entertaining / our thanksgiving tablesetting 2014!

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so the carpenter family thanksgiving this year might be a little sad. it will be the first year we are doing it with no family coming in to town- typically we have like a thousand kids running around and twenty people in the kitchen. this year there are going to be six of us- not even our whole family is here (syd is still on her mission). we decided to go super fancy with our tablesetting. we went with a mixed metals theme, and threw in some color with the greenery and flowers.

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we started with this awesome brass edged mirror that bobette found at a thrift store (it's mostly covered though). she also recently got the rose gold flatware on sale at target. hence the mixed metals! we are so in love with the geometric napkin holders from west elm.

we also got a few of these vases from west elm- is anyone else as obsessed with rose gold as i am???

bobette made little geometric wreath out of triangle instruments from the dollar bin at target.

i designed menus that we placed in ornament place card holders that we've had forever. we seriously can't get enough geometrics!

and of course we had to throw some greenery on there. bobette knocked on a neighbors door to clip some of his jacaranda tree. that's dedication!

we hope you all have a wonderful thanksgiving!!

entertaining / last minute thanksgiving recipes / part 1 of 2

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thanksgiving is in two days! i can't believe it! i wanted to share with you some recipes that my mom has relied on for many years. the many sides are my favorite part of thanksgiving, and they are foods that you don't really eat at any other time of year (which is probably what makes them so special). my absolute favorite dish is the coconutty sweet potatoes, they are basically a dessert. i know most of you probably have your thanksgiving meals all planned out, but for those of you who are looking for some new delicious recipes, here you go!

ps. i will share a few more recipes later today or tomorrow, so stay tuned! (hint: rolls, salad, and potatoes!)

entertaining / what to do with your thanksgiving leftovers

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thanksgiving is in one week! i am so excited! we are spending the holiday with some old family friends (since we are across the country from all of our family). while i'm sad we are missing out on my cousin's homecoming from his mission in guatemala and our family's thanksgiving traditions, i'm so happy we have someone to spend it with!

the day after thanksgiving is monumental for my dad. it is when he starts making his infamous 'two-finger' sandwiches. he takes the leftover rolls, leftover turkey or pork rack (which seems to find its way to every holiday, and i'm not mad about it), and some spicy mustard and makes the most heavenly little sandwiches. for the next week or so, whenever any friends or family come over my dad will make them a 'two finger' whether they like it or not. but mostly they just like it.

i've recently discovered a different way to reuse thanksgiving foods. at trader joe's they have the most delicious wraps that have turkey, stuffing, cream cheese, and cranberry. how easy is that? i have gotten them so often lately, and keep imagining how much better they would be with homemade foods. and they include a thin, creamy maple dressing to dip the wrap in. i usually heat it up for 10 minutes or so in the over, so the outside is a little crispy. i may or may not have discovered that it also tastes really good dipped in caramel. don't judge me. 

how will you be using your thanksgiving leftovers?

{photo from here}

ps. have you seen this thanksgiving guide from style me pretty, it's pretty epic!

entertaining / the anatomy of a table setting / thanksgiving

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bobette taught a class on how to set your holiday tables recently, and i loved everything she did so much i had to share! she created 5 different place settings ranging from vintage to modern styles. it's never too early to get started on holiday planning right??

first let's talk about what you actually need for a table setting. the diagram above shows the general way that they should be set up, but your place settings can be more or less complex depending on what you have and how fancy-pantsy you want to be. consider the diagram a guideline, you do not have to do it exactly like that- and you will see in the examples below that we strayed a bit from what is shown.

1. placemat- my grandma always has a placemat set for dinner, and for some reason it makes everything feel so much more elegant. i always loved that when i visited her house for sunday dinners. this category could include your tablecloth, should you choose to use one.

2. charger- i feel like this is the place where you can be the most creative. there are so many different things that you can use as a charger, because you don't have to eat off of it. we thought of using: cutting boards, tiles, paper, serving dishes. really anything that is slightly bigger than a plate would work.

3. main plate- this is pretty much the only thing that you have to have for a table setting. unless you are super progressive and don't want to be confined by plates. no judgment.

4. salad plate- this could also be a soup bowl. either way it has to be killer since it is on the tippy top.

5. name tag- you can play with lots of different things here too. bobette has a killer collection of name tag holders (see below). i also love when people have little treats as their name tags (ie a chocolate box with the name on the outside). the name tag can be placed anywhere really- tied to the napkin or cup, on top of or next to the plate.

6. fork/napkin/spoon/knife- there are proper ways to set all of these if you are proper and are using multiple utensils. we like tying all of them together and putting them to the right of the plate (though if i had it my way they would be on the left hand side #lefthandedproblems).

7. cup- again, you can have multiple glasses and there are certain ways to set them. we usually stick with just one glass for our signature drink, and have extras near the drink bar.

very vintage:

for this setting we nixed the placemat and opted for that awesome lacy tablecloth (from my wedding, excuse the wrinkles). i love this look for thanksgiving- the palate of pinks browns and yellow are perfect. that charger is a serving platter, and i love how it matches the silver centerpiece. how perfect are the flowers too? oh and you can see one of bobette's name tag holders- the pink ornaments. loves.

gold and glam:

this is the way that bobette is planning to have her thanksgiving table set. i don't think i could love it more. i have always wanted to steal those gold chargers, and combined with the charteuse napkins- she is killing me. those white plates are super old from target, and the salad plates are from anthro a few years ago. 

rustic modern:

we have seen this look quite a bit on pinterest lately. it has a limited color palette (she wanted to use tan napkins, but i needed more color/pattern- i can't go that modern). i do love the combination of the two white plates. that wreath was made of a boxwood branch in her garden, as was the rosemary surrounding the candles. those chalkboards with the wooden stands are new- i feel like they are super diy-able for those of you who are crafty.

 

what plans do you have for your thanksgiving table?