Wanderlust

It's been a while since I've posted a table, but life has just been getting in the way. So, today I decided it was time to get back into the swing of things! For some reason, August has always been a vacation time for me. Even when I was teaching, this last month of August would signal a time for adventure before the school year began (with the holiday crazies soon to follow!!).  The table I planned for today reflects that desire to "hit the road". However, today I'll be "hitting the road" in my imagination only. I found some new dishes in Steinmart last year and have yet to feature them. They became the inspiration for today's table, however.

This Is The Table I Created:

This is How It Was Created:

 I started with placemats that I found on sale at Bed, Bath and Beyond. I like the "window shade" look to them, but they are fragile. I don't believe they'd be sturdy enough for every day use, but they are perfect for the theme of this table. Somehow, my "Wanderlust" is being reflected in a desire to seek adventure in exotic places and preferably places nearby to a sea. "Go Figure........."

The next layer is a plastic charger plate I found at Michael's and is normally used with my Johnson Brothers dishes at Thanksgiving. I wanted texture for this table, and the color is perfect for my new accent plates.

The next layer is one of my yellow Metaceramica plates from HomeGoods. They are truly workhorses in my collection.

To top of my dish stack is the dish I found at Steinmart. I loved the colors on these plates, the wicker texture-like print and also the image that brings new and different places to mind. I did some research on the map that is depicted on this plates, and it is a reproduction of an old map completed by a French cartographer in the mid-eighteenth century by the name of Jacques Nicolas Bellin. It shows the coasts of the Persian Gulf, Iran, Pakistan, Western India as well as the Maldives Islands. These areas during the 1700's certainly were prime areas for exotic exploration. I could visualize the elephants that ambled along (covered with brightly colored cloth and perhaps with a royal leader on top!), as well as the untouched beaches of the Maldives.

To complete the setting, I chose my green ruffled napkins, two napkin rings: leather and shells; my  Treble Clef flatware from World Market and green goblets from Pier One.

For my centerpiece I chose components that would reflect a sense of adventure related to the geographical map location on the plates. Using a tray decorated with shells and found at TJMaxx, I filled it with my happy elephant statue found at HomeGoods, a faux green plant to mirror the palm on the plate and shells found at Michael's (although I'm not far from a So. CA beach, the shells found near us are not as interesting). Flanking the tray are my wooden spools found while antiquing that I ringed with new shell napkin rings found in Maine! A faux fishing net with more shells and faux sea urchins nestled inside, completes the centerpiece.

All in all, I hope the table showcases some favorite new dishes, but also reflects the feeling of "Wanderlust" I am feeling: this desire to explore new regions. I can't go back in time to when Persia and Pakistan were strikingly strange and unusual, but I could get into our "new-to-us" RV and seek new destinations! Hmmmmm......now there's a thought!!

I'll be joining Susan at www.betweennapsontheporch.net for Tablescape Thursday  and Christine for her Dishing It! and Diggin' It! at www.rustic-refined.com .

Thank you, Ladies, for hosting these parties. Be sure and visit these wonderful blogs and get inspired by all of the creativity goin' on!!!