Through Alyssa’s creative eye, she makes everyday objects new in the form of ceramics. Alyssa’s newest creations are translucent, ceramic lanterns in the shape of bell jars ($39 – $79). Hang them outside, or use them to light a summer  table at your next party.

Got Milk? Alyssa’s lovely milk bottle jars come in a variety of shapes and sizes ($35 – $45, or $100 for a set of three).

You may have seen Alyssa’s famous knitwear vases and bowls before. In fact, I’ve seen a very poor variation sold at Crate & Barrel (boo-hiss). Buy the originals! The bowl sells for $45, and her tall vases come in 2 sizes and are currently on sale for $120.

Finally, here are a variety of her other work currently for sale on her online shop. Coasters, cups, and votives come several colors. Mix them up!

You can find Alyssa Ettinger’s work via her online shop, or in shops. For a current list of retailers, follow this link. If you’re interested in a custom piece, contact her directly. Her email address is also noted on the shop link.

Here some more tips (see yesterday’s post) on how to take what you have and make the most of it.

Start with your everyday china. What color is it? I’m using Herend’s spectacular Elizabeth pattern. It’s super pricey ($250 per dinner plate), but it’s too beautiful not to play with. Really, any plate will do. Work with the main color and choose colors that will match, or coordinate. Gold and silver are usually good choices for holidays. There’s no law that says you can’t use any color you like because we’re going to make it say “Holiday” with a focal point.

Since the color I’m working is raspberry with gold accents, I’ve set a matching charger underneath. This gold banded style is from Ancienne Manufacture Royale ($150.00). Ouch?! I agree. Just scoot over to Target where you’ll find a wide variety of choices for about $15.00 each. Just make sure your charger complements the plate. Gold or silver are festive choices.

Now we need a plate for our focal point. I’m continuing with my raspberry and gold color palette by using a gold butter dish ($79.00 from Bernardaud). You can use gold, silver or a color than matches your dish. A small butter dish is nice because its size focuses the eye on the center. Here is another example, using a larger plate from the same Gold Leaf pattern, which makes the point that smaller is better.

Top the small dish with an ornament of the season. Keep in mind that you want to use something that complements your color palette. Here are some ideas.

• Christmas: an ornament tied with a satin ribbon
• Thanksgiving: a leaf, pine cone, berries, gourd. Tie a satin ribbon at the stem.
• Hanukkah: A dreidel, a little box tied with ribbon

Now that we have our focal point, we’re going to round out the place setting with stainless, flatware from Waterford ($89.00 5 piece setting). A little gold accent is nice with our setting. For a less expensive option, try this one from Target.

I’m not one for fancy napkin folding, so I used a simple snowflake ring and a jewel-toned green napkin. Jewel tones go together. Blue goes with red, silver, orange. Not everything has to match.

Finally, make sure you have enough wine glasses. Drinking glasses are not allowed! If you use proper wine glasses you can buy less expensive wine and it will taste better. These are from Juliska and Simon Pearce.

My centerpiece are simple flowers in a coordinating color. Actually, these flowers were awful – sprayed! The stuff got all over everything. They look pretty, though.

Jennifer’s Tips

1. Use your regular china and choose a matching or coordinating color palette. Gold and silver are good holiday choices

2. Create a focal point by using a small plate topped with an ornament of the season.

3. Use real wine glasses

4. Linens should be natural fibers and ribbons should be satin or grosgrain – no giftwrap.

Thanks to The League Shop, Grosse Pointe’s best tabletop shop, for allowing me to borrow their beautiful dishes and tableware. They will be happy to take orders over the phone and ship the Herend china directly to my door (LOL)!

Do you have some holiday tips? Share!

This is the first of a little series on holiday tables with a few tips on style and how to do it create a look without breaking the bank.

First, decide on your backdrop. Personally, I like a tablecloth. Buy a nice one – it will last for years and save you money in the long run. If the the price is too dear, at least make sure you buy a natural fiber cloth. It lays more crisply on the table. White or ivory is a good color because there are so any ways you can layer it for different occasions.

Here, I’m using a vintage lace cloth. I’ve topped it with a green placemat from Bodrum ($15.00). For a more Thanksgiving look, use an Autumn color. Or, choose a color that coordinates with your china.

Thanksgiving is more casual than other holidays. So you can use your everyday dishes. Here, I’m using a casual ceramic set from Juliska ($44.00 for a dinner plate).A white dish is great. As with the linen, you can dress it up for all occasions.

A placed the napkin in a simple way. This all cotton napkin is from Williamsburg ($5.50). Nothing beats a cloth napkin in a natural fiber! Red and green is always a color combination winner at Christmas. For Thanksgiving, mix Autumn oranges, reds, purples and green.

Set the dishes on the placemat so you can serve the dinner family style (passed around the table in serving dishes). You can leave it plain, or dress is up with some greens from the garden tied with a color coordinating ribbon. I cut these from a cherry tree in our front yard.

Set the knives and forks with the first one you’ll use on the outside and move in for the next course. I used my own things here.

Finally, buy a set of wine glasses. Make sure you have enough for everyone, plus a few extra. This simple goblet is from Juliska ($68.00).

Finally, I put the centerpiece together in about 5 minutes. The rustic, wooden leaf is from Scout, a very groovy shop in Royal Oak ($50.00). I laid a base of evergreens cut from our trees arranged some large pine cones (from JoAnn’s) mixed with smaller ones from our yard. A little greenery, cut from a cherry tree and tied with a satin ribbon, completes the look. Low candles, like votives, create a beautiful glow and allow everyone to see each other.

All the dishes, linens and glassware can be found at The League Shop, a wonderful store located right here in Grosse Pointe. They will be happy to place orders over the phone and ship them to you. I’d like to thank them for allowing me to borrow their things for a few days. Thanks to Scout as well. Thanks!

Do you have a favorite way to set your holiday table? Anyone have turkey dishes?

And now, the winner of the Not Just For Sushi Dishes is….

Liz!

Congratulations to Liz. She gets to choose from the three styles of plates and Terra Home will have them zipping on their way to her. Liz, are you going to give them as a gift, or save them for yourself? It’s a hard decision. My favorite style, by the way, are the fish.

Next week I’ll have another giveaway and then, two giveaways per week up until Christmas. It’s fun! So stay tuned.

And now I’m off to check out the Urban Craft Fair here in Detroit. See you Monday!

This beautiful set of four Not Just For Sushi Dishes ($88.00) will  be zipping their way to you on Monday morning. But you have to enter! They come in three styles. You choose the one you like.

Terra Home makes beautiful, handcrafted dishes, and tiles. Here’s a peek at their tiles.

The winner will be chosen at random tomorrow morning and I’ll post the winner then. Leave a comment and tell us about your favorite holiday!

More Giveaways Coming Up!

Next week I’m running yet another fabulous giveaway! After that, there will be 2 per week up until Christmas. Yay! This is fun.

I’m thinking of chunky dishware that reminds me of stews, chili and hot soup – the kind of food we look forward to when the weather turns cold.

I found these at Genevieve Lethu, the French store with shops here in the States. The plate is from the Mathilde Collection and comes in two colors. I mixed that with some leafy spoons that I would team with my regular flatware. Maybe add a horned steak knife. A chunky glass, this one is called Tendance.

I love this La Memoire de Temps ceramic pitcher. Use it as a centerpiece, or fill it with cider. Finally, I’ve covered the table with a table runner that ties it all together.

To find Genevieve Lethu shops near you, follow this link.

I came across this beautiful photo of an outdoor picnic in Cote Sud and it inspired me to recreate its breezy, cheerful and, (best of all) laid back style. Brights are on the menu for my version.

I’m starting with a beautiful tablecloth made from Brunschwig & Fils’ Fawkes cotton print. The table is set with:

• plates from Gracious Home. Their Benidorm melamine dishware ($15 each) comes in a variety of bowls and dishes.
• We’re drinking our sangria in Juicy acrylic glasses from Target ($$19.99 for a set of four).
• The blue, striped flatware is from Nautical Luxuries ($320 for a set of four, 5-piece settings) is imported from France. Ooh la la.
• Finally, our Francesca Orange napkin can be found at Roberta Roller Rabbit ($8.00 each).

But we’re not finished. We need a centerpiece and some accessories.

• I love this centerpiece, made from recycled pop cans.¬† Would real flowers, picked form your own garden fit our scene more perfectly? Err, yes. But I like it, so it’s in. My fake flowers are from Eco-Artware ($24 for six flowers).
• This set of colorful, melamine stacking bowls are perfect for our fruit and salads. They’re from Apartment 48 ($65).
• I also love this collapsible cooler - just the thing to keep our sangria cold. It comes in two colors. You can find it on sale at Sur La Table ($31.96).
• Now for the chairs. Maine Cottage serves up several styles that come in just about any color you like. Their Edna Chair sells for $350.00.

Outdoor Dining Tip

Please don’t hesitate to take your indoor furniture outdoors for an evening. There’s something about a wooden table and chairs that create a romantic atmosphere. If you can fashion a canopy, keep the furniture out all summer. If not, be sure to cover the set table with an old sheet until your guests arrive. This will keep the leaves and birds from making a mess of your beautiful tablescape.

Do you think it’s important to have a separate set of dishes for outdoors?

The contrast it offers next to white is also perfection.

It all depends what mood you’re in. Here, the designer jumped across the color wheel to create a warm contrast.

Feeling dark and mysterious? Indigo is the way to go.Indigo will make the orange tones in wood pop.

Feeling uncommitted? You can paint your walls white and use indigo for accents. Some choices are: IKEA’s PS Collection African rug, Indigo toss pillows from Persnickety Home ($17.95), Ink Dish Tattoo dishware from Fitzsu ($82.00 for a 4-piece setting), & Crate & Barrel’s Lago Lamp ($129).

Maybe because it’s summer, I think white is looking really good next to indigo. But turquoise, and other jewel tones, are also beautiful. Agree?

images: Henry Bourne, William Waldron, Hanks Fonk