Tablescapes and Modern Art~

I received a package in the mail from Sarah at A Beach Cottage containing some lovely place mats and napkins that I won in a giveaway. They were so pretty that I felt inspired to set the table for a festive fall dinner.

The mix of patterns and textures gave interest to the neutral color scheme.

The place mats rolled and tied with a bit of twine created a casual feel.

Mismatched silverware is perfect for casual entertaining (of course, at my house, I'm lucky to have enough silverware to go around with two little boys that love to stuff it down heating vents....I have to clean them out every week or so...)


And one of my favorite place card ideas...this is just a piece of kraft paper torn against a straight edge and nestled in the prongs of a fork. So simple....casually elegant.

And on the menu...a perfect fall meal...beef stew and muffins with cinnamon streusel topping. One of my sharp eyed readers is going to mention the fact that there are no bowls on the table. I prefer to bring bowls to the table already filled...prevents spills from messing up the pretty linens.

Bon appetit!!

And finally, as I was trying to get mounds of laundry folded yesterday, I noticed that it was quiet. Too quiet. Because I have the toddler demolition team still at home during the days, I knew that a quiet house couldn't be good. So I hurried to the kitchen and found a very proud Mr. Two (4 years old) who showed me his latest "sculpture". Yes, he did call it a sculpture. I had to immortalize it here on the old blog. (Although I am now out of tin foil.) That little kid is going to be famous one day!

EDITED TO ADD: Apartment Therapy featured The Shabby Nest and The Frugal Friday Linky Party yesterday. Here's the link!

Have a great Wednesday~