Bits and Pieces of Garden Art

We have been reworking our front and back yards this year after some house remodeling. The yards are small and there are still many patches of dirt. It is a work in progress. But Snaildon (seemed like an appropriate name) is one of my favorite additions. I found him at a local nursery a few years ago but Hubby wasn’t enamoured with him as much as I was. (For one thing he is about 3 feet tall and weights about 500 pounds! He is solid concrete!) I visited him off and on for a year or so continuing to tell Hubby that we needed him. One day after I had given up, Hubby went to the nursery to pick up some flowers for me and came back and told me that Snaildon was on sale and he had bought him! It took a bit of work to get him moved into place but I love him! And every child who comes near climbs on. I just love the expression on his face!

We bought this frog on the Las Vegas Strip many many years ago. He sits near the walkway to the front door.

Can’t remember where I found the turtle, it also sits near the front walkway. A few times people have thought he was real!

I have toured gardens that have signs posted to identify various plants by their special name and I thought I should do the same for my succulent garden.

A garden isn’t complete without a few special touches!

Grandmother's Spoons

I inherited a group of sterling souvenir spoons that my Nana collected on her honeymoon in 1909. A souvenir spoon is a decorative spoon bought as a memento of a place or to display to show that you have visited that location. Collecting these spoons isn’t really popular anymore and they don’t make sterling souvenir spoons like these now. These spoons were passed down to my mother and then to me. I can actually remember us using them a few times when I was growing up. It is amazing that they didn’t suffer damage from teeth! My Nana and Grandfather took a six weeks honeymoon trip across the country by train from California to the East Coast and back in 1909. I found a brief newspaper article that mentioned their journey.

The spoons were in major need of polishing so I recently got them out and gave them some needed attention.

This sterling spoon has the Mormon Temple in the bowl with the words, Temple, Salt Lake City. The handle shows The Tabernacle, Eagle Gate, Maroni, the word Utah, and some flowers.

The back of the spoon has a shield with an eagle and bee hive and 1847 as well as male figures, (one probably Brigham Young) and a group of oxen pulling a cart with another bee hive, and the year 1847 again. All these symbols have significance in the history of the founding of Salt Lake City by members of the Mormon Church. The spoon is labeled sterling with no other mark.

The next sterling spoon has a gold washed bowl. The bowl is engraved with the words, Balanced Rock, Garden of the Gods, near Manitou & Colorado Springs. The handle has a figure of a Native American.

The back of the spoon has a figure of a female Native American and a papoose as well as other Native American elements. It is labeled N S Co Sterling. It was made by the National Silver Company probably between 1900 and 1909.

This sterling spoon from Yellowstone Park has Old Faithful Inn engraved in the bowl. The Inn was built between 1903 and 1904 so this spoon was made between then and 1909 when Nana was there. The handle has a bear, deer, and buffalo and the words Yellowstone Park on the handle.

The back of the spoon has engravings of Great Falls, Golden Gate, and Old Faithful. It is labeled sterling and the mark is an H inside a flag. This is the mark for the Mechanics Sterling Company in Attleboro, Massachusetts. This spoon was probably made between 1896 and 1909.

I love sterling spoons that have detailed bowls like this one does. Nana bought it in Chicago and the bowl is engraved with U.S. Government Building. (The Chicago Federal Building was built between 1898 and 1905 and was demolished in 1965.) The bowl also has the Public Library, Fort Dearborn, and Entrance Union Stock Yards. The word Chicago is on a ribbon in the center. The handle shows the Auditorium, Masonic Temple, and Douglass Monument.

The back of the spoon shows Fort Dearborn again, some ears of corn, the word sterling and an H in a flag, the mark for the Mechanics Sterling Company in Attleboro, Massachusetts. This spoon was probably made between 1896 and 1909.

Nana bought this spoon in New Orleans. The bowl is engraved with an image of the Cabildo building in New Orleans. When my Nana was in New Orleans in 1909, the Cabildo was part of the Louisiana State Museum however it had a long history before that time as an administrative seat of the Spanish Crown and the City of New Orleans. The handle shows the face of Bienville. Jean-Baptiste Le Moyne de Bienville was a colonist, born in Montreal, New France, and an early, repeated governor of French Louisiana. The handle also shows the Court House, the Cotton Exchange, a cotton plant, and the Lee Monument.

The back of the New Orleans spoon has City Hall, St. Louis Cathedral, Jackson Monument, and Old Gateway and a plant I don’t recognize. The spoon is labeled sterling with an H in a flag, another spoon made by the Mechanics Sterling Company in Attleboro, Massachusetts. This spoon was probably made between 1896 and 1909.

These spoons are some of my most cherished possessions. My Nana died when I was 6 and I have no memories of her. I love knowing that she bought these spoons on her honeymoon and they now belong to me.

Ants at the Picnic Tablescape

I have been thinking about this table for a while. The red plaid tablecloth just calls out Picnic! I think I bought it at HomeGoods.

I’ve had these ant salad plates for a long time just waiting for the right moment to set a table with them.

These salad plates are labeled Boston Warehouse Trading Corp, copyright 2008. I really love the ants crawling on them. I can’t remember where I bought them.

The next black plate in the pile was made by 10 Strawberry Street. I found them at HomeGoods a few years ago.

I use this plate in my tablescapes often because the scalloped edge works well with many designs. It is called Butterfly Meadow Cloud and was made by Lenox. Not sure where I found them.

The black dinner plate isn’t labeled. I found them at HomeGoods a few years ago.

I just love these red plastic cup goblets. I was telling my kids about them and they gave me a set as a gift. They were made by Red Cup Living in 2013.

Not sure where I bought this black Ginkgo Le Prix flatware. I wanted black and it was the only black set I could find at the time. I have had it for several years.

I had someone on Etsy make the ants napkins. I really love that print! Can’t remember where I bought the black basket napkin rings. I have had them for a while.

I bought the ant place card holders at Pottery Barn a few years ago. They were red but Hubby spray painted them black to match the plates and napkins. They are one of my favorite place card holders.

I have had the red basket for several years. It usually sits on a baker’s rack that is on the wall next to the kitchen. I found the ants on Etsy after looking for the right size for a while.

I love the parade of ants!

To see 160+ other tablescapes that I have created please click here. If you are on Facebook, join my Tablescape Ideas group! Just click on the Facebook Search box at the top of the page and type in Tablescape Ideas. Don’t miss my Tablescaping How-To section at the top of this blog post (or here) for more tablescaping tips and tricks.

I put a new tablescape on my blog every week so please check back!

5 Different 4th of July Tablescapes

Since today is the 4th of July, I decided to briefly revisit all my 4th of July tables so you can see them all in one post and compare the design elements. I will share various photos and you can follow the links at the end of the post for more information about each table. Left to right, Uncle Sam’s Table; Stars and Stripes Forever; Red, White, and Blue, for Me and You; Stars and Stripes and Uncle Sam; and Flags and more Flags.

You will notice some repeats with plates, flatware, glassware, and other elements on these tables showing how you can mix and match to create different designs.

Two tables had the same white wooden stars napkin rings, another table had a blue metal napkin ring, and two napkins were placed so that they didn’t need a napkin ring. I used the same napkins on two of the tables but their placement made them look very different.

I used five different centerpieces although three are standing on the same base. Two of the Uncle Sams look the same but if you look close, one is taller than the other one and it has a slightly different design.

You can see the same red goblet on four of the tables and one of the tables has a matching red iced tea. I used two different blue goblets on four tables and the last table has a red goblet with a different design.

The tables all look different but I used the same flatware on all of them.

To read about how I created each of these 4th of July tables, please visit the following links to my blog posts about each table:

https://www.whispersoftheheart.com/blog/2019/5/29/uncle-sams-table https://www.whispersoftheheart.com/blog/2019/5/29/stars-and-stripes-forever https://www.whispersoftheheart.com/blog/2019/6/4/red-white-and-blue-for-me-and-you https://www.whispersoftheheart.com/blog/2019/6/24/stars-and-stripes-and-uncle-sam https://www.whispersoftheheart.com/blog/2019/6/3/flags-and-more-flags

This blog post was featured at Twochicksandamom, https://twochicksandamom.blogspot.com/ and Zucchini Sisters, https://www.zucchinisisters.com/ Please visit these blogs, you will enjoy them!