Let's Dish ~ Black & White & A Pop of Yellow

Let' Dish 

about

Black and White 

with a touch of Yellow

Check It Out

A few weeks ago, blogging friend  

Kathe with an E 

shared her version of a black and white table for summer.

The cupboards at HFTS have plenty 

of black and white so I took 

Kathe's inspiration and set a B and W table 

for a Friday night dinner party with friends.

My stack:

Black Woven Placemats  

Pottery Barn chicken wire chargers

MacKenzie-Childs Courtly Check chargers

Simple Black Plates and Bowls from the $ Store.

The Sunny Days of August 

provided the pop of yellow for the centerpiece.

I looked to my summer garden to provide 

a few blooms to pop into my mini Courtly Check pots.

The perfect low centerpiece.

I would have liked to use these 

sunshine yellow napkins from World Market,

but alas I only have four of these.

So instead I pulled these 

black and white paisley ones into service.

Used my collection of vintage 

napkin rings that were a thrifty 

"find" at Round Top two years ago. 

The beautiful sterling initials 

make these very special.

I love the way they compliment my set of

 vintage flatware with the French "ivory" handles.

The spoon was a recent find at 

an antique shop in New Braunfels.

I picked up a pair of these specifically 

to use with these knives and forks.  

They are Reed and Barton.

They round out a place setting of six to use with these spoons 

that were my antique souvenir from Maine last summer.

The Cherished Home is a wonderful shop in Belfast, ME.

They were having a great sale the day we visited.

These four coin silver chowder spoons were $25 for the set.

The two like this one are marked 

Oertelt with crossed swords and the # 12.

A simple TH is the monogram.

An update about coin silver from Johanna @ Silver + Roses.

After reading this post, Johanna created a post about the coin silver flatware that has been in her family for generations.  Be sure to stop by Johanna's post here for some interesting insight.

The two in this pattern are 

marked Fifield and Brackett 

with the monogram "N J Furber".

Dessert offered the opportunity to bring in 

more black and white with a touch of yellow.

These cute demitasse spoons are Sabre Paris.

I bring some of this flatware back each time I visit Paris.  

It's reasonably priced and 

found in several Paris department stores.

Tutorials Tips and Tidbits @ Stone Gable

For a quick and easy light dessert serve

a bowl of fresh summer berries 

topped with whipped cream   .   .   .

Offered with some pretty and tasty treats

 from Whole Foods' Artisan Cookie Bar.

Joining

French Party Monday @ Le Chateau des Fleurs

Tuesday's Treasures @ My Uncommon Slice of Suburbia

Cowgirl Up @ Cedar Hill Ranch

Tabletop Tuesday @ A Stroll Thru Life

Nifty Thrifty Tuesday @ Coastal Charm

Let's Dish @ Cuisine Kathleen

Centerpiece Wednesday @ The Style Sisters

Wow Us Wednesday @ Savvy Southern Style

Tutorial, Tips, and Tidbits @ Stone Gable

Tablescape Thursday @ Between Naps on the Porch

Home and Garden Thursday @ A Delightsome Life

Open House Party @ No Minimalist Here

Home Sweet Home @ The Charm of Home

Feathered Nest Friday @ French Country Cottage

Vintage Inspiration Friday @ Common Ground

Show and Tell Friday @ My Romantic Home

Potpourri Friday @ 2805

Open House @ Bernideen's Tea Time

Seasonal Sunday @ The Tablescaper

Sunday Shadows ~ Tea on the Porch

Sunday Shadows and Morning Tea on the Porch

With Childhood Friends

Mornings on the porch are lovely when Mr. Sun creeps into the day and casts his light as if he is performing a dance. The graceful light and gentle shadows create the perfect ambiance for morning tea on the porch.

Let's move in a little closer and join the tea party.

Morning tea is served from a sweet

Quimper service in a cheerful soleil pattern.

For afternoon tea ~ a little table perfectly set in the corner of the kitchen.

Tea and Sunday shadows are magical all through the day.

Yellow is for Chicks

I was enjoying lunch with a friend recently when this mother peahen and her baby chicks wandered nearby on the grounds just outside the window.

Seeing these baby peachicks was a new experience for me, so I quickly grabbed my camera and went outside to get some photos. Peachicks hatch from eggs that are about 3 times the size of a chicken egg, but smaller than a goose egg. Their feathers are yellow with touches of brown, and their legs are long.

Peafowl can refer to two species of birds: the Indian Peafowl from India and the Green Peafowl from Burma east to Java. The male peafowl is known as a peacock. This guy is an Indian Peafowl identified by his magnificent iridescent blue-green plumage.

The tail of the peacock is actually elongated covert feathers that cover the tail feathers. They have a series of "eyes" that are best seen when the tail is fanned. The peacock struts and fans his colorful plumage to attract the female.

The female Indian Peafowl is very different in appearance from her mate. Her feathers are dull brown or grey. Though she has a crest, she does not have the long showy upper tail coverts.

Peafowls nest on the ground, but roost in trees. These birds are omnivorous. They eat plants, insects, reptiles, and amphibians. The mother peahen will teach her chicks how to find food, which is likely what she was doing this day .

Upset with my presence, this mother peahen was very protective of her chicks and didn't like me getting close.

She fussed at me and then quickly turned to take her chicks elsewhere.

As a retired elementary teacher, children's literature has long been one of my true loves. I used to spend Sunday afternoons at favorite book stores looking through the children's section. These three picture books are not new, but rather favorites that I read time and again to my students. JUST PLAIN & FANCY by Patricia Polacco is a heart warming story of two young Amish sisters who find an unusual egg. They place the egg with their hens to be hatched and soon find this is no ordinary chick. It is a story of the plain ways of the Amish and the beauty of God's creatures. Mem Fox's FEATHERS & FOOLS is an allegorical tale of war between a "pride of magnificent peacocks" and "a flock of elegant swans." In the end no birds remain alive, though two eggs survive. Once hatched, the little peachick and cygnet recognize they are more alike than different. The two become friends, and "They went together, in peace and unafraid, to face the day and share the world." This story offers an excellent antiwar message. THE SPOOKY TAIL OF PREWITT PEACOCK by Bill Peet was written in the early 70s, but the storyline of being different continues to provide young children with a marvelous example. Bill Peet is a master storyteller.

If you want to take part in HFTS Celebration Give Back click here.

Thank you to those hosting the following weekly memes that this post is linked to:

A Southern Daydreamer's Outdoor Wednesday

Mrs. Matlock's Alphabe-Thursday

Rainbow Summer School ~ Yellow

Smiling Sally's Blue Monday