Before today’s post I want to invite you to join me, and a talented group of others, this Friday [March 11th] for the next installment of Project Design #ProjectDesignNow.  We will be sharing “How to Style Your Spring Mantle Two Ways”.  It’s sure to be fun and chock full of ideas for putting some spring touches in your home.

Amber B. Design Studio

ciao! newport beach

classic ⋅ casual home ⋅ home

Dimples and Tangles

Katiedid

Lisa Mende Design

Lucy Williams Interiors

Rough Luxe Lifestyle

The Pink Pagoda

Now to Table settings with a touch of whimsey…

I have enjoyed setting a table since I was a little girl.  Once I moved into my own apartment I found any and every excuse to have people over for a meal.  It was very brave of my friends to accept since I wasn’t a very accomplished cook back in the day. The joy was, and still is, the creative process of setting the table.

Once a new bride, I used my china, crystal and silver for every dinner party we hosted. With time, I realized that it was just as much fun, if not more, to keep it casual. Today, I still enjoy setting a formal table for the right occasion, but I mostly use my everyday pottery / porcelain dishes, and simple glassware.  I interchange my sterling flatware with a couple of other, more casual, sets of flatware depending on the dishes I’m using.

of course I have my ruler handy when setting the table to make sure the utensils and plates are the appropriate distance from each other and the edge of the table. 🙂

{via}

I enjoy the fun of thinking of new ways of setting a table, and find there are lots of out of the box ideas online that inspire creating a table the reflects a season or a theme. A bit of whimsey never hurts.

Last summer my friend Wendy hosted a birthday celebration.  I love her use of Lori Mitchell figures that reflect summer fun.

Shells were on the table as well as her beautiful crystal bowl filled with water and floating candles.

{table setting by Wendy M.}

My winter birthday was celebrated at Carla’s, where she used a winter wonderland theme.  It was lovely and worked well with our cooler than usual weather at the time.

{table setting by Carla W.}

One year for St. Patrick’s Day I planted little pots of 4-leaf clover that Trader Joe’s sold and then gave each guest a chocolate leprechaun.  I enjoy using nursery plants for the table, you can plant them in the garden afterwards. 🙂

Easter of 2014 I pulled out the Beatrix Potter figures and a few of the Beatrix Potter books I used to read to my kids (and now read to our granddaughters).  I planted a concrete planter with sweet pea and viola.  The violet china pattern was my grandmother’s, and a friend made the runner {thank you Gretchen}

This image inspired a table setting of my own when hosting our birthday group.  The guests of honor, Tom and John, identical twins, enjoy an October birthday and I felt it called for something more masculine.

This was my version… {sorry for the glare coming through the window}

Last month I hosted a birthday dinner for Mr. B and our youngest son’s birthdays.  I wanted to keep it simple and decided this rusty urn went well with the rustic look of my Jan Barboglio candle holders.  I filled the urn with tree fern from the yard and added a bag of Granny Smith apples.  The candles could have been taller but we didn’t light them since we ate early.

Moss on a dining table is one of my favorite uses of the sheet moss sold at craft stores. I love the earthy feel to it.  Mixed with roses and other flowers, it’s natural and lovely and transports us to an outdoor setting, even indoors.

{via}

Setting the table in an outdoor “room” is where you can enjoy mixing things up a bit. Setting the table with a moss base and using terra cotta pots as the candle holders is clever and fitting for a autumn gathering.  The twigs and berries conjure up an image that a gust of wind blew these pieces to the table top.  This same setting could be recreated indoors.

{via Michelle Edwards ~ Sweet Something Design}

I’ll end with a table setting compliments of Martha Stewart.  Woodland creatures, birch tree-looking candles and small pots of moss or fern complete the look.  It’s whimsy at its best. 🙂

{via}

I’m out of time, but I’d like to invite you to visit my friend, Kelly over at “talk of the house” for further inspiration for table setting.  This talented blogger takes table setting creativity to a new level.

How do you entertain?  Is there ever a bit of whimsey to your table settings?