dining blue

If you are looking for something to collect that doesn’t take up too much space and gives your second hand shopping a purpose, then how about table cloths? I have a whole cupboard of them that I use whenever we have visitors.

I have big table cloths for our formal dining table, and mid sized ones for our round kitchen table, and then I also collect small table cloths to go over the top and create layers. Layering if a very handy approach to dressing the table, because then if they aren’t quite the right size, you can have another one poking out underneath … like it’s meant to be.

And, if sometimes they have stains (mine NEVER DO of course, OTHER PEOPLE have just mentioned this idea to me …) you can hide them with a smaller cloth.

Yesterday I set the table with a blue theme.

I used my trusty favourite underneath – it is a 60s or 70s cloth, with big blue and green flowers in mid tones. It has a white background. Over the top I put my new white table cloth with the small blue pattern. From a distance the pattern looks like it has been hand stitched, but in fact it is just printed onto the fabric. I can’t remember, but I think this came from the tip shop …

I set the table with my willow pattern china which I have been collecting along the way, and I put out matching plates and boring old Maxwell Williams round bowls that I purchased new years ago. And I also put out the rectangular small trays with edges that I picked up from the trash and treasure stall at our school fair this year.

Then I just had to cook something …