Wednesday, November 23, 2011

Quotes for the Table, Family and Friends

Happy Thanksgiving!

I hope your day is filled with family and friends, joy and thankfulness for your blessings great and small. I hope for those of you have suffered a loss this year, especially that of a dear loved one, that you will feel God's love and comfort through the prayers of those that love you. I hope if you are struggling with something that is blocking your thankfulness you will pray for release, and our merciful God that loves you will give you the peace that surpasses all understanding. That peace is what I am most thankful for Today!

God Bless YOU !

I am thankful I live in the best place on earth!

I am thankful for my family (mom created these vignettes)and dear friends!

Galatians 6:9 Do not get tired of doing what is good. Don't get discouraged and give up, for we will reap a harvest of blessing at the appropriate time.
Let no one ever come to you without leaving better and happier. Be the living expression of God's kindness: kindness in your face, kindness in your eyes, kindness in your smile. ~Mother Teresa
W. J. Cameron

Thanksgiving, after all, is a word of action.


Oscar Wilde

The smallest act of kindness is worth more than the grandest intention.




Lincoln’s Thanksgiving Proclamation of 1863"It has seemed to me fit and proper that (God's gifts) should be solemnly, reverently, and gratefully acknowledged with one heart and one voice by the whole American people. I do, therefore, invite my fellow citizens...to set apart and observe the last Thursday of November next as a day of thanksgiving and praise to our beneficent Father who dwelleth in the heavens."



 photo signature_zps72c1a2bc.png

Tuesday, November 22, 2011

Three Fast and Easy Tips for Thanksgiving

Martha Stewart I am not. Stating the obvious is a strong suit of mine. Although I would love to have a staff to help me get the message of Hospitality out, I would prefer to be more like Mary, not Martha! Here are some tips that you requested, from "Table Settings Inspirations"...

Here is a Thanksgiving Table from my grandparents home. (Clicking on pics make them big for detail) Everything they did was elegant because they did it with love. My grandpa Allan (Alder, Silversmith) was a brilliant designer (Smithsonian, LACMA, Huntington Library & Gardens etc...bla bla) but ALWAYS made people the top priority when they came to his home. Despite having the likes of Cary Grant, Eleanor Roosevelt, Paul Newman and more to his home and studio he was as charming to the men who "hammered" out his designs, as to his "helpers" and really...total strangers (whom he'd often ask in for dinner)

Generations old, these tips are as beautiful/timeless as then...
One: Everything is more beautiful on silver or glass .
Two: Turn overhead lights off and dine by candlelight.
Three: Snip a little greenery or flower. One or two is plenty.

Only two tiny flowers on this table. Elegant and Beautiful. This was in Texas. Everybody laughed when I said I take pictures on trips of the what creative people come up with, especially those beautiful ways to honor and celebrate others. Some people like mountains, I like tables settings and hospitality ideas. (I do love the beaches though!) Ask my family! :)


Glass containers with candy colored for the season! A favorite....


As we express our gratitude, we must never forget that the highest appreciation is not to utter words, but to live by them. ~John Fitzgerald Kennedy

Let us remember that, as much has been given us, much will be expected from us, and that true homage comes from the heart as well as from the lips, and shows itself in deeds. ~Theodore Roosevelt


2 Corinthians 4:15 All of this is for your benefit. And as God’s grace reaches more and more people, there will be great thanksgiving, and God will receive more and more glory.
Tomorrow I will do great Thanksgiving Quotes you can use on your table!
Happy Thanksgiving!

 photo signature_zps72c1a2bc.png

Thursday, November 17, 2011

Casual Thanksgiving Lunch

No kind action ever stops with itself. One kind action leads to another. Good example is followed. A single act of kindness throws out roots in all directions, and the roots spring up and make new trees. The greatest work that kindness does to others is that it makes them kind themselves. --Amelia Earhart

Setting a beautiful table, inviting a friend for lunch, a warm hug to someone who is struggling...all of these can be life changing.

Although I love to set a fun or beautiful or quirky table, it's not about the design...it's about the people.

Is somebody on your heart right now?

Ask them over for lunch or dinner...

If you don't have time to cook, pizza is great. It's the invitation that matters.
Wherever there is a human being, there is an opportunity for a kindness. ~Seneca

The ideals which have lighted my way time after time have given me courage to face life cheerfully, have been kindness, beauty and truth. ~Albert Einstein

Simple Tips: Cut up small citrus fruits; lemons, limes, and tangerines! Add mint and it's so pretty and looks so autumny! I love the store Fresh and Easy....I made these tea sandwiches with the "Curry Chicken" filling, already made up! Sprinkled paprika...took 5 minutes. Added herbs from the garden, 2 seconds...

Guilty of doing this combo just for the colors! I love green and yellow together. All of the flowers were from Fresh and Easy, the $4.50 bunch and they look gorgeous in plain glass...

Too often we underestimate the power of a touch, a smile, a kind word, a listening ear, an honest compliment, or the smallest act of caring, all of which have the potential to turn a life around.
~Leo Buscaglia

 photo signature_zps72c1a2bc.png

Tuesday, November 15, 2011

Hospitality and Homemaking

Inspired31.org was amazingly inspiring with featured speaker Lorianne Merritt! Post is simply email feedback, a tea inspired by the table setting ideas (by Roxanne) and lastly the simple "recipe" I love to do when we have guest over unexpectedly for dessert!

Cassie and Grace giving the discussion questions, inspiring us with poise and stage presence.

Mothers, daughters and grandmothers, One special gal who drives over 2 hours to our events, from San Juan Capistrano, who hopes to begin a Chapter of Inspired31.org

" I was inspired by all of your beautiful hearts coming together in unity to bless moms and daughters both in deed and in the word! I so enjoyed the pictures of the lovely table presentations. And Lorrianne's love for God's word and applying it to all of our life story was truly inspiring! Well done!!!!" Teri Sangster

"Thanks for all the fun and food on Sunday. I thoroughly enjoyed seeing the slideshow of tablescapes! Moments like those make me want to open up my home to others and bless them with a nice meal and fellowship. I'm looking forward to using some of these ideas along with my WHITE plates to be hospitable. Great job ladies." Melissa Smith

" I learned alot from the speakers (white plates, salad in glass bowls, bare tables with no table cloths, holiday seasonal color frames, different ways to position napkins in napkin holders, themed tables.... ). What was really helpful was that I don't need to offer something spectacular necessarily to have someone over to my home. Instead, to focus on what I can do and that there are plenty of options to make someone feel loved <3" Nicole Hiltebran

"I loved the event. Thank you for Inspiring me. Give me the scoop on the dough and chocolate chip dessert that you said is easy and impressive - Please:) Also, maybe Lorraine could share all the scripture from her notes. We could load it up on the web site"....Kim Barkis (recipe below, scripture to follow)

"My friend diane asked if u could put the food jar names on ur blog, for her table". (The idea of the jars that once empty are a fabulous shape and texture for a vase (the cocktail sauce my friend Sharyl buys). Once a few are collected they are gorgeous as centerpieces....) I will post those jar's soon! (I have to go to the market tomorrow to get them so I can show "before and after')

This table was set by Joy (our scone lady) the next day for a few of us for tea! She was so sweet to incorporate a few things, she says she was inspired by at the slide show! (flowers in individual vases, votive candles, a table bare without a tablecloth and place cards/napkin rings) Great job Joy! All were blessed-even those who couldn't join in :)

Here is the chocolate/pastry dessert, prepared in the airstream (not gulfstream!) by Hannah!

Gorgeous, yummy and so easy! Take pastry dough and place some chocolate chips in it!

Pull up the four corners like you are making a little "bag" of chocolate chips, and pinch in at where the imaginary bow might be tied if it actually were a bag. Bake according to the package of pastry dough...about 15 min.... Sprinkle with powdered sugar OR you can prepare the plate with a puddle of unwhipped whipped cream and swirl some hershey's syrup around then place the pastry in the middle with a few drizzles of hershey's syrup! If served plain sprinkle sugar before baking.

With the state of our world today, is it frivolous to talk about designing & decorating our homes? Unequivocably, No! Our world today is filled with great uncertainty, poverty, sadness & sickness, but in encouraging one another to do good, conversations begin and so many of these begin in the home. Do not underestimate the power of your home, and the ability to change lives. Do not underestimate the power of one tiny seemingly insignificant act of kindness. You never know how a life could be changed by one small thoughtful gesture.Just as a smile is a sign of graciousness to another human being, a cup of hot tea in a cozy nook listening to a friend can be life-altering.~ From Inspired Design, the hospitality book.

 photo signature_zps72c1a2bc.png

Thursday, November 10, 2011

Christmas Color, Spanish birth Celebration

Welcome to you referred by the lovely Blog: A Wise Woman Builds Her Home! I'm so glad you are here... My blog is devoted to all things Inspired: Home, Hospitality, Family and Friends. What better way to show God's love than to honor, love and celebrate others through home?

One more blog until the big Inspired31.org slideshow... So, although not exactly Christmas colors, it would be if the black was green! I love these pics of my daughters 18th birthday party a week ago! (EEEK) She wanted nothing big, fancy or planned as she is somewhat low-key like her Dad! So I tried hard to do a little Spanish theme, as she was born in Spain, while my husband served in the Military, Navy to be precise.

I tried to keep it simple with things I had, although I did buy those plastic silverware, can you believe it? (Tuesday Morning) Clean up was much easier, although lots of dishes to wash!



You know I love to reuse interesting items, this one my husband and I bought in Germany 18 years ago, when the military sent us there to do a Dental training. (US? Ok Scott did the training, I happily tagged along)

I try to always include a favorite quote or scripture, and this one is so fitting for an 18th birthday, especially while filling out the college app's!
A friend loves at all times, and a brother is born for adversity. Proverbs 17:17 (NIV)


Her dear friend, Cassie, since she was about 6 years old. They really "sharpen" each other as Iron Sharpens Iron, in Proverbs. I am so thankful for Hannah's dear friend Cassie. A sweet spirited, lovely, encouraging friend to my precious daughter. Thank you, Lord.

Hannah's dress that she wore when she was less than a year out, then let out when she was two to wear again. It was for the Semana Santa celebrations in Southern Spain, where we were stationed. This Sevillana dress is such a sweet reminder of her early childhood. It was so sentimental on her birthday. I hung it on my jewelry stand and pinned it. Great idea for baby clothes for baby showers!

Love these curly straws I got at the party store!

Inexpensive napkins at Tuesday Morning...almost as cheap as buying paper products, but not quite. I hate to waste money on disposable things! I am part Scottish...

Gumballs on the napkins. Just cute and colorful.
"For attractive lips, speak words of kindness. For lovely eyes, seek out the good in people. For a slim figure, share your food with the hungry. For beautiful hair, let a child run his fingers through it once a day. For poise, walk with the knowledge that you’ll never walk alone. People, more than things, have to be restored, renewed, revived, reclaimed, and redeemed; never throw out anybody. Remember, if you ever need a helping hand, you will find one at the end of each of your arms. As you grow older, you will discover that you have two hands, one for helping yourself and the other for helping others."
— Sam Levenson

 photo signature_zps72c1a2bc.png

Tuesday, November 8, 2011

Inspiring Ideas for the Holidays, It is the thought....

Here are a few from the slide slow we are showing this Sunday!
Tea and Scones
3-5:30
We'd love to have you! Register here!

No act of kindness, no matter how small, is ever wasted. Aesop


I always like to plant greenery that I can clip and use on the table for centerpieces etc.. Ivy is great to clip and simply lay on the table..not even necessarily in an arrangement! Think easy!

Danica scooped out these melon balls from a watermelon over the summer, and I couldn't get over how beautiful they were! Remember that scooping out all kinds of different foods is pretty easy, always gorgeous in a glass or crystal bowl. It's the color that is so effective.

My mom did this at the book launch in Newport Beach, with cold yogurt gaspacho! En masse many things look more elegant than just one would. She used these little plastic square glasses filled with the easiest gaspacho and a little cilantro and it was gorgeous. Think...en masse!

This is WalMart...Yes I love the big super WalMart's! This one was in San Diego. The presentation in placement was seriously gorgeous. I took my camera and my niece, Julia, and my daughter were staying at least one row away from me, as I was flipping out at how beautifully arranged the store was. It was opening and no people had swarmed yet: key!

Simple, totally cheap and darling: writing with chocolate syrup!

My dad's birthday party...my mom used a different color table cloth for each table, each bright and vibrant. During the slideshow I will show it all....very effective! Of course each of her centerpieces matched the tablecloths...

My girlfriend Amy had me over for lunch during the summer, and another friend and she spoils me rotten. I am so thankful for a friend like her. I so appreciate the care and thought she puts into her friends. I just love that girl!

My sister's table above, all paper products, no joke. Gorgeous!

Yes, kids can add to the festivities always... Put anything on a silver platter and it is gorgeous, although these cookies were pretty to start with. Danica did these too!

Of course the best thing about the Holidays is getting friends together! So I leave you with some dear friends, cutting into the Prime Rib I made for them. It was yummy!
I hope to see you on Sunday...
Don't forget if you want to see more detail in the pictures, double click onto them!
I tell you, the more I think, the more I feel that there is nothing more truly artistic than to love people.
Vincent Van Gogh
 photo signature_zps72c1a2bc.png