Tablescapes

I'm inspired by a recent Facebook post by lovely and talented Retropolitan store manager, Katie Figlio (AKA Fig).  She whipped up a fabulous centerpiece for a customer using a vintage wooden milk crate and handfuls of oversized, latex flowers.  Gorgeous and lovingly custom made!  

So, armed with that inspiration and some snapshots of my own house (yep, I'm getting up close and personal here!), I'm kicking off a few thoughts about tablescapes... 

I have one, simple rule..."tell a story."  Merchandisers use the term "color story," referring to the set of colors used to create a vignette or store display.  Same idea.  But in a home setting, I want tablescapes to draw people in and give them a little story to contemplate.

The scape above is in my entryway.  The lamp and gold urn are prized, vintage finds.  The small photograph was a gift from some good friends, the larger one is of my "little lambs."  The red, crystal champagne flutes were an anniversary gift.  The old, red books in the urn are from my husband's childhood (the front one is The Wizard of Oz - written in the town where my husband went to school - just a little Heimermann family trivia for you!).  I added in a book on Impressionistic art, as it's a love of ours, and a linen tea towel with the initial "A" on it (a gift on my birthday.)  So, everything has meaning in the life of the people that live here, namely my family and me!

This little scape sits on my living room ottoman.  The carved, wooden tray came from a little boutique in Sonoma, CA (I couldn't come home without it!).  The books are French Impressionists and more of those classics from my husband's childhood.  The candles are my son's favorite scent and color, and the glass garland is just plain fun.

Still more of the things we love in our foyer...Impressionistic art books, a vintage bronze bust, a family heirloom bible in German (super old!), a really unique candlestand I got at my very first antique sale, and some little red, glass eggs (they captured my husband's fancy in a lovely boutique in Denver, CO.  Don't know why, but I love that he loved them!).  

I'm tossing this arrangement from my daughter's recently re-styled room (she did it all herself!) into the mix, just to highlight using things you love in the "scapes" in your place. What would you say is the passion in this little girl's life?  Gymnastics.  No question there, right?  My thought is that it should be the same throughout your house, and mine.

 So...what do the arrangements in your place say about you?  Do they tell a little piece of your story?  If so, I say you've achieved a thoughtful, inviting approach to home decor...
and Fig would be so proud!


- Amy