Thanksgiving Wishes

I did a trial run of my Thanksgiving table tonight. I have been for the past few weeks trying to accumulate fixings for making a lush tablescape for Thanksgiving. I had mentioned in a previous post that due to plumbing issues our wedding china is packed away, so I purchased these white plates at Goodwill.

I am working with a couple of handicaps trying to put together a nice table. One is of course, budget as always. I have been haunting my favorite discount and second-hand stores a lot.  The other is storage, with an eye for packing in the not-too-distant future. We hope to sell and move across country this year (more to come on that as it develops) and I am supposed to be eliminating possessions, not adding to them.

I couldn't resist some few items, tho. Besides the plates, which at $1 each for 6, will cover both Thanksgiving and Christmas dinners and cost cheaper than nice disposable dinnerware.  The gold chargers were gotten at Bed, Bath & Beyond, I was so proud of myself for getting the 6 for $8.  I've since been seeing them at all the dollar stores. Well, they'll last a good number of dinners, at any rate.  The chamois soft leaves that so many of you have in your stock were purchased at Big Lots, I wish now I had gotten 6 instead of the 5, I might stop on my way home tomorrow. Big Lots is also where I got the nice table runner. 

 Something I had a surprising amount of trouble finding were cloth napkins.  My hubby doesn't care for cloth napkins, but I really wanted to use them. In hunting for them, I was surprised at the prices. I finally broke down and paid $9 for 6 plain cotton green ones at Walmart. An hour later at Ross I found this bundle of beautiful russet damask napkins with a leaf pattern on it, clearanced at $6. Yay, just the price I was looking for. The green ones will still work for Christmas.  At Annes Linens next to Ross I picked up the napkin rings for 50 cents each. 

I really, really wanted to find a set of those lovely leaf dishes people all over blogland are using as salad plates. The ones I saw were priced too much to validate them for this year's table, tho I might make that investment next year. In my now daily stops at Goodwill I've been fantasizing about finding a set of 6 amber or sage green glass salad plates at a killer deal, but somehow those have not materialized on their shelves.  So the place setting is rather simple, a single dish on a charger, but it works. The flatware I have here on my sample setting is our everyday stuff, I don't even know who makes it. I'll pull out our fancy stuff for Thursday's dinner. The stemware is my wedding crystal, Mikasa Park Avenue. I'm sure an assortment of everyday glasses will join it later, my family will be wanting soda with dinner, and I don't have the more appropriate iced tea glasses. Ultimately, that family around the table is much more important than what's on it, so it will be as it should be.

May you all have a blessed Thanksgiving, and a wonderful weekend.

I am linking with Marty at A Stroll thru Life for Tabletop Tuesday.

I am also linking at Between Naps on the Porch for Tablescape Thursday.