Wednesday, April 8, 2009

TABLESCAPE THURSDAY......A Bon Voyage Party!!

It's another Tablescape Thursday hosted by the "Design Diva of the South"...
Stop by Susan's blog for links to all the other ladies participating in this weekly fun event...This past week we had a little going away party for our friend and fellow "Darling Baker"
Cathy.......she is leaving soon for Paris with her daughter and we wanted to give her a good send off......

Here is Francois my happy French pig wishing her a
Bon Voyage!!

A view from above.....

another quilt from my vast quilt collection......
I really love using these as table covers as you can guess....
a place set especially for the "guest of honor"

A little light reading for her long trip across the Atlantic
If you have never read a Peter Mayle book you need to put him on your reading list....


I love French writing on crockery.....

Mr. Francois insisted on a closeup.......


I used all different shapes and sizes of whisks as place card holders.....


See those adorable hand painted dishes under the cafe' au lait bowls.....
I found them at Goodwill for $3.00 for 4 of them....

The Jumbo Whisk found at my favorite cookware shop in all of Paris.....
E. Dehillerin
It's been selling their wares to French cooks for almost 200 years!!


A little grapevine wreath in all the right colors.....I have had this wreath for 32 years...

A great Williams Sonoma find.....piggy plates.


another Francois picture.......what a hog


we had to include food in our little party....after all the "Darling Bakers" are all about the
Food...here is a
"Tomatoes farcies a' la Tomme er au basilic"
That's very French for Stuffed Tomatoes with Ricotta and Basil!


Steak Frites with garlic/herb butter


And for the finale
A French Apple Tart

Bon Apetite !!
see you this weekend for "Weekends in Paris"

51 comments:

a quiet life said...

oolala just as fun second time round!

KBeau said...

You are making me so hungry, and I definitely covet those piggy plates.

Lisa Pogue said...

OMG, I thought the table looked like so much fun, but when I saw that food, I crumbled. YOU'VE REALLY MADE ME HUNGRY. Gosh those tomatoes made my mouth water!!!

Sara at Come Away With Me said...

Lucky Cathy to have such a great Bon Voyage party! A beautiful table setting, great books (I think I've read all the Peter Mayle there is)...and that food, oh my! I want some too!

Susie Q said...

You got me with those foodie pictures...and I just ate! Oooh....
But your table is adorable!Those WS piggy plates are too wonderful.
Not only does Cathy get to fly off to Paris but she got to be at your oh so perfect home, WITH YOU, and delight in such a special honor! I am SO jealous of the dear lady and I don't even KNOW her! *laugh*

I wish you all a sweeteaster holiday...I hope you are feeling better and enjoying the week.

Love,
Sue

Kathleen said...

Very nice!
Yes, I hope Cathy has a great time. She seems like such a lovely person..

Unknown said...

Wow, what a great send off for your friend! That pig cracks me up! The pizza/tart looked so incredibly yummy!

Cindy (Applestone Cottage) said...

What delightful piggy plates! I love the whole look, so original. Cindy

Mari @ Once Upon a Plate said...

Hey Darling!

It's all so sweet! Love all of your French touches.

I join you in wishing Cathy a Bon Voyage!

"Mr. Francois insisted on a closeup......."

Sue, you ALWAYS can crack me up. Love you for that, lady!! xo~m

Barb @ The Everyday Home said...

Your piggy is such a HAM! :-D This table was just too darn cute!
All the details were fantastic. I loved the french crockery...me wants too! :-) thanks for sharing your Bon Voyage party with us. And thanks for making my mouth water for a rare steak at 11pm at nite. heehee

SouthernGal said...

Très beau et Francois est très futé. Love it all and I wish I were going to France!

Christi @ A Southern Life
http://asouthernlife.com

KBeau said...

Did you see my purse sitting on the floor beside the island when you took a peek into the kitchen? LOL. That's where I usually drop it when I come in.

~CC Catherine said...

Sue, Sue, Sue...where do I start? Let's start with Francois, I found a cousin of his, I'm naming him "Claude". Yep, simply Claude, because that was my dad's name. I picked up Claude this week at a consignment shop and he needed an overhaul...he'll be showcased in a future post once he's all dolled up! ;) NOW...on to the crafty idea of using the whisks to hold the name cards., GIRLFRIEND, you ROCK! What a great idea...and the quilt tabletopper always gets me in the heart! The blues have me hands down...and the dishes with Francois writing......pitter pat, pitter pat...loving it all! Your friend had to have been so surprised and happy to have been honored at the Going Away Party! We gotta get together this summer - we gotta., we gotta., we gotta! ;) I'm going to check out that author too. I ordered two French books today online from Bella Antiques., one is a French song book and the other a Paris Coffee table book., $10 each and $9 to ship...not to bad I didn't think. Stop by soon! ~Au Revoir my friend~ ~CC Catherine (And Happy EASTER~~) ;)

ellen b. said...

Oh lovely, lovely, lovely! I really like the quilt as a tablecloth and all the blue and white and special touches! Fabulous!!

Kathy's Red Door Welcome said...

What a wonderful bon voage party. Your table looks so inviting and I love your piggy plates and ceterpiece. Lucky girl gets to go to Paris!

Chari at Happy To Design said...

Hi Sue...

My friend, thank you so much for stopping by today and taking a peek at my little Easter brunch tablescape...You make me blush with your generous compliments...so appreciated, my friend!!!

What a beautiful "Bon Voyage" party for your friend! You know, I love how you use your pretty quilts for the table covering! They're gorgeous and the pattern and colors are so happy!!! It goes beautifully with your blue & white place settings...love your piggy plates!!! And Francois...well he is a handsome fellow and definitely the center of attraction on this beautiful table!!!

Your meal looks scrumptious...especially the stuffed tomatoes...mmmm!!!

Warmest wishes,
Chari

Martha said...

Love the quilt as a tablecloth -- goes well with the colors of your dishes. I, too, love writing on dishes and those pig plates -- they are just too cute! Love the idea of using whisks -- a real French table!

susan said...

That pig seems to get around almost as much as the Target birds! What a special sendoff!

Joyce said...

Can I pretend I am going to visit some place other then the local looney bin so that you can make a party for me? Those piggy plates are so cute. I am sure I would be licking that plate after I had a piece of your delicious apple tart:)
Joyce

Anonymous said...

Hi Sue! Don't you wish we were going to Paris?

Your tart looks perfect! Love the whisks as place card holders. I, too, also love French writing on crockery. And, a trip to the cookware shop in Paris that you mentioned would be a blast! I bet I could get lost in there.

santamaker said...

Lovely tablescape made EVEN better with that DELICIOUS looking food. OH me on my, I want some of that!

Kathleen Ellis said...

What a fun table! and the food...well, it has me salivating! Wonderful!
Thanks for stopping by! I actually put the wrong link up...if you'd like to visit my Easter tablescape, please stop back!
Happy Easter!
;-D

Cathy said...

Thank you so very much, Sue, for this wonderful sendoff. As you can imagine, I'm very excited about my trip and have just a little over a week before I leave.

And many thanks to your commenters for good travel wishes. Can't wait to share my pictures when I come home.

Love the piggie plates.

The Raggedy Girl said...

What a really lovely table and I love the quilt, how pretty. The food looks just yummy!

Have A Great Table Scape Thursday
from Roberta Anne

The Bloom Girls said...

What a fun table! We Bloom Girls took a trip to France last September and I can tell you it is one of our FAVORITE places on this earth! This increased my longing to go back! The food looks wonderful! Have a wonderful Easter!

Karyn

Daryl said...

Oh how lovely ... I am jonsing for those tomatoes ...

Scribbler said...

Very clever table and great-looking food.

Scribbler

Chandy said...

What a great table! I love all the wonderful touches you added!

Happy Thursday!

Mary said...

Ooh la la, very french! I love the blue and all of the plates and french tableware mary @ Boogieboard cottage

Deb said...

Very Nice! Love the accessories! The food looks great! Deb

Linda Q said...

Darling table and I am jealous that they get to go on that trip! Bet it will be amazing for them.
Love your use of a quilt for tablecloth and so on.
Great details!
Linda Q

Salmagundi said...

Can we all go with your friend?? Or, at the very least, I'll come and eat that wonderful looking food at your house. One late night in Paris we had that almost identical meal after we had been to see the Eiffel Tower all lit up in the rain!! Great memory. Sally

Eli said...

Beautiful French style table setting. Mr.François closeup is great. It's always such a pleasure to read and see your posts! Hugs. Eli

Candy said...

What a wonderful send off. Surely they don't eat that well in Paris.
Traveling prayers from Texas, Candy

Anonymous said...

that meal looks awesome.how nice of you to give her a sweet send off.everything looks perfect....ann

Ceekay-THINKIN of HOME said...

Oh that is so cute. Those dishes are fantastic...darling, darling tablescape! Happy Easter!

Manuela@A Cultivated Nest said...

I'm wishing I had a slice of the french apple tart right now! What cute plates!! I LOVE them. Such a cute cute table!

Manuela

Kim @ Starshine Chic said...

Fabulous tablescape. I love anything French. I really like the french wording on your crockery. And Francois is such a ham. Too cute!!!

Anonymous said...

Oh, how sweet of you to throw the good bye party for your friend! I'm sure she was thrilled! I love your pretty quilt as the tableclothe! Love all the goodies you've put on your table, too! Now the food - yummy! Thanks for popping in to see me.
Be a sweetie,
Shelia ;)

Mid-Atlantic Martha said...

I feel like I just went on a trip to Paris! This is all darling.

Miss Janice said...

Well, I just loved all the pieces you used to bring this together! Awesome! And the food...my goodness I'm hungry. Great job!

Lori (All That Splatters) said...

I totally have a 'thing' for Mssr. Francois!! ;) Your tablescape is great and your menu is to-die-for!! Je l'adore!

Bo said...

What a great send-off for your friend! I think quilts are a wonderful tablecover...wish I had more! Your food photos are delicious! Thanks so much for your kind visit to my blog... ;-) Bo

Tami said...

Such a great send off for your friend. Clever table and delicious food. Nicely done, Sue!

Helen said...

I do hope Francois and Jean Claude have been properly introduced! Love everything you have shown all of us today.

Pat @ Mille Fiori Favoriti said...

Mr. Francois is too sweet! Love the French flair and the french food is ou la la!

Decor To Adore said...

Beautiful! Have a glorious Easter weekend!

Kathy said...

Bon Voyage to Cathy, Francois did a superb job, your tablescape is so beautiful and the food looks delicious, Happy Easter, Kathy.

Linda in AZ * said...

*What a WONDERFUL, THOUGHTFUL & CREATIVELY FUN "going away" party!!! Those kinds of things add so much SPICE to life!!! And you appear to be a FAB COOK!!! ~ (Yes, that's ENVY you're reading here!!!)... To top it all off, seeing a pic of your cutie-patootie Sophie made it all SUCH a pleasure! Many, many thanks and EASTER'S BLESSINGS to you n' all your loved ones!~~~ Linda *

xinex said...

Beautiful tablescape and very original! Love the plates and everything else....Christine

Confessions of a Plate Addict said...

Hi Sue...I'm catching up from my bloggy break!! I LOVE the very frenchy tablescape! The crockery is wonderful and so are the plates! Hotel Pastis...what a great book! Isn't Peter Mayle terrific?? Hope you had a wonderful Easter...hugs...Debbie