Thanksgiving Past

Looking back at some Thanksgiving tablescapes from past posts. 
  Have a wonderful relaxing holiday!

Click on each image below to view the full story on each tablescape.

Thanksgiving 2009

Thanksgiving 2009

Thanksgiving 2009

Thanksgiving 2009

Thanksgiving 2009

Thanksgiving 2009

Happy Turkey Day!

Fall Is Arriving In California

I'm joining Mosaic Monday over at Little Red House,

please stop by and share your latest mosaic!

Thanks for stopping by, I hope you'll visit again soon to see more Fall and

Halloween goodies.

Fiesta Fall Fantasy - Autumnal Equinox 2010

Fall arrives officially on September 23rd this year and to celebrate its arrival I am

reposting a tablescape from the Fall of 2009.

This is "Fall Fantasy" Post 86 Fiesta topped with Tangerine salad plates on a vintage tablecloth by California Hand Prints. The texture of the cloth is unlike my other CHP cloths and resembles huck towling. Vintage Fiesta Amberstone disc pitcher and marmalade in the Royal Chrome rack.  Turf Green and Antique Gold small platters are vintage Fiesta.  Flatware is vintage 1960 Dansk stainless with rosewood handles.

The glass chargers are from Tuesday Morning @$1 each! The candle holders are old wooden spinning spools.  Napkins from Pier 1, napkin rings from Bed Bath Beyond, glassware, patterned Melamine leaf bowl and leaf plates from Home Goods.

More Fall Inspired Tablescapes from 2009

1950s Kenilworth Boo-Fay

Traditionally we always have some sort of buffet table set up with leftovers, extra salads and cold-cuts for most of the meals served on this day after Thanksgiving.  It gives friends and family the chance to come and go as they shop, pick up a tree, hang the Christmas lights or whatever they might be trying to accomplish as we move forward in this busiest of seasons.  Here's an alternative to that table full of leftovers or maybe just present those leftovers in a different way to make it feel like a whole new experience!

1950s Food Ideas -
Anything wrapped in bacon!
Tuna Noodle Casserole
Frosted Meatloaf (that would be with mashed potatoes as the frosting!)
Three Bean Salad
Chex Mix
Stuffed Pecans or Walnuts
Filled Celery Sticks
Broiled Mushroom Caps
Jello Salad with canned fruit
Jello Salad with chopped celery and walnuts
Jello Salad with .... just about anything! Do you remember Raspberry Ring, Grapefruit Intrigue, Sea Siren Salad
Swedish Meatballs
Angel Food Cake (NOT from a box!)
Baked Grapefruit

OK, I admit it, some of these things still appear on my table!

Some of the things that came to our tables in the 1950s:
Sugar Pops, Minute Rice, Lawry's Seasoned Salt, Dunkin' Doughnuts, Ore-Ida Potato products, Duncan Hines Cake Mix, Tropicana orange juice, Jack-In-the-Box, Taco Bell , Sugar Frosted Flakes, Pream non-dairy creamer, Dehydrated onion soup mix, Mrs. Paul's Fish Sticks, Sugar Smacks, Cheeze Whiz, TV Dinners, "Irish Coffee" (San Francisco's Buena Vista Cafe), Denny's,Star-Kist tuna, Eggo Frozen Waffles, Trix, Butterball Turkeys, Stouffer's frozen meals, Nonfat dry milk, Burger King, Shakey's Pizza, Peanut M&Ms, Marshmallow Peeps, Special K,Pepperidge Farm cookies, McDonalds (Kroc style), Kentucky Fried Chicken, Imperial margarine, Certs, Pam (nonstick cooking spray), Refrigerated cookie dough (Pillsbury),Tang, [Ruffles, Rice-A-Roni, Sweet 'n Low, Cocoa Puffs, Jif , Chicken Ramen, Instant Tea, Pizza Hut, International House of Pancakes, Royal Crown Cola, Frosty O's, Ocean Spray brand products and drum roll please ...... Haagen-Dazs Ice Cream

Toss on your sweater set and those cute little pearls and pumps for this 1950s Boo-Fay (A friend of my mother's in the 1950s Chicago burbs used the word "buffet" in every possible situation she could.  I think it made her feel cultured in some way a la Hyacinth Bucket (Bouquet in her mind) of Keeping Up Appearances fame.

Kenilworth was a buffet-luncheon-snack set designed in 1955 by Don Schreckengost, Homer Laughlin's Art Director.  It is a very limited shape in terms of items offered.  Seems perfect for our 1950's Boo-Fay!

The recipe from the 1950's that I still prepare many times each year:
Chili Shrimp
Shrimp - fresh or frozen, gently boiled for 2-4 min depending on size
Bacon slices - thin sliced, cut in half lengthwise, fried on one side only
Bottled Chili Sauce or any cocktail sauce you prefer
Finely diced garlic to taste (add this to the sauce several hours ahead of preparation)
Wooden toothpicks

Dip pre-cleaned and cooked shrimp in sauce, wrap each shrimp with a strip of bacon with cooked side in, secure with wooden toothpick, broil for about 5 minutes or use outdoor grill, serve hot with extra dipping sauce.  These can be prepared a day or so ahead, refrigerated and prepared in batches throughout your gathering.

Everytime I use this vintage tablecloth I think it has spots on it ...... it is actually the very realistic fruit seeds printed on the cloth.

Once the food is cleared away you can bring out the coffee service and other beverage containers with their matching ice bucket.

Thanksgiving - Vera's Falling Leaves Linens

"Vera's Falling Leaves Thanksgiving" for Tablescape Thursday over on Susan's lovely porch and blog called Between Naps On The Porch.

These lovely glitter encrusted leaves decided they wanted to be glow in the dark leaves, more appropriate for Halloween I think!  In person they add a nice glittery look to the table, but in the presence of a flash they positively take over the world!

So I removed the leaves and went back to do this again. Ivory and Cinnabar Post 86 Fiesta with vintage Yellow Fiesta salad plates and hunter green chargers.  American Directoire sterling, glassware from Pier 1.

I found these cute little acorn salt and pepper shakers at my local Ace Hardware for $5.00!  It's the best Ace ever, with a large seperate room dedicated to high end cookware, gadgets, dishes and ornaments at Christmas time.  Just too much fun browsing through all the gadgets ever made for a kitchen and finding a few that I just can't live without. I stopped by there yesterday to buy a fly swatter (they carry several kinds, two of which I remember from my Grandma's time) and these shakers are just one of the items that immediately jumped into my hands.

And the carts came from Michael's post Halloween sale for $2.00 each.

Looking over the proceedings from the buffet are an Ivory vintage decorated Fiesta dinner plate and an HLC vintage Kenilworth platter.

The linens are one of several new designs from Vera carried by Macy's and this pattern is called "Falling Leaves."  More information can be found at this post from September.

Wishing you and yours the happiest of holidays on this Turkey Tablescape Thursday.

I'd Rather Be ...... In Provence !

This vintage cloth appeared here on The Little Round Table before, but this time around I'm pretending I'm in the South of France.  Perennial Marigolds and little baby olives branches from my garden decorate this champagne brunch table.

Nothing better than a late brunch with omelets, a small green or fruit salad, some cheese and fruit and lots of juice and champagne of course. Silver chargers from Tuesday Morning topped by Black Post 86 Fiesta dinner plates, decorative salads from Home Goods, Stainless flatware with forged iron handles, contemporary champagne flutes and juice glasses. Sterling napkin rings by Betsy Gay Hart.

"Apple Tree" bowls are vintage Homer Laughlin in Ivory and Yellow.