Celebrating St. Pat's

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 Green is my favorite color so I always enjoy decorating for St. Patrick’s Day. I had hardly closed the book on Valentine’s Day before I started getting out all my cute little green goodies in order to decorate my two-tiered tray. Here it is! Doesn’t it make you think of spring?

 

  The leprechaun salt and pepper shakers are from Fitz and Floyd. I dearly love these little guys. You can fine a similar set here.

The cups that you saw with a hunt scene last month have been reversed to the thatched cottage side. I have honestly never known tea cups to be quite as versatile as these. The name of this pattern is “Ireland Pursuit” from Noritake.

The oil rubbed bronze cabin with the light inside is something I find so charming that I keep it out year-round. It seems to go with just about everything.

 I found the little cottage sugar and creamer set among my mother’s things. Honestly, I had no idea that she even had this adorable set, so I plan to put it to lots of good use. It seemed most appropriate here.

 The vintage postcard plaques are new this year. I love using postcards in tablescapes and decor, but I find that because they’re so thin they tend to fall over or warp. These seemed to be the perfect answer.

 I bought a set of four of these shamrock tins to use it place settings to hold green popcorn.

St. Patrick’s Day wouldn’t be St. Patrick’s Day without a pot of gold, or in this case mint M&Ms.

 Do any of you decorate for St. Pat’s? Aren’t we all Irish on March 17^th?

 

The Transitional Two-Tier Tray

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It’s that awkward time of the year between December and mid-February when I feel particularly “theme-less.” I no longer want the wintry look of December (although truth be told, we have snow on the ground right now), but feel it’s too early for Valentine’s Day.

On a whim, I decided to gather up all of my small hunt theme items and put them together on my tray; I’m liking the look. I do need to find some red napkins to mirror the Huntsmen’s jackets, and will be looking for those shortly.

The cups, personal favorites, are by Noritake, and the pattern is called “Ireland Pursuit.” They have a hunting scene on one side, and a thatched cottage on the other. All I need to do is turn them around, and I’ve got a start on my St. Patrick’s Day theme.

The ceramic trio of spaniels, while indeed not hunting hounds, belonged to my husband. He had three cocker spaniels when I married him, and this just seemed like a nice nod to him and appropriate addition.

The coaster on the top shelf was a gift from a friend who kindly sent me a set of these. That friend’s name is Sue Cox, she’s a mystery novelist, and you can find her latest book The Man in the Microwave Oven here. Yes, this is my blatant promotion of a friend.

 

I recently added the fox vase that you see on the top tier, and I love him so much! My plan is to put a little vining plant in him — string of pearls is what I have in mind — but I haven’t found one locally, and it’s too chilly to order online.

As I look at this, I’m reminded that I have a hunter’s horn Christmas ornament that I use on my tree that would work perfectly here. Not that I’m going to rummage around and look for it, mind you, but I think next year I need to make that ornament more easily accessible.

I must admit that I am thoroughly enjoying the challenge of changing up this tiered tray every month. What new additions are you making to your home decor this month?

 

The Festive Two-Tier Tray

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I don’t know about you, but I have not been able to get into decorating at all this year. I’ve done it, finally, but it wasn’t an easy path. I started out small with my two-tier tray. You know, that ubiquitous tray that we all seem to have. Generally, I don’t like getting what other people have, but in this case I have enjoyed this more than I thought I would. It’s great fun to see how others style theirs, so I’m going to show you how I styled mine.

A fun purchase that I made last year was the Santa butter dish that I found at Pier One. Isn’t it adorable? Then it occurred to me that I don’t host a holiday brunch, or generally anything else that calls for a butter dish on the table, so it found its way to the stand. Who knows? I may use it to brighten my breakfast table for one Christmas morning.

The Rae Dunn “Nibble” Plates are favorites. I love that they fit on this tray, and are so versatile. They are topped with MacKenzie-Childs Courtly Check Flatware.

 The Waechtersbach cups and saucers are always cheery in their “Christmas Tree” pattern.

 The Santa napkin ring, part of a set of 12 (and that I now see has been rather haphazardly patched), belonged to my mother. She bought these sometime back in the 80s, and they always beautifully held the napkin at our Christmas brunch. The Red Lantern lurking in the background was my mother’s. Its green made livens my hutch.

 

What is it about red trucks with wreaths on the front that we all find so appealing? Is it because it represents a simpler time? Perhaps it makes us all think is that we are living in Bedford Falls. This red truck, also from Pier One, is actually a place called holder. I use it on my holiday tables; I have also used it as a marker for various dishes on a buffet. I thought it looked cute here.

 

 In keeping with the red truck mode, I am completely in love with this cute set of Red Truck and Tree Salt and Pepper Shakers.

I love spicy candles, and this one is one of my favorites. Not to worry, I do remove it from the tray when I bought it. On top of the candle is a little toothpick holder that I found irresistible. It is from a local shop called Oma’s Barn. I’ve written about Oma’s in the past,
here and here. It’s a wonderful, magical kind of place. Once I bought this little snowman, I decided to never serve a holiday meal without condiments, mini meatballs, or other type of food that needs skewering. He always elicits a smile. Here's hoping that your decorating s going far better than mine!