Throwback Thrifty Tables

I considered doing a brand-new tablescape today,

but . . . I am bone lazy.

Actually, I'm not really ready to do all the toting

and moving of dishes and glassware and

centerpiece stuff . . . my knee is still sore and cranky,

and still under those "rest it" doc's orders.  Bor-ing.

But the ghosts of Fall table settings past

are plentiful in the pictures archives.

2009:  Lunch for one in the Parlor.

Dollar Tree, TJ Maxx, a free lantern, a few gifts,

and of course -- more Dollar Tree. 

 Got the rooster plate in Los Angeles, at a TJ Maxx.  Just like home ....

The lantern was liberated from a country club by my daughter Alida,

when she waitressed at a wedding there.  The lanterns were abandoned and up for grabs.

Free is my favorite price. The fabulous tea pot is a gift, years ago, from my daughters.

2009:  Lunch, in the Conservatory.

Walmart, Dollar Tree, Ebay, and more Dollar Tree.

Seeing a pattern here?

 Dollar Tree well represented here.  I love a store where everything is a buck.

So, this table may have a bit of a pumpkin overload going on. Hey, the tables can't all be winners.

2009:  Dining Room casual dinner for two.

Looks like a pasta night, doesn't it? 

 Plates from Dollar Tree.  Bowls from a discount drugstore.
Plaid linen napkins, vintage, eBay, cheap.

It's hard to see with my clumsy pictures, but the blue in the plates does match the blues in the bowls.

Trust me.

 Hand blown turquoise wine glasses from my favorite charity thrift shop.

 2009: Dining Room again.  For two.

Soup lunch!  Yes, with beer, hence the Pilseners.

 Goodwill candle holder, Dollar tree plates, TJ Maxx bowls, Dollar Tree bird votives,

my Mom's pewter S & P, eBay vintage silverplate flatware, Dollar Tree placemats.

 Home Goods napkins.  They have the best prices on new napkins.

 Goodwill had two of these mercury glass candleholders.

Ask me why I bought only one?  I cannot answer you.  Stupid.

Frenchy-looking tin cachepot holding the ivy?

From a decorators' sample sale in NYC, many moons ago.

And that wraps up the Tablescape and Thrift parts of

our Thursday blog post, ladies and gentlemen.  :-) 

Because it is Throwback Thursday, here's a picture of our

Dion DiPoochy, also in 2009, wondering why I have draped him

in a pumpkin garland.  He was always so patient.

Confused sometimes, but always patient.

And with that, it's Goodbye time.

I think there are chairs in my future, on Craigslist,

and on tomorrow's blog post.  
And hopefully in our dining room.  Be well! -- Cass

LINK PARTIES!

Tablescape Thursday, at Between Naps On The Porch.  Click!

Treasure Hunt Thursday, at From My Front Porch to Yours.  Click!

Something Old, Borrowed, or Blue. Nuthin' New!

I am not very good at 'scaping things.
As in, tablescaping, mantelscaping (I think
I just made up that word), or even landscaping.

In my world, things mostly just sort of land someplace,

and that's often where they stay.

For instance, this oil painting by my Aunt Lillian landed on our sunroom
windowsill several weeks ago . . . and yes, it is still there, and kinda spooking me out.
See what I mean?

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But today it is raining.  All day.  It's  damp and ugly outside,

and occasionally smells like wet dog inside. 

Yes, Dion, I'm looking at you.

So, I decided to mantelscape the Parlor so that at least one room

at That Old House would have some pretty going on.

I didn't take a before picture, because the before was a bare mantel.

I still have many of my cousin Janet's things waiting for their

permanent homes, so I took some of them and did a quick 'scape.

A crazed white ironstone pitcher holds fake hydrangea blossoms.

Our own hydrangeas are in bud, but not blooming yet.

Isn't that bird darling?

On the other side of the mantel, a small painting

by my cousin Bill, Janet's brother.

I leaned it up against a gilt mirror from the apartment.

We are not lighting fires now until the Fall, so another

of Bill's paintings fills the blank, black firebox with color.

 As the afternoon wore on, the day got darker (duh!)

and the rain steadier and heavier.

Note to self:  Next rainy day?  Put out some candles!

Yes, it is dark and dreary this Tuesday afternoon.

But at least everything is nice and green outside.

 If I drank heavily in the afternoon, these pictures might look like this: 

But I don't, so they don't.

Have a lovely rest of the day, and visit Marty at A Stroll Thru Life for more Tuesday posts!  -- Cass

Click here for Table Top Tuesday!

Dishes -- Are 60 Too Few? Are 6000 Too Many?

It's Sunday, and I'm not really here.
I am working today at the antiques center where I have a booth,
but late last night I decided to join in The Tablescaper's 
3rd Annual Where Do You Keep It All? blog party.

But because time is tight this weekend, I'm cheating.  I dug out a 3-year old post

about the old cupboards and cabinets at That Old House, and the treasures they hold.

-- Because --

 "My name is Cass, and I am a dishaholic."

An old walnut cupboard -- rumored to have been built by Abraham Lincoln's father --

is at the end of our kitchen, and holds a crazy ragtag collection of dishes that are used regularly.

Since June 2009, when these pictures were taken, the kitchen has been redone but the cupboard

is still there.  Still full of dishes.  Even more full.  'Cause dishes?  I have a lot.

Open the doors in the bottom if you dare,

to find stacks and stacks of Christmas dishes, and

even Christmas flatware (wrapped in the yellow plastic).

There is very little upper cabinet storage in this kitchen.
Things get put where they fit.

I think there are 7 different patterns represented on these shelves.

In the dining room, the big pine breakfront does its bit for the cause:

There are oodles of Mikasa Far East; I bought service for 8 the year after we married,
and then a few years ago began snatching it up on Ebay; I think I have service for more than 2 dozen.

Wedgwood, rummage sale tea cups, and assorted glassware,

and behind the doors underneath?  Noooo.... don't look!

I warned you.
Stuffed with white Thanksgiving china (embossed Della Robia type borders),
and in the upper right corner, a stack of old Limoges plates with pink roses.

Look to the left of the Limoges -- clear fish platters!

Mikasa Ribbon Pink china hides behind a side door:

The rest of it is tucked behind the Christmas dishes in the old walnut kitchen cupboard.

Across the dining room, my grandmother's china cabinet,
a hodgepodge of bits and pieces, including. . .

yes!  More of that old Limoges -- some plates, and bouillon cups.

A small stack of Far East dinner plates rests on the sideboard,
waiting to be tucked away in the breakfront:

We used those plates several nights ago, when we had a dinner guest;
I try and use the dishes we have, so that they are more than just pretty faces.

And speaking of pretty faces . . .

Mr. Dion DiPoochy, in a portrait from June 2009.

Today, June 3, 2012, was not a happy day for Dion.

After his dinner, he took a walk outside and his little legs got a bit shaky,

and he landed a foot plop in the deposit he had just made on the lawn.

He did not enjoy the subsequent scrubbing in the tub, but he did enjoy the

almost 3 hours he spent in Anne's lap, snuggling and drying off.
He did not wake up until Howard walked into the room with a mug of wonton soup.

Look for pictures of Wet Dion on Monday.

Ssshh . . . please don't tell Mr. D. that we shared his tale of woe.

Visit The Tablescaper 

for more shares of where things get stashed in households

that are overly blessed by china and glassware!

And have a lovely Sunday!  -- Cass

Two Sisters, One Minivan, a GPS, and a Blue Table ReRun

On this gray and drizzly Thursday, my sister Peggy
and I are saddling up the minivan and
venturing into the uncharted wilds of New Jersey.

Also known as Morris, Hunterdon, and Somerset Counties.

Dangerous turf, my friends. . .

populated by the Horsey Set, Wall Streeters, BMW drivers,

and people who probably spent more than $1.89 on their coffee tables.

We may have to go in disguise so as not to be spotted as aliens,

although once they catch sight of my red Chrysler minivan, the jig's probably up.

:-)

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We'll be seeking out consignment shops, including at least one where I am pretty sure

I won't be able to afford anything; yes, it's that high end.  I hope they'll let me take pictures.

We'll have lunch at my new favorite dive, just for the excellent cole slaw, and also visit
a thrift shop or two, so I've got at least a chance of toting home something for my tank of gas.

But before I leave to meet Peggy, I'm re-posting a

table setting from almost exactly two years ago.

It's blue.  Very blue.

**********************************

(First Posted 2/11/2010)

Welcome to Thursday at That Old House! 

Supper for two.

Don't forget to check out the links to today's blog parties,
at the end of this post!

Some months back, I was in HomeGoods and I spotted a package of four placemats.
Blue and white always catches my eye.

But the fabric pattern reminded me of something:
a set of (cheap) ironstone dishes I bought 30 years ago when we were first married, and have rarely used.

So today, I finally put them together, with my old
plated flatware -- Georgian pattern, some monogrammed and some not.

The dishes have several shades of blue, including a gray tint and an almost-aqua tint.
The placemats also have these shades.  Kismet!

At Dollar Tree last summer, these plump little tea light holders jumped into my shopping cart.

Two designs, in classic blue and white.

On the table, an older Bombay Company china pot, blue and white, with fake flowers in it.

From a church thrift shop, bubbly blue wine glasses.

I like the shape of the coffee cups, so I'm adding them to the table setting.

Vintage Irish linen napkins.  Old, but in like-new condition.  Ebay, some years back.

The backstamp for the china.
I do not speak Spanish, but it looks like it's claiming to be resistant to acid.
And something else.

All put together, I like how this table setting turned out -- and it was fun to see those old dishes again!

And the placemats are reversible.  On the other side, just the print, no border.  I hope they won't need much ironing; I haven't replaced my iron yet.  No fool, I. -- Cass

Visit Suzanne at Colorado Lady for Vintage Thingies Thursday!

Visit Leigh at Tales from Bloggeritaville for Thrifty Thursday!

And Susan at Between Naps On The Porch for Tablescape Thursday!