Flowers, Ribbons and Hearts

What could be more romantic than flowers? Perhaps setting a lovely table to showcase their blooms and enjoy their fragrances on a winter's day. Especially if done for Valentine's Day!

Chocolate and Snowmen

Brrrrr!! Winter has arrived with a vengeance! Here in North Georgia it's 15℉ with the wind chill bringing it down to 4℉. And forecast to be colder tomorrow. (I know a lot of you are experiencing much colder temps and many inches of snow, but we don't usually get truly wintry weather in the northern metro 'burbs.)

 

Our two black labs can't get enough of the outdoors!

 

So . . . what to do? Set up a hot cocoa station of course!