My Botanical Luncheon For Tablescape Thursday

Tablescape Thursday is a fun event created and hosted by Susan of Between Naps On The Porch. Susan herself is a master at setting dramatic and stunning tables. The event takes place every Thursday allowing those that enjoy putting together special table settings to participate and share the end result with everyone. Below are images of my dining room table which I decorated for a lunch theme I call "The Botanical Garden". Please be sure to visit Susan's blog to see more tablescapes.


I chose a spring/summer theme, to compensate for the
current weather conditions which have been wet and cold.


I thought it would be nice to create an ambiance that would
allow my guests to escape the gray rainy day season. Now,
if I could offer any advice on setting a memorable table, I
would encourage you to always think about
your table when traveling whether it's an international
or just a short get away weekend to a favorite
nearby destination. Table settings can not only be an
excellent way of sharing your travel finds with your guests,
but they also become conversation pieces for everyone
at the table.


To begin my theme, I brought in our wrought iron chairs
from the back yard to give it an outdoor garden feel.
I chose a light taupe chenille table cloth as my canvas
for the table. A great find at Target. The border has a beautiful
applique(like?) on the four corners. Perfect for our theme.


I then decided to use dry miniature topiaries as place card
holders. For these photos, I used my old business cards as a
stand in. I added a few creme porcelain birds taken from
the living room for a touch of wild life without the poop.


I already had in mind the dishes that would work best in
inspiring the botanical theme. I mixed 3 different patterns
just to add some interests.


The soup tureen was a housewarming gift from my partner
Dan's parents in 1994.


Lunch menu:
Salad: Mixed greens with apple and miso dressing
Soup: Asparagus
Entree: Broiled Salmon with roumalade sauce;
roasted baby red potatoes with fresh rosemary and
extra virgin olive oil and fresh pepper
Dessert: Coconut Cake


The Bohemian crystal stemware with the sterling silver band is
from Prague. You can find Bohemian crystal practically
everywhere in the Czech Republic. We purchased these at
a shop in Old Town square in 2000. For this event, our
guests will enjoy a splash of Limoncello from Positano,Italy.


Crystal and silver candle holders are by Waterford.


The champagne stemware with the double eagles head are made
of rock crystal and are from Saint Petersburg, Russia.
The water goblet is by Mikasa.


Champagne flute to the far left by Waterford.


The decorative pair of cream colored vases are from Ethan Allen
They compliment the soup tureen beautifully.


The dinner plate is a vintage porcelain by Havilland from
a flea market in Beauvais which is about 45 minutes outside
of Paris,France in 1998.
Unfortunately, all that was available were the dinner plates
(8) and salad/soup bowls(10).


Napkin rings from Nordstrom's home department. A great
addition to the botanical theme. Mr frog.


Mr. Turtle(ok, maybe not so botanical but still nice huh)


Queen Bee. The best deal on the table are the bread/salad plates
by I Godinger which create the perfect botanical theme.
I purchased those for $3.99 at my local Homegoods store.


Swinging on the chandelier to capture this aerial view just
for you.





Unobstructed aerial view. The center dinner plate is from Lenox.
It has a beautiful gold scroll pattern on the band edge.


Aerial view of the left end of the table.


An aerial view of the right end of the table.

Thank you for stopping by and I hope you enjoyed the pictures. Please feel free to leave me comment.