For The Bees

I wanted to set a table with a bee theme this summer but had not gotten around to it.  I dithered over purchasing a La Rochere carafe or some glass bowls to go with our bee goblets, but in the end, I decided I couldn't justify buying those right now.  I had planned to try and gather enough flowers (but was pretty sure there wouldn't be enough in my young flower garden) to make a center piece.  Then, I was gifted a lovely flower arrangement on Sunday, and I decided it was time to do my bee table, even though I didn't have all the elements that I wanted for it.      

      

I love these flowers; they're so much more than I could have gotten from my flowerbed right now.  They also have sentimental meaning because they were in my mom's church sanctuary in memory of my Dad this past Sunday.  His birthday was July 3rd, and he would have been 83 this year.     

You can see above that there are two identical arrangements here, and the talented lady in the picture is the artist who put these together.  If a church member wants flowers in the sanctuary in honor, or in memory, of someone special, they give Barbara $20, and she does beautiful arrangements because she has a talent for this and she loves doing it.  My mom had my sister and I take the flowers to enjoy in our homes, and I have truly enjoyed mine this week.  We went to church with Mom on Sunday, so we got to see how pretty they looked there, as well.        Back to the tablescape, I wanted bee napkin rings for this table but felt that I wouldn't have time to get them from Amazon in time to take my pictures.  Some of the flowers were starting to wilt, so I needed to get busy photographing.  😊   

This is a very simple table, but I'm pleased with the way it turned out.  I don't own any bee plates, per se, but I purchased four bread and butter/dessert plates from eBay to add color to my white plates.     

   The bread and butter plates are Johnson Brothers Rose Chintz, and they were listed as "new" rather than vintage.  The vintage plates (made in England) were much pricier, and I love these, as they have no scratches, chips, or crazing.  The napkins were a gift from my mother-in-law some years ago.     

I chose this particular pattern because I've always liked it, but also because flowers and bees just belong together.   

I used our Wallace "Napoleon Bee" flatware,   

and the La Rochere goblets, as well.  I find myself using these goblets and the flatware often during the summer because I love the look, but also, their quality is outstanding. The small bee skep seen here behind the goblet was one I found at a local thrift shop a few years ago.     

  I'm using the French table runner we purchased from a vendor at the City Market in Charleston on one of our visits.  Again, I felt the lavender worked well with the bee theme.    

The candles I used are beeswax tapers with a honeycomb texture.     

You can see the texture of the candles better in this picture.     

The first pictures I took of this tablescape were taken in the evening before dark, but I always like to get some photos in the morning light, if possible, so I took a few more photos the next morning.   

        Some candlelight shots... 

and the next morning.   

Thank you to my mom for the gift of these beautiful flowers -- they were just what I needed for my bee table.  Thanks to all of you who visited here today; I appreciate you more than I can say.  Blogging has changed a lot since I started House at Forest Manor back in 2011.  So many of the blog friends I had in the beginning are no longer here, for various reasons.  Your visits and comments mean a lot, as they make things feel more sociable -- rather than feeling like I'm just talking to myself all the time. 😉      I hope you're all having a wonderful summer; before we know it, fall will be here.  I don't want to wish my life away, but I do love fall -- how about you?  Thank you again for stopping by!!  Hope you have a great day and a wonderful weekend!!     I'm joining Susan at Between Naps on the Porch for "Tablescape Thursday".  Do stop by her blog if you get a chance!      Blessings,