Copycat French Tablescape

After forty-one years I still love my wedding china, crystal and silver.  Wanted to share something I learned in actually reading one of my coffee tables decorating books instead of just looking at the pictures. Am I the only one that is guilty of doing that? 

I love all things French and enjoy learning things about France. In Betty Lou Phillips book pictured above I was intrigued that French tablescapes differ from the typical american tablescapes in several ways.

Did you know the french place the tines of the fork face down and why? Betty Lou Phillips says," that custom developed to undercut the fork's ability to snag ruffled lace sleeves." She also states that some think this custom began to draw attention to engraved initials on the backs of the silver. I thought this was interesting. I love the engraving on the back of my silver pattern, Buttercup by Gorham and on the back of the spoon it actually says buttercup.

I think the silverware turned down is a custom in fairly all of europe.


Something else I found interesting was the water and wine glasses are placed directly above each plate instead of above the knife and spoon as done in the United States.  Might that too evolved because of billowing sleeves that might catch on a glass? I don't know but the old adage, form follows function comes to my mind.

The silver charger, or" underplate" is called "Beauhamais." Pictured here is an inexpensive faux charger. At my niece's bridesmaid's luncheon,  seen here , we used silver trays as chargers on the main table. If I had thought about it I would have used a favorite sterling tray as a charger today.

The french are known for their beautiful linens and dining elegance. Reading Secrets of French Design inspired me to dig out a beautiful tablecloth my mother-in- law gave me that her brother brought back from the Philipines many years ago and set a table the french way. It was fun to learn about these subtle differences simply by actually reading a wonderful design book.

You can google Betty Lou Phillips and see a list of her great design books and other blog posts about her work.

I snapped this pic in Bon Marche in Paris in 2011. Didn't think about the way the glasses were placed just thought it was very pretty. I actually ran across it after publishing this post and decided to add it because it fit.

Linking to Tablescape Thursday at Between Naps on the Porch. Thank you Susan, your blog was the first blog I discovered four years ago and I was thrilled and smitten from then on with reading blogs and getting to know people like you with similar interests to mine.