Pre-Turkey Nesting

Thanksgiving is at my house this year - for the first time in ages. I think I am ready. My parents have been here for the last week, so I took advantage of my mom's vast Thanksgiving knowledge and forced her to help me create the official Turkey Day Master Plan. My recipes are not difficult, but keeping everything warm at the same time is such a challenge! 

Most of my in-laws will be here for Thanksgiving. Thankfully they are nice and very forgiving.

I still have to cook and clean a bit more, but who wants to do that when there is a table to decorate?! We are very lucky to have hand-painted china that belonged to my husband's Danish grandmother. There is no way to make this china look anything but beautiful, so setting a pretty table is really easy!

I decided to use a burlap-ish table cloth, jute ribbons, and wheat. I still need to add the silver (needs a buffing) and some fresh flowers. I'm thinking about placing the flowers in small nosegays alongside the candles in the middle.
 
My bar/beverage table looked a bit dull and the 1960's ice bucket (a treasure from my late father-in-law's bachelor days) didn't look quite right. 

 
I replaced the ice bucket with a large crystal vase. The lid from the bucket even fits!

I tried making a quick garland from an old patchwork skirt, but I thought it looked too much like a baby shower table.

So I went with a simple jute ribbon and wheat.

These glasses belonged to my grandma. She collected them when she was a young housewife. They came in boxes of oatmeal and soap. The orange pitcher and glasses sat on top of the hutch in her kitchen for over 40 years.

Dusting off these family treasures is a bittersweet act. It makes me miss those who are gone, but I also feel their presence so strongly and know they would be happy to see us "using the good stuff," even if we break it.

I hope this week finds you enjoying the treasures in your life as well. 

Happy Thanksgiving!