This week's tablescape is an example of a table created to honor a man. Perhaps you need to create a table setting for a birthday or Father's Day or some other family celebration. I find creating a tablescape for the male species is not as easy as for a woman. Not all men hunt, fish or golf or like race cars. Generally, if I am hosting a lunch or dinner for someone, I like to relate the event to the person in some way, perhaps their hobby, interest, occupation or event in their life such as a retirement, promotion, graduate degree, etc. This tablescape is for a birthday brunch for a man who restores old homes. It does have fish and birds in it, but the theme is carried out by the architectural salvage fragments in the centerpiece. I like to use objects that have unique interest instead of flowers if I can, although a floral centerpiece can be designed to be masculine. I am also using a canvas tablecloth for a more rough texture. And, I have chosen brown and aqua for the colors.
The service plates have bird pairs on them. Each hand painted French Avenir Limoges plate is different.
This is a wider view of the table with the service plates. Below are a few photos of the other designs on the plates.
And another one.
It would be hard for me to choose a favorite in my game plates, but these are right at the top. Beautiful quality and mint condition with well executed painting.
These must be Pheasants.
The chargers are from Jaune de Chrome, my favorite French porcelain maker for new china. If you follow my blog, you've heard me rave about them.
The pattern name is English Rose on Song in Ivory. Even though they are floral, I am using them for a man because the colorway is chocolate and they don't shout floral like pink roses would. You probably wouldn't know they were roses.
For the centerpiece, I went around the house and gathered architectural salvage pieces I purchased in antique shops. They are in their originial grimey condition with pealing paint. My favorite is what I call the onion top. I've also included two newer finials because of their coloration.
The napkins I selected because they had both brown and aqua in the pattern.
The napkins are from Yves Delorme Paris in the Recevior Verone pattern. My nice husband gave them to me for Valentine's Day together with the etched tumblers you will see below. Napkin rings are Reba McEntire Home collection for Dillard's in the Stratford Woven pattern.
For some reason I use three pieces of glassware on my tables. Left to right, the tall goblet pattern is unknown. I got a bulk of 14 of them and the seller didn't know the maker or pattern. Next is an aqua vintage tumbler by St. Clair in the Holly Panel pattern made around 1967 by Joe St. Clair who used to work for Northwood known for making carnival glass. On the right is my new gift of oversize double old fashioned engraved on clear glass by Zodax in the Normandy pattern. These are hefty and feel great in your hand. Thank you, Mr. M.
The sterling for this occasion is Tiffany's Japanese pattern from 1871. I chose it because of the birds on the handle to go with the bird plates. This pattern was reintroduced by Tiffany in 1956 with some changes to the handle as the Audubon pattern which I believe is still in production today. I've also seen knock offs of it in stainless steel.
The tablecloth is industrial canvas.
This canvas is one of my best kept secrets. You can get it 12 feet wide at companies who sell canvas for awnings and boat covers. A piece 15 feet long cost me around $32. So now you know my secret. These work wonderfully outdoors on picnic tables. You can wash them in the extra size washers. They will become your go-to item. I think they work well with Swedish and Belgian looks indoors as well as for a beach theme since the canvas looks like grainey sand.
Here are a couple shots of the left and right table ends before we move on to the salad plates.
For the salad plates, I am using aqua rimmed plates where the fish this time are around the rim.
These are English Royal Worcester with a date mark on the reverse of 1912. The hand painted fish around the rim vary in color and species.
This is the wider view of the salad plates.
I only have two aqua dinner plates, so I am using the Royal Worcester one even though it is not especially manly.
I don't know the pattern name, but I believe they were made around 1950, so they are vintage not antique.
I am bringing out another fish plate to serve dessert.
I think these coordinate well due to their aqua watercolor tones.
These fish plates are Limoges and made by E. Alluaud & Co. I like the unusual shape.
The other two aqua low cake plates on the table are Royal Crown Derby from the early 1800's and are Derby before the company became Royal Crown Derby. I am using them because of their color.
It is a good idea to keep an inventory notebook of the tablesettings you have done along with comments on who attended, some photos and other details. I find it very handy to refresh my memory of what plate combinations worked well together.
I am participating in Tablescape Thursday this week on the blog Between Naps on the Porch.
To see all the entries, after 9:00PM Eastern on Wednesday, go here:
http://betweennapsontheporch.blogspot.com/
All the best to you,
Summer
Photos: Swede
