Great Lovers Wine Glasses...This Week's Find

Prepare yourself to be wowed. I mean it. This week I brought home my mother’s collection of “Great Lovers” wine glasses. At least that’s what we called them. Officially they are Maurus Gallo Pewter Toasting Cups featuring Beauty and the Beast, Romeo and Juliet, and a Renaissance Wedding couple. Each pair locks hands when put together. I don’t remember where they were purchased despite the fact that I was with her at the time, but it was some time during the 1980s. They are made from pewter and spun silver and each holds 4 ounces of liquid. They certainly draw gasps from guests when they see how they go together.

My mother would use these for very special dinners, or ones that she would serve around Valentine’s Day. Naturally, the female guest would get the female lover cup, the male guest, the male lover cup; they would be put together between place settings.

I honestly don’t know how many times I will use these, but I need to find a place to put at least one pair of these on display. Truly magnificent!

Last Call Tablescape

I am really into lanterns these days for some reason, well, I know the reason, it's from paging endlessly through Pottery Barn catalogs and drooling over all they have to offer at prices I can't begin to afford, or more accurately, justify.  I wanted to have one more small dinner gathering -- something I refer to as "Last Call" -- before the onset of the holidays when chaos abounds, so when I found this lantern at Old Time Pottery I just knew I wanted it as my centerpiece.

 From there I went through my stash of fabric, pulling out this one to put on the top of my table as I wanted the meal to be more casual and relaxing.  I topped this with bamboo placemats, and sprinkled the remaining bits of candy corn and autumn mix around the center.  My favorite Fiestaware dinner plates in gold and cinnabar were alternated and topped with harvest salad plates.  Pressed into service again you'll see the yellow flatware and goblets (Versatile!).  As I'd packed the mugs that match the Fiestaware I decided to use the Shenango Incaware coffee cups and saucers, just a portion of the restaurantware that I collect.

The napkins were simple black (again, made by my mother), the gold tone leaf napkin rings I bought years ago in a cute shop called The Country Store in St. Charles, MO)

The yellowware bowls were placed on either side of the centerpiece for easy access as they were filled with the two difference sauces that I served with the salmon cakes that I'd made for dinner, one sauce horseradish based, and the other a pesto based.  The rust-colored, pumpkin-shaped spongeware plate with matching bowl is what I use to serve breads and flavored butters.

I hope you enjoyed looking at my tablesetting for my "Last Call' autumn dinner.  I wish you could have joined me.

Dinner plates: Fiestaware

Salad plates: Autumn Splendor

Napkins: My mom

Table Fabric: Hancock Fabrics, years ago

Yellowware bowls: Antique shop

Lantern: Old Time Pottery

On Safari

Tablescape Thursday is hosted by Susan from Between Naps on the Porch.

This great pair of salt and pepper shakers have the raised words "Trader Vic's" on the back. I love them and thought they went very well with this particular theme.

 People often ask me where I get the ideas for designing tables.  Most of the time an entire table will spring from just one item.  Such was the case here when my father passed along this "Big Game Hunter" decanter to me after years of ownership.  My mother made it in a ceramics class that she took back in the 70's, I later learned.  I had no idea where to put it, so it sat on the dining room table for more than a week while I contemplated.  Then I needed to move it in order to set the table for company and a light turned on. I had a theme!  So I built the centerpiece around him.

The table covering is a piece of safari print fabric.  I love fabrics of all kinds, so if I like something will buy 3 yards of it.  That will usually get me a table cover and set of napkins.

If you saw last week's tablescape you'll recognize the flatware and goblets.  I told you they were versatile!  The wine glasses didn't photograph well, but each stem is a pewter jungle animal.

The palm tree candle holders I pulled from another room.  They looks perfect in this setting.  The African masks are actually bookends.

I had to add this little bowl of chili-spiced almond so that I literally served everything from soup to nuts.

It was mom to the rescue again with the napkins.  She made these from a remnant of black fabric that she just happened to have on hand.

I like to hide things in the centerpiece of the table so there's always something for the diners to discover. This wonderful carved and hand-painted stone egg was tucked into a small basket.



Hope you enjoyed viewing my safari-themed table!