TABLESCAPE TUESDAY

Susan at Between Naps on the Porch is hosting Tablescape Tuesday once again. Please check out her wonderful blog for a list of those participating with beautiful tablescapes!!

In my family, these dishes are known as "The Oyster Dishes". My great grandfather's birthday was on New Years Eve, and my great grandmother always had friends in to celebrate by serving my grandfather's favorite - raw oysters, sandwiches, fruit and cake. She always served this meal using this set of Royal Rudolstadt from Prussia. They are hand painted and signed by F. Hahn. The sterling silver flatware was also theirs, monogrammed with their last initial of "D".

We aren't that fond of raw oysters, so the covered dish is used for soup with sandwiches, fruit, and cake for a buffet lunch.


My monogrammed napkins were a gift from a friend.

The peanut butter frosting recipe is from Dot at Picket's Place.

Instead of Dot's yellow cake, I made a chocolate cake with the peanut butter frosting. It is yummy - just like a giant Reese's peanut butter cup!!!

The crocheted tablecloth was made by my grandmother for our wedding 50 years ago.

As you can see, I'm very fortunate to come from a long line of dish collectors. Being the oldest grand daughter on both sides of my family, I have inherited some wonderful things.

And now, I just can't help it - it's in my genes - I have to collect more dishes!!

Thanks for stopping by,

Sally

STYLE AND STUFF

Her name is Edith. She was the mother of one of our childhood friends and happened to be the daughter of the doctor that delivered me.

She was the first person in my life other than my mother that I realized had personal STYLE.

I can think of any number of beautiful homes where they lived in our small town, as she loved to move and she loved to decorate.

She had wonderful things like art, dishes, and antique furniture in her house; but it was a home foremost for a family where you always felt comfortable.

She was gracious in every way!

Her only child, our friend, was killed in an automobile accident when we were in our early 30s. He was not married and had no children. Edith was naturally devastated; I don't think she ever fully recovered.

Soon after he died, she called to say she had a couple of things that she wanted me to have, then pass on to my children someday.

She gave me this beautiful Victorian fruit dish that had belonged to her father, the doctor.

And, she also gave me this tablecloth from her youth.

She said her mother always used it for Christmas morning breakfast, as the design reminded them of Santa Claus!

In the 1990s, I was visiting with Edith at a party at my parent's house. We were standing near my mother's china cabinet, where this plate was prominently displayed.


Edith said, "You know, I gave your mother that plate when you were all babies and we were young with our future ahead of us. It makes me feel good that she has cherished it all of these years."



Edith is almost 100 years old now, quite fragile, and in a nursing home. Remaining with me are three beautiful items that have passed through many hands. I know that in the end, things are just things; however, the memories they raise and the emotions they evoke are PRICELESS.



Thanks for stopping by,

Sally