“Collected” Table Setting

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Many of us have collections of figurines or china animals that are sitting in a box lovingly wrapped to keep them in perfect condition and there they sit in the closet never seen and never used. A friend brought me her collection of “Josef” Birthday Figurines to use in a table setting. She gave her daughter one each birthday through her graduation from High School. They are really darling.

I started the place setting with these gorgeous embroidered place mats. The delicate embroidery and spring colors seemed to lend themselves to pretty china figurines.

I created a centerpiece using flowers from the garden and a beautiful cut crystal vase. Azaleas, snowball verbena, and Japanese Iris were used. The colors go well with the placemats, china and with the figurines. A small figurine sits at the base of the centerpiece. You’ll see it better in another picture but it is the Graduation Figurine, the last she received, so I felt it needed to be included in the setting.

The plate stack begins with pink and green chargers in the Baroque pattern from Ambiance. Mikasa’s Villa Medici dinner plate is next. This has a beautiful flower border and incorporates pinks, greens, blues and yellows in the design. It has an all white center. Lastly, I used a Villeroy & Boch wave dessert/salad plate with a nice deep depression in the center. You’ll see why in just a moment.

Nestled in each Villeroy & Boch plate is a delightful Birthday Girl. This one is for when you turn four. You can see she holds a little watering can. All the figurines have wings. Each figurine picks up colors in the Mikasa dinner plate and makes a harmonious grouping.

Here’s the one for the Ninth Birthday. As the child becomes older the figurines become larger echoing the growth of the child from year to year.

Simple white napkins held in green porcelain napkin rings were used. Then I made some tissue paper flowers to insert in the fold of the napkin pulling in the vivid colors of the azaleas in the centerpiece.

Here’s an overview of the table. You can see how well all the colors blend together. The pink of the azaleas really pops and pulls together the placemats and the tissue flowers distributing that vivid color over the whole table.

I used green water and wine glasses to bring out more of the green of the various elements of the table setting. Plus they are pretty.

Another view of the table allows you to see the background. There wasn’t room to showcase all of the Birthday figures so I set up a vignette that could be seen from the table.

Here’s a closer look. You can really see the difference in the sizes of each figurine. The year 16 is the largest and is also a music box.

Each figurine comes with a tag that identifies it as a Joseph Original. The inside of the tag provides a little story about the figurine. They are nice to keep and revisit from time to time.

I love that you can use treasured pieces in a table setting for everyone to enjoy. It brings such sweet memories to the table to be shared with cherished Family and Friends.