Tablescape Thursday: All I Want For Christmas

Perfume and incense make the heart glad, but the sweetness of a friend is a fragrant forest.

Proverbs 27:9 (GWT)

Friendships are one of those special blessings from God. 

Do you have those friends that you've known your whole life....you know, those friends you might not get to see often, but when you do, you pick up right where you left off?

Well, growing up, I had a small group of friends at church.....friends with whom I share many memories.  Although we are now scattered in different locations, we try to make it a point to get together at least 3 or 4 times a year & "catch up."  Last year, I had the privilege of having them over for a Christmas dinner....no husbands, no kids.....just us girls!

So I decided it was the perfect time to bring out some of my girly dishes!

Yesterday I shared some of the Christmas decor in my kitchen & breakfast nook, & gave you a little hint as to the theme of my tablescape, but I made you wait 'til today to see it!

So are you ready for my very girly "All I Want For Christmas" tablescape?

Shades of red & green make this table playful & festive. 


A semi-sheer, red polkadot tablecloth casually lies down the center of the table, while 2 mercury green trees & a pair of glittery red "heels" add some height & interest.  A few green rhinestones are also scattered here & there, because at Christmas, you can never have too much sparkle!



Now on to the place settings.  I wanted each place to be slightly different & special, yet carry on the theme......so each one had different glassware, napkins, napkin rings, etc., but the color scheme pulled them all together.

So I'll go around the table & show you each one....


Grounded with a green charger, a red scalloped dinner plate is then topped with one of my "All I Want for Christmas" salad plates, this one stating, "A Designer Bag in Every Color."
A lime green polkadot bread plate adds yet another layer, while a glittery red shoe ornament not only adds interest, but makes a little extra gift for my friends.
A tall green lime green goblet & a shorter ruby red goblet find there place here, too.
A green napkin is topped with a red & green polkadot dish towel (yes, I said dish towel....sometimes you have to be creative), & held together with a sparkly red napkin ring.
Although difficult to see in the picture, a mixture of red, green, & clear flatware continue the playfulness.


Moving to the next place setting.....

.....a red charger with clear rhinestones serves as a backdrop, while a lime green scalloped dinner plate adds contrast.  This time the "All I Want For Christmas Is A Huge Diamond Ring" salad plate makes its appearance, while a red polkadot bread plate tops it off.  A sparkly lime green shoe ornament rests at the top, while a lime green napkin & red snowflake napkin are held together with a green beaded napkin ring.  The flatware again is a playful mix, & a green water goblet is paired with a Christmas goblet.


Just across the way, another red scalloped plate rests on a green charger.....
....only this time the salad plate reads, "ALL I Want For Christmas Is A Dozen Designer Shoes."  A white napkin is layered with a lime green & red dish towel, which displays the words to The 12 Days of Christmas, and is held together with a red diamond napkin ring.  A green hobnail tumbler is paired with a shiny red goblet.



And finally, the red charger & green dinner plate make another appearance....
....as the backdrop for the "All I Want For Christmas Is The Perfect Little Black Dress" salad plate.  A red napkin is topped with a lime green zebra print napkin & held together with a jingle bell napkin ring, and a lime leopard goblet is paired with a red tumbler.

And in case you're curious about what those "All I Want For Christmas" plates look like under there, here is a little glimpse before I added the top layers....

{Unfortunately, it looks like I didn't take any close ups of them last year.}


Christmas salt & pepper shakers and a polkadot bowl & shoe spreader knife for butter also sit ready & waiting.....functional, yet festive.




Instead of having place cards on the table, I decided to add some fun to the back of each chair with sparkly tulle & a small sequined stocking.  An initial ornament (again for each girl to take home) reveals where each one is to sit.

I also love to decorate my chandeliers at Christmas!
Going along with the theme, this one is a mix of sprays, ornaments, & other Christmas elements.

I know....it's a little over the top, but someone once told me, "Anything worth doing is worth over-doing!" 
That pretty much sums up my decorating philosophy!



The ornaments include shoes, handbags, diamond rings, fun coats, & anything girly. 
While some hang directly from the greenery, others are tied with ribbon, allowing them to "float" below.



So now that you've seen all of its parts, here's a step back so that you can see the whole picture.

{If you look to the left, you can see just a glimpse of the red & green Christmas tree in my living area, which is where I'll continue the tour next Wednesday!}

The menu for the night consisted of salad, creamy, crunchy chicken, Italian green beans, & fresh rolls.

{Click on the links to view the recipes!}

And because I knew we'd be up late chatting, we needed something to nibble on......

yummy cookies, brownies, & hot chocolate sit ready & waiting.

Yep, even the cookies went with the theme (thanks to my sweet hubby who took the time to decorate them for me!).

And of course, I have to show a picture of us girls!
My gift to them (& to myself) was matching scarves in different colors, so here we are modeling our scarves!
(I'm the one with the purple scarf.)

{Oops, another glimpse of the living room......}

But of course, all we really wanted for Christmas (although all of the other things would be great, too!) was SOME SPECIAL GIRL TIME WITH FRIENDS!


Red & Green Dinner Plates - By Rosanna (internet)
All I Want For Christmas Plates - By Rosanna (Ebay)
Red & Green Polkadot Plates - TJ Maxx
Green Chargers - Hobby Lobby
Red Chargers - Kirklands
Flatware, Drinkware, Napkins, & Napkin Rings - too many places to mention!

I'm joining with Between Naps on the Porch for Tablescape Thursday.
Thanks for stopping by, & be sure to check back next week for more Christmas decor!

Tablescape Thursday: Winter's End

"As long as the earth endures, seedtime and harvest, cold and heat, summer and winter, day and night will never cease."  Genesis 8:22 (NIV)

February is winding down, which means winter is coming to an end.  Okay, so I know that winter isn't technically over until the 3rd week of March, but it my mind, once March hits, it's spring!  And boy do I have spring fever this year!  This has been one crazy winter....a week or so ago we had about a foot of snow, and then the last couple days we hit 80*.  That's Oklahoma for ya!  And this little taste of spring has left me wanting more! 

So this past weekend as I was packing up the last of my winter decorations (okay, I'll admit it, I still had a couple Christmasy things out!  Eek!), I decided that before I get out all my spring decor, I'd throw together one more wintery tablescape to signify the end of winter & the beginning of spring.   And when I say "throw together," I think this was the fastest I've ever put a tablescape together!  Usually I play around with it for a long time, sometimes hours, but this time, I just started throwing things on the table, & liked the way it looked right away!





 

(You'll have to forgive my wrinkled tablecloth!  Remember, I threw this together.  No time for ironing!)

I started by grabbing a couple of lanterns from our front porch.  I actually have 3 sizes, but decided I only needed the smaller 2 for my tablescape.  I LOVE these lanterns.  When I got them last fall, I attached some greenery with burlap ribbon, added a candle, and set them on our front porch, surrounded by pumpkins & gourds.  When Thanksgiving was over, I simply added some red berries to the greenery & surrounded the candles with faux cranberries, and they were ready for winter!  Now that winter is coming to an end, I'll be replacing the lanterns with a fountain that my hubby is putting together.  Since I was bringing them in anyway, I figured I might as well display them on my table for a few days.

Then I surrounded the lanterns with some "snowy" bird nests & greenery.  Even though they're snowy, the nests remind me that spring is just around the corner.

And, of course, I had to use my bird nest chargers....again to symbolize the changing of the seasons.

I chose to use my snowflake salad plates atop cream color dinner plates.  The edges of the dinner plates kind of remind me of snowflakes, too. 

The light green napkins tie in the color of the greenery & help to give the plates some definition. 

A little sprig of berries adds a pop of color to the neutral palette.

And because this time of year around here, you never know whether you'll need an iced tea or some hot cocoa, there's a goblet & a mug to quench either thirst.  A coordinating napkin, in a light tan color, is tucked inside the mug for a little extra pizzazz.

And my very favorite thing about this tablescape is that I didn't have to buy a thing........it was already stuff I had around the house.  (Hmm, maybe that's why it came together so fast!)

I hope you've enjoyed this "Winter's End" tablescape as much as I enjoyed putting it together. 

Tablecloth - Ross

Lanterns - The Market in OKC (Pottery Barn has the exact same ones, but I have to admit, they're about 2x as much as I paid!)

Greenery/Burlap Ribbon - The Market in OKC

Berry Picks - Hobby Lobby

Snowy Birds Nests - Affair of the Heart in OKC

Bird Nests Chargers - Pottery Barn

Green Napkins/Tan Napkins - Burlington

Cream Dinner Plates - Chris Madden Home Collection/JC Penney

Snowflake Salad Plates - GG (Gracious Goods) Collection/Horchow

Silverware - GG Collection/Horchow

Goblets - GG Collection/Ebay (Horchow also has them)

Mugs - GG Collection/Horchow

I'm joining with Susan at Between Naps on the Porch for Tablescape Thursday.  Check them out to see all the beautiful tablescapes.