Summer is coming...

Hi and thanks for stopping by Far Above Rubies!   I didn't realize how many people follow Far Above Rubies who are not bloggers, but look for ideas and tips every week.  So I have decided to take the next few weeks to post about table settings.  So many times we skip the "dinner table" and it is such an important place for families to gather and talk about anything and everything.  I will show you how to make it warm and inviting without a lot of money or effort.  Please make sure you go over to "Between Naps on the Porch" and visit Susan for more beautiful tables! I will be linking up with her for "Tablescape Thursday."

I'm going to start with simple, cost-effective settings that you can do with just a few basic things. We'll start with china, but I will also give you some tips on flatware, glassware, linens, and show you how to make runners in the weeks to come.

Let's start with china. I am a firm believer in starting with a good set of neutral, casual china with place settings for 12. I use Mikasa "Italian Countryside," which I mix with my Wedgwood "Queen's Plain." I also have a pretty extensive collection of "Brown Drip" vintage dinnerware made by both McCoy and Hull. I love having something you can mix and match, dress up or down and use with anything. Plus, I think it needs to be a good quality. A lot of the stoneware out there chips like crazy. I have three children, so I want something that will hold up!

Mikasa "Italian Countryside"

Hull "Brown Drip"

Today, I'm going to use the "Brown Drip." You can find this on ebay and in antique markets pretty much anywhere. I love the earthy look it has, plus it is durable. 

My inspiration for this table was fabric I found at a local decor and fabric store...I really love the bright, summery almost tropical flavor this fabric has. I frequently show up at the fabric store with plates in whatever pattern I am trying to coordinate, and that really makes it easier.

I knew this would be perfect with the brown so I added some rattan chargers from Walmart...

Then, I added a $2.99 red salad plate from Walmart...

I can tell you that I have spent much more on red stoneware salad plates from more expensive stores, but they all chip so $2.99 will do!

Then I added gold buffet napkins I bought at World Market 6 in a pack for $9.99. These are lovely napkins. I am VERY "ocd" about napkins because we only use cloth and they must wash well. I suggest if you are going to use them you wash first then go back and get more. It drives me crazy to get a beautiful napkin then have it shrink up and look terrible after washing. The napkin rings also came from World Market about 5 years ago.

The flatware is our everyday pattern, "American Harmony" by Oneida.

Next I added vintage glassware. The iced tea glass is "Whitehall" by Indiana Glass and the goblet is "Old Williamsburg" by Imperial Glass.

I then "shopped the house" as usual! These candle holders came from Walmart last year and I got them because the wrought iron pattern matches some pieces I bought in Turkey a few years ago. On top I added these mosaic glass candleholders from Big Lots.

And nothing says "summer" more than the Bird of Paradise!

No need for candlelight now that the time has changed...the evening sunlight provides nature's perfect glow...

I hope you enjoyed my easy, inexpensive, summery table! You probably have everything you need for an inviting table right there in your house! Just look around your rooms, or borrow from your mom like I do, lol! A nicely set table will let your family and guests know that they are special, and that's one way you can make your house a home:-)


Thanks for stopping by!

Anita