Thankful and Blessed

Blessings to everyone today! Thanksgiving will be here before we know it. Today, I am joining Rita @Panoply and a sweet and talented group of bloggers for a Thanksgiving Tablescape Blog Hop. Thank you Rita, for organizing this tablescape hop. I appreciate all your hard work.

At the end of this post, there will be links to bloggers participating in this Thanksgiving  Tablescape Blog Hop. Give them some love and leave them a comment.

 I named my blog post, Thankful and Blessed because I am very thankful and feel blessed to be a part of this group of table stylists as well as the myriad of blessings we have every day. I am setting a more casual table today, and everything can go in the dishwasher except the bamboo cutlery.

Years ago, when brass candlesticks were all the rage, I just had to have this Baldwin Brass lantern. It has a finish that never needs to be polished! I was also attracted to the beautifully curved handle. Years later, I was excited to find another lantern just like it at an estate sale. I  have used both of them in separate rooms on shelves. This is the first time I have used them in a tablescape. It does pay to shop your house!

A white-handled urn holds autumn shades of mums, daises, white carnations, white hydrangeas, and variegated pittosporum for the centerpiece. Faux bittersweet, white pumpkins and silk leaves accent the arrangement.

I love to arrange fresh flowers, but sometimes shopping for flowers where I live can be a challenge. I found out one package was not enough because this one had two lily buds that had not opened. Fortunately, I had more hydrangeas to add from another occasion, so I had enough flowers.  Note to self: don't buy bouquets with lilies. Do you set your table first and then look for flowers? This time I did, but ended up with entirely different flowers than I had in mind. I originally wanted rust alstroemeria and could not find them. I think the assorted colors added more color and variety than one color alstroemeria! I am always learning, which is fun!

The warm tones of the burled wood grain of the table, burlap runner, shiny brass lanterns,  and assorted kinds and colors of fresh flowers provide lots of texture for the season.

My plate stack consists of Mansard by Spode white dinner plate, Walmart charger, Crown Linen cream-colored velvet placemat, Fostoria amber footed goblet, a multi-color cotton damask napkin, and Southern Living bamboo cutlery.

"Hem your blessings with thankfulness, so they don't unravel." Unknown

"An attitude of gratitude is a never-ending prayer."

"All which we behold is full of blessings."William Wordsmith~ 1798

The only day I had to photograph my table was very cloudy, so I had to open the shutters and turn on all the lights and lamps!

🦃🍁🦃🍁🦃🍁 As we look forward to traveling to Colorado to visit our son and family this year for Thanksgiving, I  am remembering a particular Thanksgiving memory that still pulls at my heart. The memory took place in 2007, when my son was stationed in Del Rio, Texas, in the Air Force. Stationed at Laughlin Air Force base, where he was an instructor pilot, he met a young enlisted African man with no family and invited him to have Thanksgiving dinner with us.  He was from the central African country of Cameroon. He told the story of the long struggle he had experienced to immigrate to the U.S. My husband, who loves maps and geography, poured over Google Earth on his iPad with Romeo and found his actual village and very own house. It was very touching to share his joy of seeing his home and village so far away. That was his first American Thanksgiving. I wonder where Romeo is now. That experience truly made us realize how blessed we are to live in a free country and have opportunities for education and advancement. Romeo joined the U.S. Air Force to better himself and allow him to work toward U.S. citizenship. 

So from my house to yours, I wish you a Happy Thanksgiving. 🍁🦃🍁 We are indeed very blessed. 
"Enter His Gates with Thanksgiving And His Courts with Praise. Give thanks to Him and Bless His Name."Psalm 100:4

Below are the links of those participating in the Thanksgiving Tablescape Blog Hop.

Me and My Captain - Those Were the Days and I Am Very Grateful

Pandora's Box - Thanksgiving Brings Back Memories

Living With Thanksgiving - Thankful and Blessed

Everyday Living - Thanksgiving Traditions

My Hubbard Home - Pumpkins and Pears Thanksgiving Holiday Table

Thrifting Wonderland - Give Thanks...Thanksgiving Tablescape

Panoply - Homeland Merriment Thanksgiving

Home is Where the Boat Is - Porch Dining with Plaid & Proud Tom Turkey

Corner of Plaid and Paisley - Give Thanks

My Thrift Store Addiction - In Everything Give Thanks - Garden Tea for Two

Life and Linda - A Copper and Blue Pumpkin Table

Karins Kottage - Come set an outdoor Thanksgiving table with me

The Painted Apron - Grateful Gathering

Belle Bleu Interiors - A Time to Give Thanks

Dinner at Eight - Patterns in Blue for Thanksgiving

Red Cottage Chronicles - A Cozy Cottage Thanksgiving Tablescape

The Bookish Dilettante - Thanksgiving Table in the Breakfast Room

The Little Yellow Corner Store - A Northwoods Thanksgiving

Wishing everyone a wonderful Thanksgiving!🦃🍁🦃Living Thankfully,

An Autumn Tea

Today, I  am joining my friends Pam at Everyday Living and Mary at Home is Where the Boat is, as a guest blogger, for Tea on Tuesdays. They share this fun virtual treat on the third Tuesday of each month. At the end of this post, there will be links to view their beautiful and creative posts for Tea on Tuesdays.

I'm setting up an Autumn tea time in my garden. The weather is glorious. I chose a brass container for flowers and found golden mums, persimmon Shasta daises, ruby-tinged peach roses, chartreuse button mums, and limelights cut from my garden that have turned from white to that pretty shade of green. Don't you love the colors of Autumn?

My teapot is Johnson Brothers Ironstone and was a wedding gift.  That makes it vintage, as we just celebrated our 51st wedding anniversary in August. I  fondly remember the sweet lady who gave it to us.

In reading about teatime rituals in Victoria, The Art of Tea, I remembered my English tea caddies. The workmanship of these antique boxes shows the pride and dedication of a bygone era. The bright autumn colors in the tablecloth and flowers bring out the warm wood tones of the caddies.

This fabulous book has exquisite photos and information about the art of tea and would make a great gift.

This Tunbridge English tea caddy with a dome lid is circa 1890 and has stunning marquetry inlays and detailing.

The tag on this footed tea caddy read the late 1800s. What is the first thing you want to do when you examine a box? Of course, you want to open it. 

You'll find most caddies have two compartments, as do mine, one for tea and the other for sugar. They also have locks and keys. They are made of rosewood, mahogany, and satinwood. They not only had a utilitarian purpose, and earned pride of place in the home but also as elegant decor. ( Victoria -The Art of Tea). These boxes were treasured as much as the tea, and many examples remain today as collectible items.

Afternoon tea was introduced in England by Anna, the seventh Duchess of Bedford in1840. The Duchess would become hungry around four o'clock in the afternoon. The evening meal in her household was served fashionably late at eight o'clock, thus leaving a long time between lunch and dinner. The Duchess asked that a tray of tea, bread, and butter be brought to her room during the late afternoon. (Historic UK-Afternoon Tea by Ben Johnson)I am serving one savory item, a dainty pimento cheese open-face sandwich. For something sweet, a lemon square and a slice of pumpkin roll. My favorite tea is Earl Grey which is a black tea blended with real oil of bergamot. I love the bergamot flavor. 

"There are few hours in life more agreeable than the hour dedicated to the ceremony known as afternoon tea." Henry James

As I mentioned, our weather has been beautiful, with cooler fall-like temperatures. To sit in the garden having tea and peruse some issues of TeaTime magazine and Victoria's, The Art of Tea can't be beaten.

In 2013, my husband and I enjoyed a Crème Tea in the Lake Country in England. You can read a blog post about it here and view a Crème Tea I had in my home for friends. Thank you, Pam and Mary, for inviting me to join you today for Tea on Tuesdays. I wish we could sit and enjoy a real cup of tea together☕️, as well as with all our readers!🧡Click on the links below to view Mary and Pam's lovely and creative posts and leave them a comment, so they will know you enjoyed their post. I love your comments also!🧡🧡🧡

             Mary at Home is Where the Boat Is.

                                   Pam at Everyday Living

                   Living Thankfully,

🍁🧡🍂🍁🧡🍂

Fall Vibes

I'm glad you joined me today for the Welcome Fall Tablescape Blog hop. This blog hop is sponsored by Rita @Panoply We appreciate all of Rita's work and organization in keeping this group together.

It is hard to believe that fall is on the way soon. It is slower to feel like fall in the deep south because it is still very warm here. This vintage Provencal tablecloth was bought in Provence, in 1997, by my mother-in-law.

I deliberately chose to keep the table simple without chargers or placemats to be able to view the design of the tablecloth. 

The mixed floral arrangement continues to evolve as the lilies have not all opened. Sunflowers, limelight, lilies, Gerber daises, green ball dianthus, and petite roses make up the floral centerpiece. 

The yellow plates and bowls were my grandmother's and are Riveria by Homer Laughlin made in the '30s and '40s. Blue goblets and napkins go with the yellow plates for a blue and yellow fall vibe. I love the small plates and bowls. Perfect for a fall alfresco lunch.

Pitchers are fun to use as vases. This one was just the right size and color. On the bottom of the vase, it says handpainted in Italy. Looking closely, you can see small leaves, apples, and pears that give a nod to fall.

What food would you serve for a fall alfresco lunch?

I am starting to dream of fall and thinking of pumpkin recipes. By the way, last year, it was hard to find canned pumpkin, so I bought some yesterday. Dreaming of fall, I looked up some fall quotes to share.🍂🍁🍂
"Every leaf speaks bliss to me, glittering from the autumn tree." Emily Bronte
" The heat of autumn is different from the heat of summer. One ripens the apples, the other turns them to cider." Jane Hirshfield
"I can smell autumn dancing in the breeze. The sweet chill of pumpkins and crisp sunburnt leaves."Ann Drake
Do you call the season autumn or fall?

  Thank you for your visit. I am glad you were here. There have been some glitches in commenting on blogs recently. Leave your name in the comment, please, because some are coming in anonymously.  I do want to know you were here. 

Twenty table stylists are participating in this hop. Be sure to click on the links below to visit each tablescape. 

Everyday Living - Anxiously Awaiting Autumn's Arrival!

Panoply - Ready for Fall: Game On Tablescape

My Thrift Store Addiction - Simply Elegant Velvet Pumpkin Fall Tablescape

Me and My Captain - Shine On Harvest Moon

Home is Where the Boat Is - Cusp of Fall with Woodland Friends

Hyacinths for the Soul - Whoooo is Ready for Autumn?

Debbee's Buzz - Alfresco Brunch Peacock Table & Napkin Fold

My Hubbard Home - Country French Autumn Table Using Classic Red Toile

Pandora's Box - A Yellow Table for September

The Painted Apron - Early Fall Pumpkin Patch

From My Carolina Home - Autumn Apples Tablescape

Celebrate and Decorate - A Fall Tablescape in Shades of Blue

Living With Thanksgiving - Fall Vibes

Dinner at Eight - Mums Lead the Way to Fall

Thrifting Wonderland - It's Time for a Fall Tablescape

The Bookish Dilettante - Back to (Art) School

Life and Linda - Welcome Fall

Bluesky at Home - How to Decorate a Table with Fall Leaves

Corner of Plaid and Paisley - Fall Tablescape - Autumn Gnome

Red Cottage Chronicles - Cozy Up Around an Autumn Dinner Table

Living thankfully and Happy Fall!🍁

A Touch of Provence

Monday Morning Blooms
I am honored to be invited to be a 'guest bloomer' for Monday Morning Blooms today. Mary, Pam, and Lidy are very talented floral designers that showcase their talent on the first Monday of every month.  Click on the links below to view their beautiful posts.  I am so happy to join them today!

The theme today is sunflowers. Join me for a touch of Provence.  I'm using a sunflower tablecloth that was bought in1997, in Avignon, by my mother-in-law.

The yellow plates were my grandmother's. I remember fondly using those at her farmhouse when I was a child. The plates are Rivera by Homer Laughlin made in the '30s and '40s. They bring back pleasant memories, and I am happy to have them. Gold vintage Fostoria goblets add a touch of fall to the table.

I used this same tablecloth back in 2016 in a local sunflower field. I had hoped to do that again, but it did not work out. However, my garden is much cooler than the 90-degree day when this picture was taken.

Limelights from my garden were added to store-bought sunflowers and placed in vintage olive oil jars. Sunflowers are such happy flowers, and sunflower seeds and oil are useful products made from sunflowers.  They grow here in the United States and in many countries and are the national flower of Ukraine and the state flower of Kansas. The memory of my in-law's trip to Provence and my mother-in-law's tablecloth makes me think of the olive groves there. The taste of fresh olives and a baguette of bread dipped in olive oil transports me back to our trip there also. 

Here are some fun facts I found on the web about sunflowers.

Fun Facts About Sunflowers.

Each sunflower is actually thousands of teeny flowers.

Each sunflower can contain as many as 1,000 to 2,000 seeds. ...

Sunflowers are native to North America. ...

There are about 70 species of sunflowers. ...

The tallest sunflower on record was over 30 feet tall. ...

Sunflowers track the sun.

Sunflowers brighten a room and make a delightful statement in any setting.

And since I have a large open area, I thought three arrangements would fill the space nicely, and I had three similar containers.

I thoroughly enjoyed eating the props after taking the photos!

I read this online: Did you know that in 1987, an anonymous buyer paid 39.85 million dollars for Van Gogh's "Sunflowers" painting? The artist originally hoped to sell the painting for $125.00. 

I wish we all could sit down together in my garden and have a lovely chat.

 " Light enchanted sunflower, thou who gazest ever true and tender on the sun's revolving splendour." 

Vincent Van Gogh

I look forward to seeing Mary, Pam, and Lidy's sunflower arrangements. Thank you, ladies, for inviting me to join you today! Click below to view their lovely posts.

Mary at Home Is Where the Boat Is

Lidy at French Garden House

Pam at Everyday Living 
I had a great time, friends.
Living Thankfully,🌻🌻🌻