Plum Perfect for Early Fall

September 16, 2022September 16, 2022 / Alycia Nichols / 10 Comments

I DO NOT like to jump the gun on seasons. I take each one as they come, savoring the best of it and slogging through the worst toward the light. But I do believe seasons are “sectional” with early, mid, and late portions. So before I start hauling out the pumpkins and corn stalks, here’s a little something-something for late summer/early fall.

And for those of you who, like me, like to closely study details on still photos…

Shades of plum and blue-violet are tempered with white, luscious peach, and citrus green. I’m not quite sure why I went with the blue & white chinoiserie. It just felt right.

Each place setting starts with a gold leaf glass charger topped with a purple Bormioli Rocco glass charger. I used gold-rimmed white china to temper the depth of the purple tones. Gold flatware compliments the stack.

Starched napkins in deep, moody eggplant are wrapped up with a shiny golden ring.

Of course, bowls of plums had to be included!

I SO loved this floral arrangement and hated to disassemble it!😖 The faux flowers came from many sources including Nell Hills and Charmed House Interiors in Kansas City, Petals & Potpourri in Blue Springs, McKeever’s grocery floral department and Cameron’s Home Furnishings in Lee’s Summit near where we live, and Hobby Lobby (those berries hanging off the side). Massive arrangements like this are moved to a side surface after guests have ooh’ed and ahh’ed over it before the meal is served.

This white-painted pheasant has been with me for a good while and looks great under the floral fronds.

***This will be among the final pics of my beloved Louis XVI reproduction vitrine as I have sold it.*** It has been a faithful servant for more than 20 years. Here it plays host to a dessert setup with a Nell Hills basket backdrop.

A side chest is treated to an arrangement of coleus, hydrangea, and plums in a mini silver ice bucket.

With temperatures headed back into the upper 90s and near 100 over the next few days, it’s tough to get into the fall mood. This “fall lite” works for me!

Like shades of purple? Here are a few other posts on this site you may enjoy!💜

Monkeying Around With Chinoiserie

June 20, 2022June 20, 2022 / Alycia Nichols / 9 Comments

If it’s as hot where you are as it is here in the Kansas City, MO area, please know I empathize. Gee WHIZ, it’s scorching!!!!!🥵 I can’t entertain the notion of setting up outdoors as even the mornings are intolerably muggy. This is not what June is supposed to feel like! So I’ve been “monkeying around” in the dining room with blue and white with a dash of orange.

The inspiration for this tablescape came from a pair of lumbar pillows I bought last year from **Sew Gracious**. (I’m not compensated in any way for mentioning this or any other site. I just love to share!) So perfect for our dining room!!!

I started each place setting with an orange glass Bormioli Rocco charger and Kate Spade for Lenox “Rutherford Circle – Navy” plates and bowls. The Ralph Lauren “Mandarin” salad plate brings visual texture to the setting.

I bought these monkey napkin rings years ago at Z Gallerie. He looks as if he’s holding on to that napkin for dear life!😆

**Nell Hill’s**. I mean…!!! I LOVE that place! The planters I happed upon while one of the showroom designers was setting a table there are perfect! (Yes, I took them right off her assembly cart…with her kind permission, of course!) I found the pots of spiky greenery there at Nell Hill’s on another shopping trip and added faux agapanthus.

Monkeys and gold-tone planters from The Painted Sofa in Kansas City, Missouri’s West Bottoms shopping district. (Visited there over this past weekend. They are TEEMING with product, y’all!) The blue and white biscuit jars are from Nell Hill’s.

On the vitrine sits a Nell Hill’s blue and white foot tub filled with juicy oranges. The tub is surrounded by a trio of finial jars, a miniature vase, and a couple of ginger jars, also from Nell Hill’s.

If you’re as much a lover of blue and white or chinoiserie as I am and would like to see more of it on this blog, check out the posts below. And don’t forget to follow me on Instagram!

Have a fabulous week!

Solemn Stars & Stripes

July 2, 2021September 6, 2021 / Alycia Nichols / 14 Comments

This 4th of July (and always) I pray for peace, true freedom, liberty and justice for all souls on this earth.

Placing the ceramic foot bath on a silver gallery tray adds another dimension and a bit of formality to the centerpiece.

Kate Spade for Lenox “Rutherford Circle – Navy” salad plates and “Rutherford Circle – Red” dinner plates atop white ceramic chargers. A mix of alternating red and blue Pier 1 star shaped bowls and a star-studded napkin folded flag style round out the place setting. I first did this napkin fold for “4th of July – Coastal Style” back in 2014.

Hampton Silversmiths “Patriot” flatware.

Faux floral stems and blue & white chinoiserie foot bath from Nell Hill’s (Kansas City).

My Mother’s American flag is displayed on the vitrine in her honor.

Don’t forget to share in the abundance of the season including fresh fruits and pies! My favorite: blueberry! What’s YOURS?!!

To see other patriotic tablescapes on this blog, just click below. Have a safe and happy 4th!

Blue & White Chinoiserie With A Little Green Kiss

May 11, 2021 / Alycia Nichols / 13 Comments

I had to Google the term “grandmillennial style” when it started making the rounds on Instagram. House Beautiful’s definition of “granny chic” threw me for a loop! Chinoiserie has been a favorite of mine long before I actually became a granny, and it will remain so. But define it as you will, here we are…granny chic in blue and white with a scandalous kiss of lime green.

I don’t think I have EVER used these Johnson Brothers “Blue Denmark” dinner plates in the 10+ years I’ve had them! They work perfectly with the beautiful yet sturdy cobalt blue-rimmed ceramic chargers I found on clearance a couple of years ago at Hobby Lobby. Centered on each plate is a cobalt short martini glass from Pier 1 in their heyday. A lime green cotton napkin adds a shock of unexpected color.

Faux bamboo flatware plays into the chinoiserie styling.

I didn’t keep much of the crystal from my Mom’s estate. Simply nowhere to store it all. So the few pieces I brought home with me, like her Mikasa “Innovation” crystal wine glasses, are extra special. I chose them for this tablescape as they complement the shape of the Pier 1 cobalt blue water glasses.

I found these 3 identical fabulous blue and white vases at Nell Hills in Kansas City, MO. It is one of my favorite places to shop these days, and the selection is always over the top…even in times of COVID! I like the way the willowy branches look in them! Towering glass candlesticks from Z Gallerie add a little height, while spiky white coral and a pair of shabby chic perforated lime green finials finish the look atop a blue and white plaid fabric runner.

So there you have it! “Granny chic” from a not-so-chic granny!🙃

If you would like to see more blue & white/chinoiserie/granmillinial/Granny chic posts on this site:

Peaceful Peonies

January 10, 2012March 20, 2021 / Alycia Nichols / 68 Comments

Chinese New Year is January 23, 2012. I love the colorful pageantry associated with this holiday! Last year I created a traditional Chinese New Year tablescape using lots of red and gold with black accents. (Click HERE and scroll down to “Year of the Rabbit” to see last year’s post.) This year, now tired of all the red used for Christmas decorating, I went rogue with a fiery hot pink.
(Click on any photo to enhance/enlarge it.)

One of the great things about this particular tablescape design is that the Asian influence is somewhat understated, thus rendering it suitable for various contemporary-styled occasions such as rehearsal dinners or ladies luncheons (sans the candles, of course). The two-tone linen combo of sizzling hot pink over the more neutral black immediately draws the eye in.

To demonstrate how the same dishes can create an entirely different atmosphere depending on the accessories, compare this setting to that of “Let Them Eat Cake” from a post last year. (Click HERE and scroll down to “Let Them Eat Cake“.) A gold leafed glass charger and gold-rimmed white china from Pier 1 are topped with a an F. Winkel & Co. “Jacobean” salad plate. The vivid coloring and busy pattern of the chinoiserie salad plate are just the right combination to accent the plainer underplates and bring in the black, gold, hot pink and white.

I had my eye on these Buddhas from the moment they hit the store shelves at Z Gallerie last year. I must have chewed half a pound of fingernails waiting for them to go on clearance, hoping there would be enough left over. Jackpot! Got all I needed at 75% off!!! Here they hold a gold mercury glass votive.

My “old reliable” goldtone flatware works well here with its subtle pattern.

I opted for crystal stemware with gold rims, but opaque black stemware like Mikasa’s “Elegance-Black” would work well, too.

I felt the need to break up that searing hot pink surface a bit more. I achieved this by folding the black poly-cotton napkins from Bed Bath & Beyond into a long chevron and placing them beneath each setting, allowing them to extend downward over the pink linen.

I almost always use either white or ivory candles, but I’m getting bolder in my old age! 😉 Long black tapers are set into a trio of 20″H goldtone candlesticks to add height and color down the table’s center.

Black powder-coated ginger jars hold a mix of pink peonies, white alstroemeria, and star blossoms. (Florals used here for demonstrative purposes are faux, but I encourage the use of natural flowers for actual entertaining. If, however, all natural flowers are out of your budgetary reach, try mixing realistic fauxs with fresh. The key there is realistic fauxs that blend well!)

Lined up on each side of the centerpiece are four gold mercury glass votives to add ambient light at the lowest level.

The notably restrained buffet decor is a giant black ginger jar flanked by a pair of the same F. Winkel & Co. plates as used on the table. Florals from the table are extended by simply plopping 3 peonies into a shallow black bowl.

2012 is the Year of the Dragon, so printed menus with the Chinese symbols for dragon – 龙年 – or a dragon watermark, or menus in the shape of a dragon would be another element to make this table special. Specialty stores may carry oversized ceramic dragons which would be a great addition, too! (Or go check out Grandma’s attic for them. These dragons, as well as panthers for some odd reason, were all the rage in contemporary 1960s homes.) A nice substitute for the peonies would be deep pink carnations, orchids or, depending on availability, pink plum blossom branches which symbolize luck. If your budget allows for it, rented bamboo chiavari chairs in black would be the crowning touch!

More tablescapes using hot pink on this site:
“Daisy Crazy“
“Hello, Dahlia“
“Let Them Eat Cake“
“Hollywood Fright Night“