An Apple for the Teacher Tablescape

It’s that time again — school’s back in session and teachers are doing their jobs with skill and love. It’s time to say thank you to the teachers of the world, whether it’s a public school or home school teacher, a religious education teacher, or a sports or music teacher. Every teacher deserves an apple, so today I’m featuring my An Apple for the Teacher Tablescape.

GotMyReservations - An Apple for the Teacher Tablescape Intro

Although I’ve always loved to set my table with pretty things and have fun collections of dishware and linens, until I started tablescaping for Got My Reservations I never really thought about what went into creating the perfect set-up. Why do some settings work and others don’t? I’ve learned that buying strong, versatile basic pieces will take you a long way. It’s like school; if the student understands the basics, he or she can build from there.

GotMyReservations - An Apple for the Teacher Tablescape Centerpiece 2

Coming up with a theme is the easiest part of building a tablescape — An Apple for the Teacher just built itself.

This tablescape started with a collection of beaded fruit that I’ve used many times throughout my house. It’s perfect for the transitional time in the fall between Halloween and Christmas because it has some sparkle, but it’s muted. I knew it was also perfect for this table. A friend gave me this red bowl from Crate and Barrel a few years ago, and I’ve used it for every “red” season since. It’s a basic, versatile piece.

GotMyReservations - An Apple for the Teacher Tablescape Napkin

I wanted to use these della Robbia-style napkins and grabbed the beaded napkin rings I picked out of the sale bin at World Market last spring. I had decided that I didn’t want to go full-out with the matching tablecloth, so when I saw this table runner at Marshall’s I knew I had a winner. It’s got texture and color while still being subtle. Another basic piece that I can use over and over again.

GotMyReservations - An Apple for the Teacher Tablescape Cloche

The people in the store probably thought I was a crazy lady as I stood in front of the clearance items and practically cackled over FINALLY finding the perfect footed cloche on sale. I have been looking for one of these for months since I was featured at Marty’s cloche-fest at A Stroll Thru Life — featured for using a real cloche, which is the French word for bell. The Marshall’s cloche was only two dollars off, but I declared victory. I put the perfect apple in the perfect cloche and now I have another piece to add variety in the heights of my centerpieces — a basic tenet of tablescaping.

GotMyReservations - An Apple for the Teacher Tablescape Cloche and Apple

Once the theme was in place, the rest of the ‘scape came together quickly. The fall colors in the napkins called for the gold chargers and my mother-in-law’s collection of Murano glass goblets. I pulled the Pfalzgraff Filigree off the shelf again, as the stoneware blends well with the sacking fabric of the runner.

GotMyReservations - An Apple for the Teacher Tablescape Place Setting 3

Adding the red sparkly accent plates to my collection has also turned out to be a winning choice. I use them over and over again and the modern circle design adds another texture to the stack with the rectangular design on the chargers, the filigree design on the plates, and the gentle slopes of the lotus bowls. Of course, one can never go wrong with using Grandma’s silver, so out came the Gorham Chantilly. It just sings along with all of the other textures and designs on this table.

GotMyReservations - An Apple for the Teacher Tablescape Centerpiece

For the final accents, I added a cranberry glass decanter that picks up both the red and the gold, and silver candlesticks. Music Man was very distressed last week when he broke one of the red votives for the candlesticks, but I was able to replace it at half price at Hobby Lobby. Another score for me and another basic for the tablescaping closet restored.

GotMyReservations - An Apple for the Teacher Tablescape Place Setting

 Creating the perfect tablescape is not rocket science, but it can be an art.

After I photographed this table, I realized that I had forgotten a very important apple from my collection — the one I received as a parting gift when I retired from my school district. I put it under the cloche where it belongs and rephotographed with my trusty iPhone. A golden apple for this retired teacher…

GotMyReservations - An Apple for the Teacher Tablescape Cloche with Golden Apple

I’ve been trying to work ahead on my tablescaping and photography as I will be having a knee replacement in late October and won’t be able to shop from my stash to set up the tables for a while. I’m having a hard time taking down this tablescape, though. It just glimmers in the afternoon sun and sends a very happy message to our empty nest.

I’m linking up this week at Let’s Dish with Cuisine Kathleen Open House Party with No Minimalist HereInspire Me Tuesday at A Stroll Thru Life, and Tablescape Thursday at Between Naps on the Porch. Be sure to visit these creative bloggers for lovely photos and inspiration.

Got my bags, got my reservations,
Spent each dime I could afford.
Like a child in wild anticipation,
I long to hear that, “All aboard!”

Music and lyrics by Bud Green, Les Brown and Ben Homer (1944)

 

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20 thoughts on “An Apple for the Teacher Tablescape

    • Thanks for visiting, Audrey. I may have to use the tablecloth too before the season’s over — it’s a lot of della Robbia!

  1. I love everything in this tablescape. It’s beautiful! My two favorites are the decanter and the runner. Red is the most versatile color you can have, in my opinion. So many occasions throughout the year involve red. Valentine’s, Memorial Day, July 4th, Labor Day and Christmas – to name a few. You couldn’t go wrong with that runner! It’s nice to see all your gold tones, too.
    Blessings!
    Kim

    • I’ve been coveting the sacking runners I’ve seen on other people’s tables, so I was pretty excited to find this one at Marshall’s for a reasonable price. Thanks for commenting, Kim!

    • I was very lucky to get a lot of beautiful things from my mother-in-law’s estate. No one else wanted them, and their loss was certainly my gain. Thanks for visiting, Christine!

    • I’m really happy about how this scape turned out. I’m selling those tables, so it may be the last one we see on the French Country base. Thanks for commenting, Elizabeth Jane.

  2. What a great idea! I have a lot of holiday fruit, never thought about using it at other times! The red bowl is gorgeous! Your table is delightful, I love the back to school theme!
    Jenna

  3. I just loved your photos. You have captured such great bokeh in the photos. I love your use of the cloche and so glad you retook the photo with your golden apple. Everything is so pretty and you are right, the theme just guides you sometimes. So glad to meet you – another plate lovin’ woman!

  4. I love the colors, textures, and shapes in the stack of dishes. Very pleasing to the eye. The cloche has the perfect shape to show off your treasured apple. How very proud you must be of that “Golden Apple”. Bless you, you are right about the very special people guiding our children down the path of knowledge. We should appreciate the jobs they do and thank them for their dedication.

  5. Hi Jennie, Your tablescape is beautiful and I am in love with the table runner. Thanks for sharing your pretty table at the Open House party. I am a new follower.
    Hugs,
    Sherry

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