Laura Ashley in Tones of Blue

Earlier today I shared that I had  made a  marvelous purchase over the weekend..We stopped in at Tuesday Morning  and I found this  gorgeous  Laura Ashley    tablecloth  that just happens to be my favorite color of the season...oops I see hub's shoes..  I told him not to slip them off right there!  But he  has been so busy working on the porch I forgive him!!!

 Last year  I  completed  the  china I needed at Home Goods  of this some  hue...  Johnson Brothers,  Vintage Charm.. Here I am pairing it with  lovely  sky blue  salad plates and mugs I found at  Tuesday Morning  last  autumn.. I only bought these because they were manufactured in Portugal...

 I love how    these  accent my   bird center piece

 I think this is a very welcoming  arrangement  as  guests  enter our home through the sunroom..

                      Thursday Favorite Thing

                          Tablescape Thursday

                            Home Sweet Home

                                          Anything Blue Friday 

Rhapsody in Blue

Anything Blue Friday 

I am joining alongside The Dedicated House today to share the beauty of blue!

Last week I shared about my  lovely blue tablescape

 I love my new  jacobean style cloth

 and how my  collection of blue transfer ware  goes with it!

  and  it  makes me think of my  beloved blue hydrangea

 whose blooms have delighted me ever since I started blogging in 2008.  but alas  this last   cold snap last week with its ahrd freeze  has zapped it  and  the  top of the plant was frozen to death,...  I doubt for much yield this year...
  and my saddest news  of th is week is that  the top of my  wonderful new 8 in high  Limelight hydrangea 

 was  bitten off last night  by  deer.. now I am usually a lover of  the  graceful animals,  but this morning I  am not seeing blue,  but 

 I think I go to  the  mart and  purchase a  bunch of blue hydrangeas  to  soothe my  saddened heart!!!

Harvest Table

For  Tablescape Thursday  I have finally  decided  my  fall  dining room  arrangement that will  take me all the way to  Thanksgiving with  only minor  changes...  I posted recently  of my dilemma  in deciding  how to go this year,  but  after I  found my lovely   blue-gray pumpkin...   the way was clear!

The  barrel   that hosted these  fabulous treasures  called them  the " sweet pumpkins"  so Im going to have to    give it a try  for  Lynn's special  pie  sooner or later...  but for now   it graces the table regally!

I decided  the pewter  would  be prominent  on such a  table this time...    these two  items  seems to call out to each other...The rich tone of the golden ginkgo leaves  really  draw out the  subdued tones of the    darker  shades in the pottery and    the   table cloth..
                        
The gold is   mirrored on the side board  to tie  in with the   tablescape! 
                 

After Lynn worked on the antique  chafing dish  that was   squirrelled away in the basement  ,....   so   tarnished and in ill repair...  it  seems right at home    now   with  candlelight reflecting  in it's  patina!

Now I am in  the mood to  create  a  festive  dinner party    to celebrate the  blessings  of the season~
 No one could say it better than  Autumn Bliss   magazine ...
"In fall, nature bestows her blessings with reckless abandon, leaving remembrances scattered throughout the land.  As the majesty unfurls,  gather up your favorite items....." Tis the season to share the bounty of    love and  make memories that   we can  hang to in the leaner years  that  inevitably come, whether in loss or older age... Enjoy the splendor as we are able...  partake of the harvest and live life well!

Now to set the menu and the  guest list....  I  know already who it will be!....(Smiling)
Thursday Favorite Things
Home Sweet Home
 Grace at Home
Simple and Sweet Fridays
Anything Blue Friday

Some Irish Blues

  Linking with  

Anything Blue Friday.

This morning, I am    longing for  the memories we made in April when we toured Ireland...

 The   allure of King John's Castle on the banks of  River Shannon in Limerick.

The stalwart  mass of the  fortress   juxtaposed  beside the gentle curves of the  stone  bridge..

against and reflected in the   delicate blue  sky and waters! and  

 The  husband   taking aim  at the  great Atlantic way  along the Kerry coastline.. the  rolling  range of mountains  silhouetted  against  a  deeper  blue.

And then  hubby carefully  climbing    to the crest of  the   unique  rock formations of the  Giant's causeway  north of  Belfast....  The  April  tides  crashing on the  other side  of this  northern coast.. 

all under  a  blue-gray  environment of  mist and spray!

                                                   

Blue Water

This  coastal view will soon be    my  daily  experience..  as   we, along with our  kids and  granddaughter ,   will  be vacationing    along the New England  coast.. this photo  was  from the   rental site...

 I'm looking  so forward to a beach  week  with 70's  temperatures...  and  with this western  exposure I  know we will   love  the magnificent sunsets, but I'll  have to wait  on those....

 as well,   to wait  to be with our girls!

  Linking with  Anything Blue Friday.

Blues for a Rainy Day

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Well, I love rainy days.... because I get inspired to take advantage of my time to get things spruced up inside.... and believe me, with all the kitchen redo... the rest of my house has been topsy turvy... but, at least now, the sun room is in some semblance of order and showing a bit of blue cheer!



First of all, as I was straightening out a storage area downstiars I ran across this beautiful lamp I brought home from mama's... I think we may have gotten it back in the 60's with Green Stamps.  All I really know is mom and I always loved it.. so glad it has found a home in the sunroom now....along side the sweet hobnail vase I also found in mom's things... just right for the weekend!



My hail to Ireland in the sunroom is my small flock of sheep....



So wonderful to get the table cleared off and a bit of blue summer time ready for an afternoon meal....







And while I was still thinking on our Ireland trip, and was passing through the living room,,, even though it doesnt look very festive for the holiday, I did add a bit of blue there that salutes our red white and blue theme with a shout out to my homeland!



Last, but not least, another project I got into today was cleaning out some magazines... they collect so quickly around here.... and this next photo was from the Southern Living from June of 1996, for goodness sakes, but it is a keeper... especially with blueberries coming in so fast and furiously!



I have a peck of berries that need processing, so



Spicy Blueberry Pie

Ingredients


5 c Fresh blueberries
1/4 ts Ground allspice
1/2 c All-purpose flour
1 tb Lemon juice
1/4 c Brown Sugar; firmly packed
1/2 ts Ground cinnamon
1 tb Butter or Margarine; Melted
1 pk Refrigerated pie crusts
1 ts Sugar
1 tb milk
3/4 c Sugar

Preparation
Combine first 8 ingredients, tossing gently. Fit 1 piecrust into a 9-inch pieplate according to package directions. Spoon blueberry mixture into pastry shell. Roll remaining piecrust to 1/8-inch thickness; cut into 6 (2 1/2-inch-wide) strips. arrange strips in a lattice design over filling; fold edges under and crimp. Brush pastry with milk; sprinkle with 1 teaspoon sugar. Bake at 400F for 40-45 minutes or until golden, shielding edges with strips of aluminum foil to prevent excessive browning during last 20 minutes of baking.

Now this is patriotic!

Dashes of BLue

Visit  The Dedicated House by clicking here!

It is funny how  once you start a  RENO   in  one room of the house  how the rest of the house  goes berserk!  We  had to  take everything out of the hutch in the kitchen and  put it all on the dining room table.. and  a book case in the sunroom  that was used  for   dishes    also was  dismantled on the sunroom table...  What a great time to    really   decide once and for all   do I want it,  need it,   or  can  I   send it away....  I filled 3 boxes and 2  paper bags for the  Discovery Shop and the Goodwill...  YAYAYA it is  out of the house now.. and the  dining room table is almost reclaimed.  Also, what a  wonderful time to sort through very drawer and shelf looking for things that go together like candles and candle holders.. May I  add here..... I need never to purchase another candle ever again...  I  found  a  whole    Walmart bag full of  half burned candles  that are going to the basement  for  when the power goes off, and  now all other candles are in  one drawer  and all other   votives  are  in  a separate cabinet...  They had been scattered  everywhere...   That alone  gave back  considerable room. So now after  a few  days of mayhem,  a few areas are looking  better than ever!

 The dining room sideboard is     looking  smart  today, because finally after 27 years I  can plug in lamps there..  We just had  the electrical for the kitchen updated and I got a  plug in here!  AYAYAYAYAY

 For  my daughter's benefit I am showing off my new  artwork....  This is the print  I got  at   the Gap of Dunloe... one of my     bucket list  places    I got to see  last month!

 The  we fell in love with the quaint  town of Adare in County Limerick, and  I found these   who  prints  of    Adare's    bucolic history!

 Sorry for the    glare  from the window.

 Then  the bookcase  was moved to the living room  and  found a new purpose....  I am  feeling  a definitely lift in my spirit with things  falling into shape and    the organizing that is taking place!!!!

Hope you enjoyed my    dashes of blue  today!