Dinner With Friends (a re-post from September 2010)

July 27, 2017July 31, 2017 / Alycia Nichols / 5 Comments

I love getting together at home with friends! If time and money would allow me to do it twice a week, I would. There’s just something about the relaxed atmosphere before, during and after that generates warm, happy feelings.

My friend Andre Harper, owner of Harper’s Catering which specializes in Cajun cuisine, slaved over a hot stove to create a massive sized pot of some of the best gumbo I’ve ever tasted. Puttering around in the kitchen in a dual effort to make garlic-cheese drop biscuits, sipping cocktails, and doing a little pre-dinner munching on the wonderful seafood dip Andre made is a great way to spend a Friday evening. (The biscuits were a huge hit with all the guests and a tasty and unexpected departure from traditionally-served French bread.)

When we finally sat down to the dinner table, spirits were high and appetites were mighty as we all dug in.

Even for casual get-togethers like this one, I still like to let friends know I care enough about them to set a pretty table. A thoughtful mix of relaxed and formal elements draws the eye to the tablescape’s place settings. Here I start with a “Natural Flower” water hyacinth round placemat from Pier 1. The rough hewn texture of these placemats is just as important as the style in creating the desired look. Next comes American Atelier’s creamy off-white “Empress” chargers and soup bowls topped with chocolate brown oak leaf-shaped salad bowls from Pier 1. Classic Cristal D’Arques Longchamps glassware and Hampton Silversmiths “Patriot” flatware add a bit of glam, and a sunny yellow napkin from Bed, Bath & Beyond add a much needed punch of unexpected color.

The buffet behind the dining table is enlivened with the shocking orange of a wooden platter from Z Gallerie. A small floral using similar flowers to those on the table softens the look. The end of the dining table is used for service with the gumbo in a sleek pale yellow tureen from Pottery Barn.

The centerpiece is a trail of dark iron candlesticks and brightly colored sunflowers, spider mums and carnations (pink, just to mix things up a bit!) from Costco in Longchamps mini vases. (TIP: Buy a single bunch of flowers and divide them up into small vases for a plentiful look on the cheap!) The total look: upscale with a casual kick.

Andre and I have collaborated on other events, most notably in the Spring of 2012. Visit Purple and Pastel, a dinner party in honor of his parents’ birthdays and 60th wedding anniversary!!!

All A’Bloom in Pink for Spring

April 1, 2014July 31, 2017 / Alycia Nichols / 71 Comments

INSPIRATION: Crunchy, ugly, brown grass that just teases us with sprigs of green. 😦

It’s April 1 and still dipping below freezing each night. Would somebody PLEASE text Mother Nature and let her know she’s tardy for the party??!??!!!
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If Mother Nature wants to play it that way and hold Spring back a while longer, I figured I’d just have to bring my own version of the season alive in the dining room!

Each place setting starts with a pink, green, buttery yellow and white Pier 1 cotton placemat upon the bare wood table. The placemats are turned vertically to create a slight drop off the side of the table. A deep pink Bormioli Rocca “Inca” glass charger is topped with Mikasa “Daylight” china, chosen for its graceful, leafy branches.

A brilliant pink carnation peeks over the rim of a white egg cup from Crate & Barrel. It is covered by a clear glass cloche bell jar from Hobby Lobby. (A brightly colored egg would make a nice substitute to create an Easter brunch setting.) A soft pink napkin from LinenTablecloth.com is simply folded and laid alongside the dishes with Hampton Forge stainless steel “Bamboo Mirror” flatware. The simple glassware is from Old Time Pottery. (Other posts on this site using cloche bell jars include “Pleasant Under Glass”, “Spring Has Sprung”, and “Apple Green Luncheon”.)

The centerpiece runs the length of the table so that each guest has a little eye candy in front of them. It is a melange of deep pink carnations in white ceramic teapots, white ceramic cylinders filled with small manzanita cherry blossom branches with carnations tucked around the lower perimeter, and white ceramic baskets of pale pink, yellow and white meringues. Notice how the colors of the centerpiece items reflect those in the placemats.

The buffet behind the dining table is partially covered with a the same placemats as used at each place setting to sweep the color and pattern across the room. On top of the placemats is an American Atelier white ironstone tray topped with various white ceramic teapots. Mikasa “Daylight” teacups and saucers stand at the ready nearby along with a few sweet treats. The floral vessels are taller, broader versions of those used on the dining table and also contain manzanita branches. Among the branches are stems of pink magnolias and more cherry blossoms. Notice how the cloche theme from the dining table is reiterated here.

The vintage tea cart in the corner holds a few more sweets beneath cloches, a pot of bright pink cosmos, and a stack of Pier 1 doily dessert plates. A fun chalkboard sign wishing guests a “Happy Spring” leans casually against the base of a yellow candlestick lamp. (For more candle lamps on this site, see “Raining Orchids“, “All A’Bloom In Pink for Spring“, “Should Have Put a Ring On It“, “It’s All About Me!“, and “Just Us Girls“.)

This easy-to-create table setting would work nicely for any Springtime celebration including a ladies’ luncheon or tea, birthday, baby shower, bridal shower, retirement, or to help rejoice in the good news of a breast cancer survivor.

Other posts on this site featuring Spring tablescapes:
“Spring Has Sprung”
“The Bluebird Special”
“Daffodilyicious”
“Purple for Spring”
“Zen Garden”
“Mum’s the Word”
“Rolling Fields of Green”
“Taste of Wine Buffet”
“Goin’ Green for Spring”
“Springtime in Paris Mother’s Day Buffet”
“Peony Power”
“Moss & Manzanitas”
“Daisy Crazy”
“French Poodle”
and the “Spring” tab above for a couple of fun Springtime tablescapes

Thank you for stopping by! I’m headed over to Susan’s at Between Naps on the Porch for Tablescape Thursday and to How Sweet the Sound for Pink Saturday. I hope you’ll come with! And don’t forget to join me next week for Cuisine Kathleen‘s Spring Tablescape Challenge featuring entries from tablescapers all over the world!!!

Be Still My Heart – A Valentine’s Day Tablescape

February 5, 2014February 10, 2014 / Alycia Nichols / 52 Comments

Tablescapes at Table Twenty-One – Be Still My Beating Heart: Four plate collage

INSPIRATION: Pretty burgundy, black & white dessert plates found on the clearance table at Pier 1 and used here as bread & butter plates.

I hadn’t really planned on doing anything for Valentine’s Day other than what I’ll do for my husband on the 14th, but when I saw these little plates at Pier 1 on the clearance shelf, I had an immediate change of heart…so to speak. 😉
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This Valentine’s Day tablescape for four (two couples or maybe get some of your single girlfriends together for a fabulous night in!) is all about layering. I used three different tablecloths from LinenTablecloth.com to achieve an ultra lush look on this 48″ round table: a 108″ white round, a 90″ black round, and finally a 70″ burgundy square. The layering allows each of the three colors found in the inspiration plates to peek out with the burgundy taking center stage as the color of love.

The table shown here is outfitted with a few pretty votives for dinner, but could be easily transformed to a luncheon table by removing them.

I wanted the place setting to evoke romance, so I used these intricately-embellished American Atelier “Empress” ironstone chargers and soup bowls that don’t usually see much action around here. The standard black dinner plate is part of a set from Walmart. The black-trimmed burgundy raw silk napkins are from the Bombay Co., a retail store I really, really miss. I chose the black Hampton Silversmiths “San Remo” flatware because the detailing on the handles resembles hearts. The stemware is one of my favorites, “Chelsea” from the Godinger collection.

You’ve just gotta have a box of chocolates for everyone on your Valentine’s Day guest list! The Russell Stover (local company!) chocolates here are covered in plain white wrap and adorned with tiny silk rosettes in the same burgundy color found in the top tablecloth.

The centerpiece is simple but pretty. For demonstration purposes here I used silk rose balls, but it would be the crowning touch for your table to go for the real deal. Ask your florist to create them for you or, if you’re feeling particularly ambitious, go DIY. (Be sure to keep the finished rose balls in a cool spot before putting them on the table, and be VERY sure there is no water dripping from the floral foam.) Touches of pink in the rose balls help to soften the overall look and add contrast. Three silver-rimmed votive holders with shapes that mimic the black vase are strategically placed. (TIP: When setting a table, look for similar or complementary shapes in the decor pieces you use.)

I just LOVE these stretch chair covers from YourChairCovers.com!!! They are so easy to slip on, stay put even with the wiggliest butts on them, wash and wear with no fuss (no ironin’….y’know what I’m talkin’ ’bout, ladies?), can bounce back & forth between traditional and contemporary dining environments, and they come in 14 colors! YourChairCovers.com carries a wide variety of lovely sashes, too, but I chose this organza one from my repertoire with its fancy beading for a little extra ooh-la-la.

Quick and easy post for a quick and easy tablescape to celebrate with your loved one(s). Please come back in a couple of days to take a peek at my second (and final!) Valentine’s Day 2014 tablescape.

Other tablescapes on this site suitable for Valentine’s Day dining:
Platinum & Pink Valentine
Should Have Put A Ring On It
Diamonds Are a Material Girl’s Best Friend
Queen of Hearts Card Party
Love’s Arrow
Days of Wine & Roses
Chocolate Traditional
Peonies & Pearls
Fete Noir et Gris
Pretty In Pink
Princess Pink Birthday Dinner

I’m joining Susan for “Tablescape Thursday” again this week. Drop on by to see what other tablescapers from all around the world are up to this week!

Thanks for stopping by! Valentine hugs!

Merry & Bright – Multi-Color Christmas

December 4, 2013December 4, 2013 / Alycia Nichols / 42 Comments

Over the next few days I will present 3 creations that use many of the same elements but have a different feel and target audience. We often worry about buying “too much stuff” (although that concept is TOTALLY foreign to the likes of me! 😉 ) and where to store it all. These next 3 posts will demonstrate how you can easily milk multiple tablescapes out of a few key pieces. This is, after all, a teaching blog…and I hope you’re able to glean some good ideas from this ongoing demonstration.
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INSPIRATION: A big bunch of multi-colored shiny metal doo-hickeys purchased at Pier 1 six or seven years ago.

The use of multiple bright colors was a huge thing “back in the day.” The look kind of fell out of vogue 20+ years or so ago when white on white became the new craze. As usual, I’m bucking the system in favor of nostalgia with this tablescape that incorporates every color in the rainbow/Pantone color wheel! 🙂

The foundation of this table that was used as a teaching tool in my most recent “Art of Tablescaping” class is a bright red 90″ x 132″ tablecloth from LinenTablecloth.com. Nothing says Christmas like the color red, and I love this as an anchor color for the overall look.

Oh, how I love to use gold at Christmastime! The use of a gold acrylic charger (Old Time Pottery), gold-tone flatware, and beautiful American Atelier “Florentine Gold Scroll” china knocks a little wind out of brightly-colored whimsy’s sails. It dresses the table up a bit, gives it a little refinement while still letting the use of color take center stage. The napkin treatment is simply a 20″ x 20″ purple napkin from LinenTablecloth.com dressed with a contrasting red satin ribbon. See how the color invades the gold’s space but they still play nicely together?

Someone once asked me, “Why all the stemware on the table?” Well, I’ll give you the two-fold short answer on that one: I like to serve water (palate cleanser), some sort of tea or lemonade, and often a nice wine or champagne (because cocktail hour is never quite long enough) AND they just look so darn good!!! 🙂 The more sparkle, the better as captured here with deep gemstone colors juxtaposed against milky white with shiny gold detailing. The colored stems are from Pier 1 (9-10 years ago) and my Mom gave me the gorgeous white goblets that she had since the 1970s.

I bought these neat gold metal Christmas tree place card holders a number of years ago at a wholesale clearance sale. See how the multi-colored sparklies look like lights? I knew one day these would fit right in with a table’s decor!

I have about 40 of these sparkly, jingly, wobbly metal sprigs of pure joy. For an upscale look, I simply bunched them together in the pitcher that matches the goblets. This is a good example of how using things en masse can add style. (Think how baby’s breath looks all limp and sad when there are only a couple of stems, but how it comes alive when used in a burst of snowy, showy goodness! Click HERE, HERE, or HERE to see examples on this site of what I mean.) To bring the same show of color down closer to the table surface, I filled bowls with multi-colored Christmas balls. Simple, inexpensive.

To bring a little more shimmer to the table, gold mercury glass votive holders from The Village Gardens in Blue Springs, MO.

I always like to dress the buffet in decor that works with the table. I cannot for the life of me remember where I bought these contemporary gold metal trees, but I love ’em! Again, see how the sparkly adornments resemble lights on the tree. I chose these not only because of the color, but also because of the modern form. They are the perfect counterpart to the inspiration pieces!!! The American Atelier “Florentine Scroll” coffee service is set up on a lacquered gold tray from Pier 1.

The votive holders on the buffet boast beautiful, rich colors with a mercury glass lining and are from World Market 2 years ago. These photos don’t do adequate justice. The light reflected from these is spectacular!

I’ll be back in a few days with the 2nd in this series!

If you’d like to see additional Christmas tablescape ideas on this site:
Christmas Through the Red Door
Pink & Purple Chocolate Christmas
Black Friday Luncheon Tablescape
Winter Dinner
Contemporary Christmas: Fire & Ice
Celebrating the Season
Sugar High Payback
Cranberry Christmas
Cranberry Christmas Squared
Checkered Christmas – A Snowman Theme
Get Me To the Church On Time
Christmas Progressive Dinner 2011
Black, White & Red All Over Christmas
Frosty the Snowman
Warm Metal Christmas
Winter Brunch
After the Hunt – Gentlemen’s Winter Retreat
plus NINE additional posts on a single page under the “WINTER” tab!!!

Don’t forget to visit Cuisine Kathleen’s weekly blog party “Let’s Dish!” and Susan’s “Tablescape Thursday” to get ideas from lots of other very talented bloggers from all around the globe!

Spring Has Sprung Tablescape

March 6, 2012April 9, 2017 / Alycia Nichols / 44 Comments

I start teaching my “Art of Tablescaping” class through Longview Community College tonight. I’m sure you can probably smell the fear through your computer screen. (Don’t worry…a little Febreze® will take care of that! ;-))
Wish me luck, folks. I’m really going to need it!

To get a little break from preparing for class, I was thrilled over the weekend to create a Spring tablescape for the 13th Annual Taste of Lee’s Summit event hosted by the Lee’s Summit Educational Foundation, Inc. (LSEF). My table was part of a prize package in the live auction offered by an LSEF board member which included a gourmet 4-course meal with live music and a relaxing pontoon ride on the lake. (Click HERE to see the winners’ table, “Surf & Turf Dinner.”)
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The table for the prize dinner will be quite different from this one and will reflect the menu/theme of the evening. For this night, however, I chose a beautiful crushed poly full-length table linen in “Citrus” in an effort to make it really stand out in the large room. As it turns out, the overall decor theme for the event included a similar color paired with a bright aqua blue, so it blended right in! Oh, well! 😉

The creamy white dishes are “Empress” ironstone from American Atelier. I used a small grapevine wreath that resembles a bird’s nest (Hobby Lobby) to infuse color and texture between the charger and bowl.

A clear glass miniature cloche from Hobby Lobby stands guard over the crushed poly napkin, rolled & tucked to stand at attention. A single butterfly dances on top.

“Cambridge” dark faux bamboo flatware is a nice contrast to the acidic color of the table linen and works well with the oil rubbed bronze-colored centerpiece.

The hostess for the planned evening created this beautiful menu to complement the tablescape. (The tablescape I eventually create in her home will be more in line with the fabulous surf ‘n turf meal.)

Simple clear glass stemware from Old Time Pottery.

The ceilings in John Knox Pavilion where the event was held are soaring, so I wanted to build something that would not be dwarfed by them. This oil rubbed bronze centerpiece (also used HERE but flipped upside-down with glass floral globes) worked well on the small table space allotted.

A glass vase is filled with a wild, untamed profusion of fresh curly willow tips and creamy white faux orchids. The piece stood just over 6-ft. off the table. An arrangement like this would work well for an outdoor Spring luncheon, too, or you can go as high as you wish indoors depending on the height of your ceiling.

I wired on lots of pink & green faux butterflies to add color and whimsy to the arrangement.

The iron piece is sold with clear glass globes suitable for holding florals or candles, but I wanted to do something a little different. I subbed these gazing balls which made a remarkable difference in the overall look.

When I set up the day before the event, I didn’t think I wanted to use candles. Overnight I thought about it, and sure enough I went back on Saturday to add these chunky LEDs that were an almost perfect match to the linen color. The candles sit on oil rubbed bronze convertible candlesticks.

Other Spring tablescapes on this site include:
“Daisy Crazy“
“Barton’s Easter Brunch“
“Pinky Peter Cottontail“
“Apple Green Luncheon“
“Welcome Back, Joel“
“Mikasa Daylight Giveaway“

I hope you’ll join me at Tablescape Thursday again this week. Just log on anytime after 9:00 a.m. (Central time) to get an eyeful of tablescaping talent around the world! Also linking up with the Style Sisters for Centerpiece Wednesday! Check it out!
See you after class! 🙂

Peacock Pizzazz!

February 21, 2012February 8, 2018 / Alycia Nichols / 52 Comments

Peacock feathers. There’s just something about them. They’ve just got that snappy, snazzy, razzle dazzle kiss-my-foot-and-call-me-Your-Highness pizzazz about them. This time of year a peacock feather centerpiece or side piece can really jazz up a tablescape as well as add texture, height, and implied motion.
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No table linen or placemat for this one. The natural wood of the dining table just felt right. What I did for this tablescape, however, was to mix colors and china patterns to mimic the pageantry of the peacock. A goldleafed glass charger is the foundation for an American Atelier “Florentine Gold Scroll” dinner plate topped with a 222 Fifth “Ornamental Scroll” salad plate. The white in the dinner plate helps to break up the heavy concentration of color in the place setting.

The deep teal poly-cotton napkins from Home Goods are cinched with a Pier 1 “Beaded Circle” napkin ring that reminded me of a male peacock’s tail feathers when I first saw them. (Would someone please explain to me how it is that the male peacock got to be the showier one??!?!?! What a rip off!!!)

This goldtone flatware really gets a workout around here in the fall and winter months!

A mix of teal blue stems from Stein Mart and Dollar Tree green stemware pulls from the colors of the male peacock’s plumage.

I found these jeweled peacock place card holders at Tuesday Morning many years ago. For this occasion, a faux gemstone, like those in the holder, is added to the place card.

The peacock feathers I have are 52″ in length and interfered with the light fixture above the dining table. I did, however, want to capture the colors of the feathers in the centerpiece, so I used a single teal glass cylinder with a floating candle centered between clusters of goldtone candlesticks. Like the dinner plate selection, white candles were my choice in order to break up the high concentration of deep hues.

The peacock feathers, arranged in large Vidrios San Miguel green vases from TJ Maxx (also seen HERE), were moved from the dining table to the buffet behind it with a repeat of the teal glass cylinders and goldtone candlesticks. It took a total of 50 quills (25 each vase) to achieve this look. A feather, cylinder, and candlestick display similar to this would look great down the center of a reception buffet table, too!

As a side note, I wanted to demonstrate how this table could be easily transformed to a dramatic Fat Tuesday/Mardi Gras look with the simple addition of a mask adorned with peacock feathers at each place setting. This would also make a kickin’ New Year’s Eve tablescape!!!

I hope your Mardi Gras celebration is a safe and fun one! When you finally wake up from your hurricane-soaked gumbo coma, please join me for Tablescape Thursday at Between Naps on the Porch!

Another tablescape on this site using peacock feathers:
“Proud As A Peacock!“