Easter Table Magic: Whimsical Bunnies and Lavender Dreams

I'll confess: tabletop decor is my Achilles' heel. So when I spotted a sale at my favorite local gem, The White Hare (yes, that charming spot with all the unique finds), I couldn't resist popping in. The result? These adorable little white bunnies adorned with lavender flowers, paired with mini placemats that perfectly complement them. Together, they inspired this enchanting Easter tablescape that's equal parts playful and elegant.

At the heart of it all sits a stunning Fitz and Floyd ceramic Meadow rabbit, nestled amid the Valery Madelyn Lighted Easter Garland bursting with pastel eggs and daisy flowers. It's a vibrant centerpiece that captures the spirit of spring in full bloom. 

Layering is key here for that wow factor. Greenery placemats form the base, topped with Fitz and Floyd salmon-edged chargers. Next come the vibrant purple dinner plates from Tabletops Unlimited, followed by salad plates in the delicate Blanc Amelie pattern from Maison Versailles. Crowning each setting are those mini placemats with lush greenery and lavender blooms—aren't they just darling? And perched on top? A sweet bunny with matching flowers and those irresistibly long ears. Honestly, could you resist them? I didn't think so!

  

For drinks, the purple goblet glasses add a pop of color and versatility—they're perfect for water or wine. Meanwhile, the Portmeirion Sophie Conran Lavandula Ripple Mugs, with their subtle lavender motifs, are ideal for sipping coffee or tea.

A touch of sparkle comes from the Mikasa Opulent Mirror flatware, elevating the whole setup with its subtle shine. Nostalgia shines through in the glass chicken egg cups—vintage treasures from the '70s that my mom and I snagged on one of our shopping adventures. For now, they're holding decorative wooden eggs, but come Easter brunch, they'll cradle soft-boiled ones. The napkins, in a fresh green checkered pattern, hail from Pottery Barn, adding a cozy, farmhouse vibe. And with all the recent rain and gray skies, I've added long white tapers in green glass candleholders for a soft, daytime glow—because who says candlelight is just for evenings?

All in all, this setup promises a delightful way to serve Easter breakfast, blending whimsy, color, and a dash of sentiment. It's the perfect backdrop for creating new memories around the table.

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This post is linked to: Tablescape Thursday  

Decorating for Spring!

While I am most definitely NOT a fan of summer, and I cannot emphasize this enough, I am a fan of spring. It is the season of hope — hoping that I’ll find the right fruits, vegetables, and herbs for my garden, hoping they won’t succumb to insects or disease, hoping that I’ll break even in what I harvest versus what I’ve spent trying to grow them.

I find that my table settings and decor tend to reflect my gardening interests at this time of the year. If you feel the same, then you may enjoy seeing the lazy Susan that I have on my dining table. It’s a new acquisition, thanks to Pottery Barn rewards points. This is the first time, believe it or not, that I have ever owned a Lazy Susan, and I have to say that I am really enjoying it.

It pleases me every time I look at it because it is whimsical and fun. The bespectacled bunny poking his head out of the plant pot is from local favorite home decor store, The White Hare. The “Nibble” plates are Rae Dunn (Available on Amazon, but cheaper elsewhere.), the leafy-handled ladle and upright cabbage plate are by Fitz and Floyd, and serve as the base and serving ladle for a bunny gravy boat that I inherited from my mother. Seeds, that will no doubt be viable this year despite their purchase last year, are only a portion of what I expect to plant this year and are from Baker Creek Heirloom Seeds.

The cylinder vase holds two leaves from two different varieties of sansevieria that have finally rooted after two months in water – yay!

The green salt and pepper shakers once adorned the dinner table of my mom and dad and now adorn mine.

 How do you celebrate spring in your decor?

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One Fish, Two Fish, Red Fish, Blue Fish Tablescape

With my last table you were treated to the gorgeous leaf chargers sent to me by Marigene Purcell of the In the Middle of Nowhere blog.

I failed to mention that, in addition to sending me these amazing chargers, she also sent me some tablecloths.

Today's table features one of them, one, I might add, that she had used, I had admired, and the next thing I knew, it was mine!

I had a good time setting this table. This one, as the two previous, took me about three days to put together. I was so overwrought with Mr. O-P's care and imminent loss, that it was all I could do to just put one foot in front of the other.

Table settings were my therapy, I told myself, so, little by little, I would assemble them.

Initially this table was set without the bejeweled chargers. I kept looking at it and thought it needed a bit more color. This was when I remembered the chargers I’d bought a couple of Christmases ago. So I dug these out of my holiday bin and loved the look. (I love it when I can use something in more than one way.)

Then, I thought it needed just a tiny bit more red so, while Mr. O-P slept, I ran down to Walgreen's for a bag of Swedish fish.  Perfect!

As a side note, the cobalt blue champagne flutes shown here had been one of our wedding gifts. Do you know that in the 21 years we were married we never once used them?

We are not fans of champagne, but beautiful glasses should be used no matter what, so I have remedied this situation and now use them with my morning orange juice. Celebrate life, people! Use those precious items. 

Placemats – Pier One

Chargers – Pier One

Blue Fish Plates - eBay

Flatware – Crate & Barrel

Small White Fish Dishes – One Kings Road

Shorebirds – Fitz & Floyd

This post is linked to:

Silver Pennies Sunday

Amaze Me Monday

Busy Mondays

Inspiration Monday

Metamorphosis Monday

Make It Pretty Monday
Cooking & Crafting with J&J

Inspire Me Tuesday

Tuesdays At Our Home

Two Cup Tuesday
Tutorials and Tips Tuesday

Homemaking Party Tuesday

Wow Us Wednesday
Work It Wednesday

Wine’d Down Wednesday

Wake up Wednesday

Create It Thursday

The DIY Collective
Thursday Favorite Things

Foodie Friday & Everything Else

Come for Pasta!

Sometimes I get stale. I admit it. Sometimes, I take a look at what I have and wonder how I can spend another moment looking at the same stuff. This is particularly the case where table linens are concerned. I mean how many times can I use the same tablecloth?  I do try to mix things up a bit. I'll use glass chargers, or colorful placemats, or top the table with an afghan. But there are days when I just completely run out of ideas, and think that I have thrown absolutely everything but myself on top of the table and now have come up completely dry. 

So when my cousin asked if I wanted a tablecloth and napkin set that was too small to fit her new, larger dining room table, I jumped at it. Sight unseen, I said yes. And then I saw it and I thought, huh, this looks vaguely familiar. The napkins, I think, were a gift from me. It was also something totally out of my comfort zone. 

Colors in a combination that I'd not used before, and stripes! Never in my life have I used a tablecloth that was striped. I do love a challenge though, and this got my creative juices flowing.  It also sent me to rummage through several closets looking for what might work, and mixing up and layering things that I would have never considered before. 

The end result is this table set for a pasta dinner. I like it!  The Fitz and Floyd salmon chargers I have only used with the similarly colored “Coquilles” set of dinnerware. What a nice backdrop it provides here for the painted pasta bowls. 

The multiple colors in the stripes also allowed me to use a trio of glasses in a variety of colors and styles. 

Water will fill the clear glasses, red wine will be served with the pasta in the cranberry colored glasses, champagne will fill the cobalt blue flutes and be served with the tiramisu. 

My favorite round placemats tone down the stripes, pressed glass crescent bowls will hold Italian salad. 

The Pottery Barn flatware, heavy antique replicas, are the perfect touch for this comfort food meal.

The centerpiece, a favorite that I use again and again, has been adorned with empty cheese boxes with a nod to antipasto.

I used no coffee cups in this setting, opting to serve espresso in cups purchased in Europe years ago to finish the meal. 

Buono Appetito!

Tablecloth and Napkins - Crate and Barrel
Water glasses - Mikasa “Marquis”
Wine glasses - Crate and Barrel
Placemats - Pier 1
Flatware - Pottery Barn
Chargers - Fitz and Floyd

This post is linked to:
Amaze Me Monday
Metamorphosis Monday

Table It Monday

Inspire Me Tuesday

Tuesdays At Our Home

Tutorials & Tips

The Scoop

The Charm of Home
 At The Picket Fence

Centerpiece Wednesday

Wow Us Wednesday
Work It Wednesday

What’s It Wednesday

Clever Chicks Blog Hop

Tablescape Thursday

Create It Thursday

Home and Garden Thursday

Home Sweet Home

Show and Tell Friday 

Leafy Springtime Tablescape

 I get to feeling a little down at this time of the year. It will be my second Mother’s Day without my mom.  I don’t know about you, but for me, this just never gets any easier.  Time may heal all wounds, but it’s going to take a lot more time to heal this one.  It will also be the first Mother’s Day without my friend, Shirley, who passed away last December.

Shirley is the second friend that I will have lost to ovarian cancer. In both cases these two, very brave women, carried on, as usual, up until their last days.  Each time Shirley and her husband would come for brunch or dinner, or to watch a ballgame and cheer (or groan), she would bring me a little gift.  It was something that she owned, but knew that I would love, and continue to use and cherish long after she was gone. The first thing she gave me was this unusual piece from Fitz & Floyd.  It was nothing that I would have ever thought to buy for myself, but she knew me well, because I do love it, and have used it in so many different ways.

The last time I saw her she brought me this little vase.  “I thought,” she said, “that you would be able to do something pretty with this.”  I wish she could see just how beautiful it looks on this springtime table, filled with two $4.00 bunches of flowers from the local market.

Here’s to you, mom, and to you, Shirley, and to all of the other women celebrating Mother’s Day this weekend.

This post is linked to:

Tablescape Thursday

Open House Thursdays

Home Sweet Home

Be Inspired Friday

Feathered Nest Friday

A Simple Plan

 Did I mention that I went simple this year?  This is not to refer to my mental state, but my style of holiday decorating. Despite my petitioning for a 48-hour day, there is just never enough time, it seems, to get everything done. How I managed, when my boys were young, to put up a unique theme tree in each of the nine rooms of our house is truly beyond me. Oh, the energy that I used to have back then, plus a husband who was gone for a good portion of the day. But I digress...

This year the mantle is a simple combination of candles and greenery with silhouettes of Scrooge and Bob Cratchit and Tiny Tim, along with a very dear pair of Fitz & Floyd deer that used to grace the very elegant tables of my mother's annual (for fifty years) Christmas brunch. Those sweet faces remind me of her and how happy she would be watching everyone enjoy the holiday. A Santa pillow, snuggly throw, and blazing fire add to the Christmas coziness. All I need now is a cup of cocoa.

This post is linked to:

Seasonal Sundays

Marvelous Mondays

Inspire Me Tuesday