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Wednesday, August 22, 2012

First Dinner... Tablescape

Don't be thinking anything silly. It's not our first dinner. Or the first one I cooked. It's the first time we have dined on this new table. Our son made it for me. You can read the background HERE.

I hadn't even started sanding the top yet. Boy is that hard! But I am loving working on it. Now to the first dinner.. It's grilled salmon with a dill/caper sauce; buttered new potatoes, steamed broccoli, a fresh lettuce salad, and Dad brought a store bought peanut butter something pie that was really worth the calories!

To play up the rustic-ness of the table.... faux-bamboo flatware, nito chargers, Shell shaped plates and an Ironwood salad bowl. 

 Those Tommy Bahama napkins came back out for this family affair. Also wrapped in a Nito napkin rings.

I love these glasses. Found them in my favorite grocery store, United Market Street. They have the most fabulous gift-ables section.

Our backyard is a bit of a mess. We reseeded where the plumbers had a field day earlier this year. I've got an extra table sitting out there now. And a few other projects are "brewing".

I love all these textures.. I hope you do, too.

Can you believe that two of these succulents are from last year? Yep, didn't drown them. The rest are new this spring. Yep, they aren't being drowned either. And I made that concrete planter. With a wee bit of help from my best friend. Quasi-Instructions HERE.

I don't have many dishes with delicate edges. I raised boys you know. One good clank and you are missing an integral piece of the edge!



The sweet one on the left is the furniture builder, grass seeder, trim remover, tree trimmer, and second in command. The sweet guy on the left puts up with us! So I let him have his bright lights as long as my Mexican stars stay!


Cast:
Nito Chargers & Napkin Rings - Pier One and World Market
Dinner plates - TJ Maxx eons ago
Salad bowls - Ironwood
Wine glasses, hurricanes - local grocery store
Water glasses - Dollar Tree
Flatware - Horchow's
Napkins - Tommy Bahama

Thank you so much for being so loyal and coming to visit. It certainly is a bright spot in my day!
Your kind comments let me know you were here. I'll be joining these weekly fun parties:
Cuisine Kathleen's  Let's Dish
Susan's Tablescape Thursday

See y'all there!


39 comments:

  1. Dang, I can't make the trip down that long, straight West Texas road today...maybe I could get there for left overs ;-). I'm so glad that you have your beautiful table just in time for the most glorious time of each year in our part of the country. Thanks for inviting us for a peak. Cherry Kay

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  2. Such a fun first dinner! Great menu. And the lights and twilight sky make it all so convivial. But I love a cool summer night! Love your table too!

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  3. A wonderful setting on that great table. Love the lights twinkling, too.

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  4. Marlis, the table looks beautiful! I love the wood bowls and those fabulous glasses. The menu sounded heavenly. Joni

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  5. Hooray for you a thousand times over!!! Your new table is just perfect!!! Do you really HAVE to sand it? I don't know about such things. I guess to prevent splinters? It just looks so cool as is. I'm glad you and your family were able to sit down and enjoy a meal at it right away, though. I'm sure your son was feeling pretty good about that! If you ever tire of those gorgeous white plates, just ship them on to me. They are the diggity bomb!!! I love the ironwood salad bowls, too! You did a beautiful job, Marlis! Oh...and congratulations on the surviving succulents! There'd have to be a ticker tape parade if I was able to not kill a plant!!!!

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  6. Marlis,
    Being a Mother of sons...I totally understand the shell chargers...which, by the way are gorgeous!!! What a precious "first dinner" tablescape and the menu sounded delicious!!! The ambiant lighting definitely takes this wonderful evening over the top! So~o~o gald you shared this lovely sight with us!
    Fondly,
    Pat

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  7. Marlis,
    P.S. I adore your time ticking ...until Autumn on the sidebar of your blog!!! Pat

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  8. This is such a beautiful earthy table. I love how you have played up the lovely wood with the plates and flatware! Gorgeous. Hugs,Linda

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  9. Great warm colors on your table, Marlis. I like the outdoor table and woodsy theme.

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  10. I love your table Marlis! Your dishes, chargers, bowls and stemware are perfect for it! Love the blue stemware with their woven stems. That's great that your succulent planter has done so well!

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  11. Marlis,

    What do I love about this? Everything! The ironwood bowls are amazing and complement the table so well. I love the contrast with the plates. The chargers, napkin rings and the glasses all look so great together. You have so many of your Mother's wonderful old pieces and now you have something new from your sweet sone to put them on. dianne

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  12. Lovely table and an equally nicely designed tablescape for dinner. How wonderful of your son to create this for you. Keep those succulents healthy! I am often guilty of killing off these guys. Hope mine make it thru the winter this year. We'll see.....
    :-) Sue

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  13. Oh my, that table is beautiful!!!! Perhaps with two boys of my own, I'll have something like that too:)

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  14. Marlis, may this be the first of many wonderful meals shared at this gorgeous table. I'm a fan of textures, and this table hits the mark. I like the wooden bowls on the stack of plates. Looks terrific!

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  15. Marlis, what a beautiful table! the table itself and what's on it. Love the shape and dimension of those dinner plates and those wine glasses are outstanding!

    - The Tablescaper

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  16. How wonderful that you get to use the table already, Marlis. It is still too hot to dine outdoors here. Love the rustic look and the table is awesome. How talented and loving is your boy to make that table and doo all that to help you. You raised him well. Love your succulent centerpiece and everything is so pretty on the table...Christine

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  17. How wonderful to have a furniture builder in the family and what a handsome table! I love all your textures and stems and even your colorful lights :) May this be the first of many wonderful family meals!

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  18. Marlis, I chuckled about the shell chargers since we have three sons also. The table is amazing! I love the wood bowls and those glasses. Everything on the menu sounds delicious too! Have a great day.

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  19. I love the glassware! The lights and Mexican stars are so pretty!

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  20. You are going to have lots of fun with this table, I just know it! I really like what you did here, and I am in love with the white plates. Cool goblets, too!

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  21. This was a lovely and elegant rustic table I must say! Those white plates are gorgeous. Wonderful that you have a woodworker in your household too. He did a wonderful job on your table, and so much more meaningful that he built it.

    My son is great at that too.
    He made 2 bistro shelves for us, some years back and earlier this year a potting bench, very proud of both.

    Hope you had a lovely dinner and had a lot of fun dining on your special new table. Love the lights in the background too.
    Blessings, Nellie

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  22. Hi Marlis, I'm lovin your new table, and how special is that! Made by your son……..He is very talented. How wonderful to have a skill to create something so beautiful. Love your tablescape. Great layers and gorgeous pieces. I think you did a beautiful job in keeping a rustic look but also adding a lot of flair! Great goblets and napkins. Great post.
    Happy Day……..

    Emily
    The French Hutch

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  23. This is such a perfect outdoor dinner table! All the natural elements mixed with the lovely dishes just set such a wonderful tone! Beautiful! Visiting from Let's Dish!

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  24. Marlis, your talented son did a fine job on that table. Love the entire setting. I never touch my succulents and they live outside all winter too. Visiting from Kathleen's. Olive

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  25. Love the combination of wood, basket weave and glass on your new table. The menu sounds divine too!Susan at Romancing the Home

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  26. so many wonderful textures here and those glasses....wowee! Having two sons of my own, I know how anything made by them is so so special. Your table is wonderful.

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  27. Such a lovely tablescape! I love your wicker stemed glasses.

    Your son did an incredible job on that table! Wow, I'm impressed!

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  28. Marlis, How blessed are you to have such a talented son. He must get it from his mother. The table is fabulous & I have something that will go perfectly on it. Email me your address and I will send you a little surprize. Hugs, Dawna

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  29. Wow, how lucky are you to have your son make you a table. It is just gorgeous. Lovely table.
    Suzyq

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  30. Wow...what a gorgeous table..Lucky you to have such a talented son. I love the rustic feel of this setting. The glasses are so unique and the succulents are a nice touch, too!

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  31. No matter what table you set, you always have the just right look. I'd say your son gave you lots of new opportunit
    Y to wow us.

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  32. Beautiful table. Your son did an awesomely good job. Lovely setting and a beautiful blog. New follower.

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  33. What a lovely table - you are so fortunate to have a "table builder"! And your meal sounds simply scrumpious. Such a pretty table and yard.

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  34. How great to have your son make you such a cool table!! I love the natural elements you used, yet softened by those beautiful white plates. I'm a fan!!

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  35. Beautiful table, your son is very talented.
    I love the ironwood with the shell plates, makes a great contrast.

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  36. This is such a pretty table! I love the mix of rustic and refined and the pops of not-too-overwhelming blue. It's especially pretty at night!

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  37. Hi darling, what a talented son you have. Your table is a treasure. I love your natural elements mixed with the crisp cool white.. hugs ~lynne~

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  38. I thought I commented on this , but it was the table not the scape! Please forgive me!
    It looks wonderful, so natural.
    You must have fancy grocery stores, those glasses are so pretty with this, perfect!

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  39. Oh my Marlis, the table is wonderful!!!!! Your scape is beautiful, too. I love my Market Street, also. What fun it is to browse there.

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Thank you for visiting and commenting. I love reading your thoughts. Blessings, Marlis