Fourth of July Tablescape

With a record breaking heatwave hitting the West Coast, (we broke our record set in 1946 - are you ready for this? 72 degrees Saturday in downtown Eureka.....yeah, doesn't sound like much to those of you who experience temperatures above 100 degrees, I know, but let me tell you. It was murder. Extremely high humidity. No air-conditioning. No wind. Stifling but I'll stop complaining. It was a lot hotter than that in most cities in California this weekend.) it's hard to get excited about the 4th of July. And naturally, the weatherman has predicted fog/overcast for that day anyway. But we persevere. And cool down.....

Pat arrived Sunday morning to my house "armed" with dishes she got from her daughter to set the table next week, but went to work on this week's table first. Here's what she came up with in less than an hour.

Over view of the table

The place setting

Pat started with these really neat placemats - in silvery blue tones. She found them at Tuesday Morning.

First layer is a simple, coup-styled charger

Pat made the napkins

Next layer is a red dinner plate by Waechtersbach

I promise you - the plate is clean. I just couldn't get a good picture. It is actually a "Post 86" Cobalt Blue Fiesta luncheon plate

For the last layer, Pat added a clear, star-shaped bowl from the Dollar Store to use as a soup bowl.

Flatware is inexpensive stainless from Ross

The five piece place setting

Red, "white," and blue....patriotic glassware

We just had to use these star shaped votive holders that matched the soup bowl

Red, white and blue....all the way.

The huge soup tureen was our Mother's. It's years old.

One last look from the other end of the table

Where it came from:
Placemat - Tuesday Morning
Charger - by Bernardaud from Tuesday Morning
All Fiesta - by Homer Laughlin from Replacements and directly from Homer Laughlin
Red Dinner Plate - Fun Factory by Waechtersbach from Replacements
Star Soup Bowls - Dollar Store
Napkin - Handmade by Pat
Flatware - by Cambridge from Ross
Red and Blue Glassware - by Artland Glass from Replacements
Clear Champagne Glass - "Bubbles Galore" by Maxwell Williams from Tuesday Morning
Soup Tureen - from our Mother
White Candle Holders - by Westmoreland Glass from eBay
Blue Candle Holders - Fiesta by Homer Laughlin from eBay
Star Votive Holders - Dollar Store
Extra long Red Tapers - from Antique and Old Things in Fortuna, CA
White Tapers - Michael's
Red Votives - Pier 1

We will be joining Cuisine Kathleen's "Let's Dish" this Wednesday night:  http://www.cuisinekathleen.com/

Betty couldn't decide which Boa to wear, so, she put on all three. Typical....always over the top......

Not tablescape stuff....but interesting:

I mentioned in my posting "Where Do You Keep It All?" (celebrating The Tablescapers' Fourth Blogaversary - http://thetablescaper.blogspot.com/2013/06/where-do-you-keep-it-all-4seasonal.html) that Pat and I transport dishes and glassware back and forth from her house to mine all the time. You know that we keep glassware in wine boxes for easy moving, but I thought I would show you how we move dishes.

Pat made these fabulous dish holders and color coded them for assorted sized dishes. She got several dairy crates (they are extra heavy duty and secure) that hold the dishware perfectly.

They are made from two layers of muslin with a cotton quilt batting lining in between

Built-in handles make it a snap to grab

Stacked by color in drawers for when we need them

It's easy and quick to grab the right size for any plate