I have such a thing for dishes. They may be one of my love languages. I’ve written before about brown transferware and white dishes. I also have some green Bordallo Pinheiro plates that I love.
Recently I saw some blue and white dishes paired with red and white linens on Pinterest, and the combination was perfect for summer. I began investigating and fell in love with Blue Willow, an English chinoiserie pattern, so I began a search on Etsy and eBay.
One thing I do to keep my dish collection in check is to focus on plates, since they get used the most and are easy to store. In this case, I looked specifically for salad plates that I could pair with dishes I already had. When I discovered you could buy Blue Willow new, from Amazon, I took the easy way out and chose new over vintage.
Despite the fact that summer is coming to a close, I did get to use the new plates for a late summer dinner at our house last Saturday. I set the table with all of my other standbys: wicker chargers, white dishes, mismatched vintage silverware, white candles, white flowers, and blue hydrangeas. I also added red gingham napkins like the pictures I had seen.
I’m trying my very best to enjoy summer and not wish time away. I’m also thinking of the people of Texas, many of whom don’t have the luxury of focusing on new dishes right now. My prayer is that everyone is out of danger soon and the recovery process goes smoothly.
Julie — I love this place setting! Your plan for salad plates is genius! I would be hard-pressed to explain away additional dinner plates, but salad plates could work. Thanks for the tip!
Have a great week!
Always room for more salad plates, Janet!
You will find lots of Blue Willow, makes it fun!
Your white dishes and red check napkins will work well with pointsetas for Christmas.
REMINDER, you can cut these flowers from the bracket and add to thin neck vases in water. They are beautiful setting in the center of each dinner plate. They also last about a week. YOU DO NEED TO BURN THE TIP TO SEAL the liquid in the blossom.
What you shared is lovely!
Thanks for the ideas, Nan.
This is such a classic and beautiful look, Julie. Love it!