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Thanksgiving Pumpkin Centerpieces 6 comments

November 19, 2015, posted by Gina – Last night I had the opportunity to present floral designs and tablescapes to a really fun group of ladies. A big thank you goes out to our lovely hostess who prepared some fabulous appetizers that were enjoyed by all, including me. I presented how-tos for variety of different designs that would carry through the holiday season; a round centerpiece, a cornucopia, a long-lasting Christmas arrangement, two tablescapes (one with a pumpkin centerpiece and the other with a cornucopia centerpiece), a vertical arrangement and a cranberry filled vase.

A tip for the vertical arrangement is to start with a bit of tall greenery in the back and then step your flowers down. I added a lemon for a bit of fun. When working on a cranberry filled arrangement, first fill a vase with cranberries and then fill with water. You won’t need oasis or a tape grid as the cranberries secure the stems. How cool is that?

After my presentation, the ladies designed their own pumpkin arrangements and they did a fabulous job. When they first walked in and saw the pumpkins ready for them and thought they would be cutting and gutting the pumpkins. They were happily surprised to find that we would actually be using the stem to secure the foam instead of cutting the pumpkin. I must tell you that I had to use a saw to cut the stems in half on each pumpkin which was quite a site, but it got the job done. We all had a lot of fun and everyone was pleased with their pumpkin arrangements, which they took home with them. Voilà, the fruits of their labor…

Coming up….I plan on posting tutorials on how to make a cranberry filled arrangement and a long lasting Christmas arrangement in preparation for the holidays, so stay tuned and check our Tutorials Page in the coming days.

We like to hear from our readers, so if you’d like to leave comments or share your thoughts click on the title of this post and the comment form will appear at the bottom of the page.

Setting the Scene for a Thanksgiving Luncheon

November 17, 2015, posted by Gina – A couple of weeks ago I had the wonderful pleasure of attending my cookbook club’s monthly luncheon. The theme for the day was Thanksgiving and it was a true bounty of the season’s best.

I was asked to design the flower arrangements using cream, green, brown and neutral colors. It was challenging and refreshing for me to work with this color palette for a Thanksgiving feast since it’s a departure from the traditional oranges, reds, and golds.

I found some great looking birch bark planters and chose Little Gem magnolia leaves as the backdrop because of their wonderful brown back coating. Hydrangeas, roses, hypericum berries, and white mums were the stars of the arrangements. To add interest, I removed the yellow petals from the sunflowers to create a brown and green flower.

My friend set her tables with beautiful white table linens and tied wheat to the napkins. It was a great touch and really set the mood for the harvest feast that followed.

CLICK HERE to go to our Recipe Page and read about all the dishes that were served.

How do you decorate your table for Thanksgiving? Do you look for new twists on the standard Thanksgiving decoration or do you like the traditional look? Let us know, we’d love to hear from you. Just click on the title of this post to and the comment form appear at the bottom of the page.

Knife Makers in France 2 comments

October 22, 2015, posted by Michelle – Le Monsieur and I visited the small town of Thiers today. It’s an hour and a half drive west of Lyon, so it’s an easy day trip. Thiers has been the knife making capital of France since the 14th century. Knife shops are everywhere in the old city which also features centuries old half-timbered houses. I visited the knife museum there which included a knife making demonstration. Photos from top left: Hôtel du Pirou (15th century), hand painted knife catalog, knife collection in the museum, pictureseque knife shop, knives displayed in shop window, wooden fork and spoon displayed in the museum, Laguiole pocket knife.

Photos below: demonstration of the old grinding stone method of grinding the blade’s cutting edge. The grinders used to lay down on a plank which gave them extra strength and enabled them to work longer and faster. These men worked 12 hours a day like this! See that little stuffed dog? I can explain what he represents. The water from the grinding stone came directly from the Durolle river, so it was freezing cold. The men’s hands were constantly wet and cold plus water, as well as dust, would splash up in their faces. Dogs were trained to lie down on the worker’s backs and legs to keep them warmer – they were kind of like fuzzy hot water bottles. See it for yourself, I don’t make this stuff up. Continuing on with the photos, I was happy with my purchases: two cheese knives and a Laguiole pocket knife; a multicolored knife display; and Le Coin des Hasards half-timbered house spans the street and links two other buildings.

Do you like to buy special hand made items? Will you go out of your way for artisanal goods? We’d like to hear from you. Click on the title of this post and the comment form will expand at the bottom of the page.

Pumpkin Season

October 19, 2015, posted by Michelle – Sharing a photo collage from this past weekend’s Pumpkin Festival in Lyon. There was a huge cornucopia display and all the gourds and pumpkins spilling out of it were so pretty. I don’t know who ended up winning the biggest pumpkin contest but the orange and white ones below both weighed over 400 pounds.

There’s a pumpkin exhibition every fall at a farm in Switzerland called Juckerfarm. I found some great photos online of some of the scenes made entirely out of pumpkins. So, if you’d like to see a tiger jumping through a ring of fire, a rabbit coming out of a top hat, a knife thrower and his assistant, etc… have a look and get ready to be impressed…. PHOTOS from JUCKERFARM. And proving that he’s still King, there was even an Elvis made of hundreds of pumpkins.

Are there any farm related fall events in your area? Have you been to any fairs yet? Have you set out pumpkins, mums, hay bales etc. in your yard? Let us know how you celebrate fall. Click on the title of this blog post and the comment form will open at the bottom of the page.

Pumpkin Party

October 16, 2015, posted by Gina – Last week I had the pleasure of hosting a floral presentation at my home for Pi Phi alumnae. These ladies were a whole lot of fun and I enjoyed my time with them.

First things first, I had prepared a few hors d’oeuvres which I set out on my patio so we could all have a chance to visit. After a while, we went back inside and installed ourselves in the kitchen where we got down to the work at hand: pumpkin floral arrangements.

The ladies had the opportunity to compose their own floral designs after the presentation. They worked on a succulent pumpkin and I think they each did a great job. The best thing about this group is that they paid close attention to the presentation and asked questions. So when it came time to make their own pumpkins, they were well prepared and ready to unleash their creativity.

Thanks Pi Phi’s and I hope to see you again soon! Happy Fall.

Floral Demonstration at Farmer’s Table Cooking School

October 12, 2015, posted by Gina – Two weeks ago I had the pleasure of presenting floral designs at the beautiful Farmer’s Table Cooking School in Livingston, Mississippi. Livingston was the original County Seat for the area but as times changed so did the County Seat. This area is dotted with beautiful fields filled with trees, a few cows and gentle, rolling hills. Even though you are just minutes from the city, you feel as though you’ve stepped back to a time when the pace was a bit slower.

The Cooking School is a very nice venue where Chef Matthew teaches classes on mastering culinary skills but the school also hosts other kinds events. So, I was thrilled to be invited to teach a floral design class.

Since it’s tailgate season, the first thing I showed was this very simple arrangement that’s super easy for a tailgate host or hostess to put together and a great way to dress up tailgate tables. I chose this oval basket as it is the perfect size for a table. I gathered plants in school colors and created a coordinating bow. Spanish moss covers the pots the plants are in and finishes off the basket. This took about 5 – 10 minutes to assemble and is really a great alternative to a fresh flower arrangement. Bonus: The handle on the basket makes it easy to carry to your tailgate area.

This round centerpiece is one of the most practical arrangements to make. It sits low, allowing for conversation, and does not take up too much space ensuring you have plenty of room for food.

The pleasing mix of colors in this dough bowl arrangement can carry you through the season. Cover the bowl with some wood shred and then arrange coordinating colored spheres in the bowl. I added a touch of whimsy with an ornamental cabbage and an orange pomander ball.

I like to call this lean, vertical design the “welcome” arrangement because it looks so striking in an entry way. Use coordinating colors in centerpieces and arrangements throughout your home.

These Coca-Cola crates were so ubiquitous in my childhood that we would literally trip over them in the garage. You’d probably have to pay about $50 for one today. They are so much fun to use for arrangements on porches or patios. In this arrangement I placed in a few different objects creating a casual, retro vignette. You could also place a few bottles in this create and fill each one with a single stem.

I started assembling this pretty arrangement by creating a tape grid on the top of the vase. This enabled me to place stems right where I wanted while keeping them firmly in place. Lots of tall greenery and a bit of curly willow really set the stage for the colorful flowers.

It’s all about the colors in this fall place setting. I used my Italian Spode as a backdrop to a simple tablescape. The pops of green from the napkin and orange from the pumpkin really make this inviting.

Chef Matthew and Bridget from the cooking school were so much fun to work with and participants were treated to some great food, new recipes and floral design. This made for a very fun evening.

I look forward to presenting again at the cooking school. They have done a phenomenal job of creating an environment that seems to brings out the creativity in everyone.

What do you think about the arrangements? Would you be likely to try one of these yourself? Do you have any ideas for tailgate, dinner party or seasonal arrangements? Let us know! To leave a comment, click on the title of this blog post and the comment form will appear at the bottom of the page.

Signs of Fall

September 29, 2015, posted by Gina – The first “official” day of Fall was just last week but my car temperature reading showed it was almost 90° that day. Though it’s been a bit cooler than the sweltering hot days we have grown accustomed to, I would not consider this a Fall day. But the good news is that while it may still be warm outside, all of the signs of Fall can be found at just about every turn.

At the grocery store, a loaf of pumpkin chocolate chip bread practically jumped into my cart along with a pack of orange and brown plaid napkins. Together they will make a fun and cute Fall treat. I also had a myriad of errands to run that day and one of them was a stop at the farmers market. Look at the last of the summer bounty I brought home with me. We had guests over last weekend and I cooked those fresh vegetables along with some salmon.
Besides mums, I believe crotons welcome Fall just about better than any other plant because they are very hardy and last up until the frost. I usually only buy a few mums because their life span is so short and they can dry out very easily. Even knowing this, I just love how they look and four plants came home with me.

I promised myself I was not going to buy pumpkins, but the ones above rode home with me anyway. I plan on getting more pumpkins but at a later day. My autumn joy sedum is blooming. When I first planted this small container full of succulents, they were barely 2 inches tall. Over the summer they withstood unbelievable eastern sun and practically no rainfall since July 4th. I did take care and water them from time to time. These are called autumn “joy” because they flower from August until November. The bloom starts off a light pink in August and as times passes they turn a dark red color. How cool is that? And finally, I made some door wreaths using succulents for my front doors. I make most all of the arrangements you see on this website for other homes though I take pictures before they reach their final destination.

French Garage Sales (without the garage) 2 comments

September 27, 2015, posted by Michelle – September is a big month for vide-greniers (attic sales) in France, or what we’d call garage sales. But in lieu of actually being in garages, the sidewalks of a main street become packed with tables of household items and clothes being sold by residents of the neighborhood. It was a sunny, crisp fall day today so I took advantage of it by visiting several vide-greniers. You never know what you’ll find but I always find some wonderful things and today was no exception as I picked up some beautiful vintage linens and a few other items. Enjoy the photos(click on any individual photo to enlarge it):

St. Georges Neigborhood across the Saône river

Wooden Mary & Jesus Statue

St. Georges Vide Grenier

Florentine Coasters

Vintage Embroidered Napkins

Montchat Vide Grenier

Vintage Monogrammed Linen Napkins from France

Montchat Vide Grenier

Vintage Embroidered Tablecloth

St. Georges Vide Grenier

Let us hear about your garage sale or estate sale experiences. To leave a comment, click on the title of the post and the comment form will appear at the bottom of the post.

Red Sunflower Tablescape

September 12, 2015, posted by Gina – For some reason I always seem to find red sunflowers this time of year. I absolutely love them and in fact they were the inspiration for this whole tablescape.

I was trying to create a natural, farm fresh vibe with this table and decided adding artichokes and arugula to this arrangement accomplished that look very well. The ceramic containers are a perfect fit for a regular brick of oasis. This makes creating arrangements in these containers so easy and I have used them many times for similar centerpieces. Also, the fact that they are low makes having a lovely conversation easy since you don’t have to peek over or around an arrangement.

To keep the natural, farm feel going I chose a great burlap table runner and combined it with red and white toile placemats, striped napkins, white wooden chargers, and Italian Spode china. Somehow, the pheasants just seemed to fit in with the theme so I placed a pair on each side of the table. If you run across some red sunflowers be sure to pick a few up as they will brighten up your table.

We’d love to hear your thoughts and comments. Click on the title of this post and the comment form will open at the end of the post.

Save the Date: Fun, Friends and Fall Entertaining

Come join The Blooming Table and Farmer’s Table Cooking School for an evening of fun filled entertaining ideas to include flowers, food and a lot of great memories. We will show you how to create arrangements for tailgates, individual place settings and more. September 29, 2015, 6pm – 8pm. Click HERE for more details.