Beautiful Shabbos Tables
By Rivka Slatkin
Of www.jewishlifeorganized.com
About Rivka Slatkin, “Jewish Life Organizer”
Rivka Slatkin, “Jewish Life Organizer”, helps new Jewish
families get organized to make Shabbos and Yom Tov
simple and beautiful, decreasing the stress and overwhelm
that often is prevalent.
She made it her mission to teach others what she worked so
hard to learn on her own, years ago, not having anyone
teaching her successful homemaking methods. Rivka does
not want others to feel alone or “inadequate” the way she
did, when going about her learning curve.
She offers tutorials, reports, teleclasses, articles, workshops, and personal
consulting that help people just like you learn step-by-step methods that GETS
RESULTS for their homes. You can learn more about these terrific resources at
http://www.jewishlifeorganized.com.
For FREE tips and to be notified of upcoming teleclasses and workshops with
The Jewish Life Organizer, sign up for Rivka’s monthly e-zine Jewish Holiday
Reminder Service at
www.jewishlifeorganized.com.
She's appeared as a guest speaker for various Jewish organizations, has been
interviewed by The Baltimore Jewish Times and has been featured in dozens
of online and print publications.
Rivka’s articles on Jewish life organizing, specific holiday planning tips, and
managing your time are published regularly in Jewish magazines and
newspapers and in hundreds of organizing sites on the Web.
I. Section One
A. Choose an inspirational object
You don’t have to have a lot of money or spend a lot to make your Shabbos table
look gorgeous. Work with what you have. The secret is to accentuate what you
have and bring out the possibilities you did not even knew existed.
Let’s start with what you already own. A decorator always builds his/her room
from an inspirational object; a rug, a piece of art. Let’s find our own
inspirational piece to create our Shabbos Table masterpiece.
Look around your house and find at least 1 object you love. It doesn’t matter how
big or small it is, we just want to understand more about why you love it. We
need inspiration to build from and we don’t want to make mistake purchases.
Begin by understanding why you were initially attracted to these pieces. Did you
love the:
• Price?
• Color?
• Look and style?
• Finish and shine?
• Newness or oldness?
• Family history and sentiment around it?
The reason I ask. “Why?” is that understanding your style is the first step to
ascertaining what you love to be surrounded with. When I go into a home to
decorate it, lots of times I hear the homeowner saying, “I don’t know what I like. I
don’t really have any preferences.”
I don’t take that at face value. I work hard to get to the bottom of what they are
saying. Sometimes I have to actually bring home a rug or a picture so I can really
get a feel for if they love the piece or hate it. After I bring a few pieces into the
home, the homeowners begin to warm up to the questions. “I don’t really like that
shag rug, it looks so outdated. That combination of blue and brown looks like my
grandmother’s house did in the 80s.”
Or, I’ll walk around the home and ask, “What do you love in your home? Your
dishes, your antique chest?” Sometimes I get a straight answer and sometimes I
do not.
If you currently feel that you do not really know what you love, take this
decorating quiz offered to you by House Beautiful. It is really easy and will guide
us towards the decorating era that you click with best.
If you already have spent some time decorating or are interested in it, take the
next decorating quiz to test your decorating IQ.
After we figure out your decorating style, then we can go through your house and
work with what fits, collect other pieces to finish the look, and finally, set up your
Shabbos table.
B. Choose a Decorating Style
I hope by now you have a sense of what decorating styles are out there. A very
basic list of styles which stem from culture and time period are:
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•
•
•
Formal
Contemporary
Casual
Traditional
Read over the following information, and notice which picture pulls you in.
Formal
For an Elegant and Luxurious
Interior
If you love the look of elegant Ritz-Carlton hotels or
public buildings such as the White House, you're
probably drawn to their formal style of decorating.
In a formal style interior, a central focal point draws the eye. Objects are also
more ornate and gilded.
If your table setting taste is formal, give your dining room that formal look as well
with highly polished woods, glistening mirrors, luxurious and sensual fabrics,
sparkling crystal chandeliers and wall sconces, carved mirrorsoriental rugs,
highly polished brasshardware, gold-leafed accessories, tassels and fringe, oil
paintings, dramatic draperies with valances, leather and porcelain accessories,
and antique furniture.
A dining room is the perfect place to introduce a formal look. Choose from a wide
range of elegant and beautiful china, crystal, and silver. A simple gold-banded
dinner plate set atop elegant linens with sparkling silver flatware and beautiful cut
crystal stemware creates a perfect formal setting for dining.
Having a formal dining room as the backdrop for your formal table is the best way
to extend your look.
Contemporary
Be Right Up to Date
Current, modern, of today, right now. If
that sounds like you, then you might like a
contemporary style of decorating.
Fundamentally, simplicity, subtle
sophistication, texture and clean lines
help to define contemporary decorating on
the table.
Neutrals, black, and white are the main
colors in contemporary interiors. So for your
dining room, if the walls are painted in a
basic neutral, you have a wonderful backdrop for bold colored accessories. If a
wall is a bright, bold color, neutrals should be used everywhere else.
In contemporary interiors, less is more. Each piece stands out as individual
and unique.
Smooth, clean, geometric shapes in black, white, or other neutral tones for the
tableware will give you the contemporary look you want. Cover the table in a
neutral, black, or bold fabric. A tablecloth in a natural look (wool, cotton, linen,
silk, jute) adds textural appeal.
Contemporary pieces are simple and uncluttered, without curves or carved
details. That means exposed legs, no skirt, trim, fringe, or tassels.
You can always add a splash of color in one or two pieces or in the carpet on
your floor.
Set your table with natural materials like metal, stone, and opaque or clear
glass. There are a number of geometric shapes, bold colors, and interesting
styles available. Bring in texture with silverware, napkins, placemats and
centerpieces. The texture of the tablecloth and linens will soften and warm up the
space.
Don't clutter the room with collections or too many pieces. Open space is just
as, if not more, important as the pieces you put in the space.
Casual
The Focus is on Comfort
Do you long for a casual style room that is
homey, warm, comfortable, and inviting?
Who doesn't want to be comfortable in their
own home? If you want to set a casual style dining room table, give your dining
room that same casual look.
Avoid perfect symmetry. Details are simple, and elements are rectangular or
softly curved and have a touch of whimsical.
Use an old or reconstructed birdhouse or wooden candlestick for a centerpiece,
stack pieces of old luggage for a side table.
For special accents on the table, add ruffles, pleats, buttons, ribbon, or cording.
Contrasting colored details incorporate the full range of colors in the room.
In the dining room, pieces are often long, large, and horizontal, rather than
vertical and tall and petite. Tables are chunky and of a large scale, which gives a
comfortable feeling, while providing space for storage and spreading out. This
helps to create a restful look.
A dining room decorated in a casual style is the perfect place for found items of
wicker, iron, and rattan, or flea market finds. Old antiques fit in well.
Light woods are often used for furniture pieces and wood flooring. Oak and
pine are the most popular, either painted or finished with a flat, low luster varnish
to protect the grain.
Hammered iron, antiqued brass, wrough iron, porcelain, or carved wood are used
for the hardware on doors and drawers.
Collections of treasured or found items are often arranged to add the casual
look. The shelf of a bookcase or corner tabletop is the perfect place for an
arrangement of treasures.
Windowcoverings are simple (not dressy) with a touch of whimsical. Add a
simple swag of fabric or fabric tie-backs if you must.
Rooms decorated in a casual style have light fixtures made of wrought iron, tin,
pewter, or wood. Simple chandeliers look old in wrought iron or antiqued metals.
Or electrify a hanging pan rack or hang a rack of antlers.
The dining table of a room decorated in a casual style would be set with rugged
stoneware, textured woven or fabric placemats, coordinated napkins, heavy
glasses, stainless flatware, wooden bowls, and accessories of iron or pewter.
The colors of the table should enhance the theme of the room, using either bold
floral patterns, plain pieces, or soft, comfortable pastels.
Keep in mind that a room decorated in a causal style should be:
•
•
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•
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comfortable, homey, welcoming, and sturdy.
Fabrics should be soft and textured.
Furniture is long, overstuffed, and low.
Surfaces worn and rugged.
Accessories are old and rustic.
A touch of whimsy is in order.
Traditional
Traditional style interiors are
comforting and classic. You may
have grown up in a home that was
decorated with traditional style
furnishings.
There is nothing wild or chaotic in a
traditional room. It is calm, orderly,
and can be somewhat predictable.
Furnishings might look a bit outdated
to some, while others will enjoy an
interior that embraces the benefits of
classic styling.
Symmetry is very important in traditional decorating.
The dining room in a traditional home is generally a separate room, often with
some built-in corner cabinets for china storage. A large area rug sits on top of a
hardwood floor. The table is rectangular with a set of matched chairs placed
evenly around the perimeter. A matching sideboard, buffet, or china cabinet is
centered on one wall.
Traditional dining rooms can show off a variety of china, glassware, and silver.
Plates might be a classic gold-rimmed style or a simple floral design. Use either
beautiful tablecloths or pretty fabric placemats and napkins.
Whew! Congratulations on reading through all the material above. Consider
yourself a graduate of Decorating Styles University. Now that you are familiar
with decorating styles, you can actually label the pieces in your home that you
love according to a decorating style. You won’t make new purchase mistakes
because you know what your decorating preferences are.
Do you love your ornate, crystal glasses with the gold rims? After reading the
Formal section, could you attribute your love of your crystal glasses with a
leaning towards Formal style decorating?
What other pieces in your home do you love? Choose one or two, understand
what decorating style it is, and then we can start finding more pieces in that style.
Homework Assignment:
1. Find an object in your home you love; a vase, crystal china, a mug, a piece of
furniture, anything. Name it.
_______________________________________________________
2. What do you love about it (i.e., colors, shape, texture)?
________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________
________________________
3. Which decorating style category do you think it falls under: formal, casual,
contemporary, or traditional?
________________________________________________________________
C. Choose a Color
Do you have preferences about how a Shabbos table should be set? It would be
important to take those into consideration if you do.
For instance, my husband insists on using a white tablecloth for Shabbos. Not
cream, not gold, white. So I work around it, after all white is neutral so anything
can work with it.
Combine your preferences with the decorating style you gravitate towards.
Put that together and you know half of what you need for a gorgeous Shabbos
table.
What’s the other half? COLOR! My favorite. Why is it so important? You already
have serving pieces and china, you can’t change the colors of what you use?
It is worth your effort to find out what colors you really love deep down inside.
You’ll notice a shift in your life if you are surrounded by (at least some!) things
that reflect your true color personality. I know a woman whose husband insisted
on having everything be brown in the house. He only wanted brown furniture and
accessories. She hated it, resented it, and I won’t tell you the rest of the dirty
details because they are just too negative.
Let’s find out what colors you love so your Shabbos table never is thrown
together haphazardly. We’ll highlight your favorite colors by adding a few
accessories and by gathering up what you already have and grouping them it
new ways.
Take this color quiz to find out what colors work best with your personality and
your preferences. Trust me, it makes all the difference.
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If you’ve never had your personal colors done, I recommend it highly. Not only is
it a fabulous organizing tool- you’ll know what clothes work best on you and your
closet will no longer be cluttered up with unflattering clothes-but you will look
better.
You know when you are wearing a certain item from your closet and you get so
many compliments about it? That means you are on the right track color wise. I
recommend this particular website to look at getting your colors done. There is a
free color tool, click here to check it out.
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Did you come up with at least 2 colors that you love from the quiz? Great. If not,
go back and take the quiz.
Another way of choosing gorgeous colors is to look frequently at home
decorating magazines. I love House beautiful, Oprah at Home, and Better Homes
and Gardens.
I recently noticed that no matter what issue magazine I am looking at, the
pictures I tend to really love all have a similar color scheme or hue in them.
That’s because each of us naturally gravitate towards certain colors.
Begin to notice what colors seem to pull you.
Write them down so we can later create a beautiful Shabbos table color scheme.
The Colors and Suggestions I got from the Color Quiz:
________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________
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“What about the rest of the family”, you may ask? After all, you are only one
person, perhaps the one in charge of setting the Shabbos table. Are others going
to hate your personal color preferences? Are they going to start feeling resentful
and hating your choice? The answer is No.
We are not going to be making drastic changes in how you currently do things.
Only spicing them up a bit, adding excitement and anticipation to your regular
Shabbos preparations. Plus, the colors will change a bit if you like from week to
week or month to month. Nothing is set in stone. It will be easy to change color
schemes whenever you or a family member so desires.
One last comment- “If Momma ain’t happy, no one will be happy.” I find this to be
a true statement. If you are the one in charge of the Shabbos preparations, YOU
are the one that needs to feel happy with regards to doing so, not resentful or
negative. So if you are happy, your positive feelings will extend to everyone else
sitting at your beautiful table, permeating the energy and making it a pleasant
atmosphere. With that kind of atmosphere, no one notices a subtle color choice!
Attractive Color Combinations
You may have selected at least 2 favorite colors, or perhaps you love all colors
and couldn’t narrow your choices down! What I’ve done for you is provide you
with attractive color combinations. Most color combinations will start with 2 colors
and sometimes a 3rd or 4th color will just seem to make
sense with what you already own in terms of
dinnerware or servingware. Nevertheless, I want you to
have a list of great color combinations you can
reference anytime.
1. Pale Blue and a Neutral
Soft, pale blues offer a soothing look for any
room. It’s a color that works well with white, cream, tan, black, and brown,
as well as sparkling accents of silver, glass, and white ironstone.
2. Pink and Chocolate Brown
3. Tan and Black
Neutral tans (anything from barely-there taupe to a deep golden beige)
gain added punch as a background for trendy black furnishings. Lighten
things up with creamy ivory trim and lots of gleaming accents in ivory,
silver or gold.
4. Golden Yellow and White
A few darker accents in aged bronze, dark wood, or even a bit of black
add a note of elegance.
5. Pale Sage Green and Walnut
6. Navy Blue and White
Classically nautical, blue and white
schemes can work with nearly any
theme or style of furniture. Try the color
pair with red on a porch, with zesty
orange in a contemporary living room,
with yellow in a kitchen, or with soft
green in a bedroom.
7. Wild Brights
Punch up your interiors with shots of
summer color: kiwi green, ocean aqua,
hot pink, and fresh-squeezed orange.
8. Pale Tan and Any Pastel
Start with your favorite pastel (light pink,
peach, butter, blue, or green) and
accent with doses of light camel tan and whites. This scheme can be a
good compromise when she wants color and he wants neutrals.
9. Golden Yellow and Red
10. Tone-on-Tone
Any color is elevated to new radiance when done in a tone-on-tone
scheme. It could be wall stripes in identical colors but in 2 paint finishes
(matte vs. satin), or a fabric or wallpaper that shows off a damask pattern
over a similarly-colored background. The effect is soothing, elegant, and
versatile. (About Interior Decorating)
11. Aqua and Red
12. Ivory and Mocha
13. fuchia and orange
14. Blue and brown
15. black and fuchia
16. lime green and hot pink
17. Pink with celadon green
18. Soft sage or celadon green with
deep or pale yellow, coral for extra
zip
19. Soft Lavender with darker purple
or magenta, to really
pop
20. Platinum with almost any shade of lavender or purple
21. Robin's egg blue with a cheerful yellow or cream
22. Shades of orange with blue (my favorite)
23. Brown, red, green and pink
24. Brown and White
How are these great color combinations thought of so I can come up with
my own? The way great color combinations are put
together is through the use of the color wheel. The color
wheel generally shows the pure hues of colors: red, blue,
and green. In decorating, however, you're more likely to be
using tints (lighter values) and tones (also known as
shades) that are darker values of a color. For example, you
may not use an intense green in a room; you're more likely
to go with a soft sage or a deep hunter green instead.
For those of us who haven’t graduated from design school,
the task of getting everything coordinated can seem a bit
daunting. What colors should be chosen? How can these
colors be used for the best effect? For reference purposes, a simple color wheel
goes from yellow to orange to red to violet to blue to green to yellow, with other
hues in between. Below is a quick list of color schemes used by designers that
will help you achieve visual balance in your decorations.
Monochromatic:
One base color is
used throughout,
but there are
several different
hues and tones
present. For
instance, you may
choose blue as your
color. The table can
vary in color from
navy to periwinkle
to powder blue and
have a stunning
visual effect through
this color scheme.
Adjacent:
Two or three colors
are chosen that are
adjacent to the
color wheel. An
example of this is to
have yellow, yellowgreen and green
tones throughout
the table.
Triadic: Three
colors are used, that
are equidistant from
each other on the
color wheel. For
instance, you may
choose yellow, blue
and red for your
colors.
Complementary:
This scheme is very
popular. Two colors
are chosen that are
opposite on the
color wheel. Two
examples are using
red and green or
using violet and
yellow. (Worqx.com)
Tips for using the Color Wheel:
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•
You’ll want to choose a dominant color for your table that is present in
most of the table. The other colors you choose should be accents.
The color wheel also helps you identify warm and cool hues.
Half of the color wheel, from red to yellow-green, is considered warm,
stimulating, and advancing. Such a description reflects emotional
associations (the sun looks yellow, and fire is orange and red, for
example), but it has a basis in physiology: The eye can't bring the red and
purple ends of the spectrum into focus at the same time, so it perceives
red to be nearer or advancing.
The other half of the wheel is described as cool; these colors generally
appear to recede. Thus a small room may benefit from visually opening up
the walls with a cool, or receding, paint color such as blue, green, or
purple.
TIP: A warm color scheme needs a dollop of a cool hue to feel wellrounded and complete; think of a green plant in a yellow room.
TIP: A cool scheme needs a jolt of warmth to liven it up; thus a shot of red
will perk up a room done in blue and white.
•
Green and purple may seem to either advance or recede, depending on
the context; for that reason, some interior designers consider them
neutrals that can go with any color.
Color Mood Chart
Pink: soothes, acquiesces; promotes affability and affection.
Yellow: expands, cheers; increases energy.
White: purifies, energizes, unifies; in combination, enlivens all other colors.
Black: disciplines, authorizes, strengthens; encourages independence.
Orange: cheers, commands; stimulates appetites, conversation, and charity.
Red: empowers, stimulates, dramatizes, competes; symbolizes passion.
Green: balances, normalizes, refreshes; encourages emotional growth.
Purple: comforts, spiritualizes; creates mystery and draws out intuition.
Blue: relaxes, refreshes, cools; produces tranquil feelings and peaceful
moods.
You’ve chosen colors, decorating styles, and inspirational objects. You know how
to create an attractive color combination, what moods colors can create and
about the color wheel.
Congratulations! You are finished with Section One- Choosing. Let’s move on to
Section Two- Collecting.
II. Section Two
A. Collect and Categorize
Can you guess what the next step is? That’s right. You need to go around your
home and categorize your pieces according to color.
The easiest way to do this is first, to make sure you have enough room to store
all of your pieces. You probably have a china hutch or dining room server/buffet
that you use now. You may find that when you take everything out and sort
according to color, there is no more room!
Create an “entertaining closet” out of a closet in your home that gets minimal use
(yeah right) or by setting up a small storage area in your office or basement that
holds Shabbos table overflow. Say you have those cute little wine necklaces or
extra benchers, colored glasses and chargers, colored napkins and other
tablecloths.
If you are familiar with my organizing advice both on Cluborganized.com and
Jewishlifeorganized.com, you’ll know that I ALWAYS recommend using walls for
storage. Not necessarily creating built ins, but maximizing storage by hanging
shelves or cabinets on the wall instead of finding extra floor space around for yet
another piece of furniture.
Find a way to contain the overflow from entertaining and make it a pleasant work
space.
The SPACE Formula
But before you run out and by storage cabinets, we FIRST must Sort. Do you
know Julie Morgenstern’s SPACE formula when tackling any organizing job?
S-Sort
P-Purge
A-Assign a Home
C-Containerize
E-Equalize
Unfortuately, finding great containers is only the 4th step in the formula. That’s
because, you wouldn’t want to go buy storage before you even know how much
you have to store!
I love it that the first step, the one we are up to now, is Sorting. I love it because
it’s a no brainer. You don’t have to think- “Well, should I keep this? Do I use it?
What should I do with it?” All you have to do is sort according to like items.
Take everything out of your dining room hutch and server, wherever you have
Shabbos table dishes and serving pieces. Work with a blank slate.
Sort all of your white linens together, all of your white dishes, all of your patterned
china, and work according to color. All of your servingware that is the same color,
put in a group now in your “staging” area (whatever flat surface you are sorting
everything on).
Are you done? Is everything sorted according to color? Good. Feeling
overwhelmed? Don’t. We are almost there.
If there is anything that is broken, cracked, chipped and you haven’t repaired it in
years, purge it. Donate it. Remember, we are aiming to create a spectacular
Shabbos table, not a hodgepodge (unless you like country casual style!).
Once you’ve chosen your best pieces, it is time now to Assign a Home. Decide
where everything will go. If you are lucky and have a closet solely devoted to
entertaining, I recommend you put items back according to color or color
scheme. That means, all of your white dishes go on one shelf and perhaps if you
like contemporary decorating styles, you also place your chocolate brown dishes
on the same shelf, signaling what your favorite color scheme is.
If you decide to put items back according to a color scheme, what if you wish to
change color schemes around so the white dishes would go with the black ones
too?
That leads us to the next section, which is Coordinate.
III. Section Three
A. Coordinate
I recommend you make a list of color combinations and the pieces that go
along with them.
In my own palm pilot, I have a list that looks like this:
4 color combination
Brown, White, Green, Silver
-silver bowl from sue
-brown everyday fleshig dishes
-chrome pedestal bowl
-white china teapot
-silver coaster
-brown everyday flesishig mugs
-green salad bowl
3 color combination
Blue, Gold/Amber, and Red
Blue Shabbos China
Amber color glasses
Blue Kiddush cups
Amber Chargers
Amber Water Pitcher
Red Mayim Acharonim
Red cake stand
Keep your own list, perhaps taped to the inside of your entertaining closet. So,
even though the white dishes may be next to the brown ones, when you look at
your list, you will know what other color combinations the white dishes can go
with.
Here’s a handy chart for you do to this.
Shabbos Table Color Combinations
1. _________ + _________+ __________
Pieces that fit into the collection:
_________________________________________
_________________________________________
_________________________________________
_________________________________________
_________________________________________
_________________________________________
_________________________________________
___________________________________
2. _________ + _________+ __________
Pieces that fit into the collection:
_________________________________________
_________________________________________
_________________________________________
_________________________________________
_________________________________________
_________________________________________
_________________________________________
___________________________________
3. _________ + _________+ __________
Pieces that fit into the collection:
_________________________________________
_________________________________________
_________________________________________
_______________
Make notes on your list if there is a particular color combination you loved or if
you purchased a new piece. Keep it updated.
Back to the SPACE formula, we’ve actually covered the last 2 steps.
Containerize is finding the right container for you items. As far as entertaining
goes, you may have a silverware chest or caddy, that would be a container,
or the plastic dish protector covers you’ve seen to protect your dishes. Label
everything clearly so you can follow the next step, Equalize.
Equalize means maintaining, and with your checklist above, I know you will
have no problem maintaining order in your entertaining closet because of the
excitement of regularly rotating your pieces.
You may decide to shop around to add to your collection. Before you add
pieces, do make sure you’ve explored your entire house from top to bottom
so you do not buy pieces you do not need or may already have. When I buy
something new, I try to donate the same number of items bought. So if you
bought 2 new skirts, try to weed out 2 items from your closet to prevent
excessive clutter. Do the same with entertaining pieces.
Make copies of your Shabbos table color combinations list and keep it in your
purse at all times. Or get it on your Palm Pilot. So when you are out shopping
and you see a great piece and wonder if it would “go” in your collection, you
will know the answer.
IV. Section Four
A. Specific Shabbos Table Suggestions
If you have been wishing that I would go through the specifics of setting your
Shabbos table and provide you with suggestions, now is the time!
Let’s take the Shabbos table apart, piece by piece, and talk about how you
can give it a pop!
Dining Room Chairs
You probably already have a set of dining room chairs. You can give them a
facelift by reupholstering them yourselves. It is not too hard to do that, do a
search for instructions on google.
Or, you can buy inexpensive dining room chair covers special for Shabbos.
Or, combine looks. Keep two upholstered head chairs, and throw chair covers
over the other chairs. This is great especially if you have young children.
For a very fancy dinner, tie a bow around the
back of each chair with an extra piece of fabric or
with a gauzy type of material. This is nice for a
Sheva Brachos.
If you have ladder back chairs chairs with room to place tie back cushions,
find some with a great pattern. You can always take them off to change looks
around and it would be great if you found patterns that go with your favorite
color combination.
Tablecloths
I mentioned before that
my husband request that
we stick with a white
tablecloth only for
Shabbos. You may or
may not feel the same
way. If you are using
only a white tablecloth,
that is perfectly fine and
special for Shabbos.
You can dress up the
white tablecloth with an
overlay, a sheer type of
material that is also
white or cream. This
adds texture and depth to the table, without tampering with your family’s
preference for a white Shabbos tablecloth.
You can also place a table runner on the top of your white
tablecloth going horizontally or vertically on the table.
Place Settings
Now that you are decided on your tablecloth “look”, let’s go over your actual
place setting. I’m talking about the china, the glasses, and silverware.
My first question to you is: Do you currently love your china? If you don’t
particularly like your china pattern, I am not going to tell you to replace the
set. Replacing your china pattern can certainly be expensive and may not be
an appropriate goal for you.
Good news! You can update your china pattern and detract from the aspects
of the pattern that you do not care for.
What colors are in your pattern? White with a gold rim? Is there any black?
Find a complimentary color that is in your pattern currently. It does not have
to be a very bright color or an obvious color. Just find it.
Got that second color? If not, go back to the color wheel and list of sample
color schemes to pick out a secondary color.
Once you have your secondary
color, look around your home to
see if you have any china dishes
of that color. If not, go find a few
dessert dishes or fish plates that
are of the second color.
Here is an example. Look at how
the red heart shaped plate was
pulled out of the original dinner
plate colors. Red is not even the
main color of that dinner plate but
it was pulled out and
emphasized, detracting from the
old china pattern.
Once you have your second
color, continue to optimize it by
adding a couple of other pieces.
How about drinking glasses? If
you already use a set of clear
glasses, add a colored wine glass for kiddush or lechayims. Add colored
napkins, and purchase flowers for your table that bring out that secondary
color.
You won’t even recognize your old pattern anymore!
I recently bought a cake tray and mayim acharonim
(tea for one) to compliment my blue and gold
patterned china. I pulled out the gold rim from my
china and picked an amber color as my secondary
color. I threw red in there.
Here is a picture of my china- blue and gold. How did
I get the red in there? I started accenting the gold and decided I wanted a third
color.
I am really happy with my Gold, Blue, and Red
setup. I’ve added amber glasses and fish plates,
blue kiddush cups from the dollar store and a
couple of red pieces, shown to you in the pictures.
We are really happy with the results.
Centerpieces
The last step and perhaps the most important is
the centerpiece. The centerpiece ties everything
together. It does not have to be elaborate.
Sometimes I purchase flowers that compliment my color scheme, other times
I bring dessert out on a tiered cake stand.
The purpose of a centerpiece is to provide the eye with a focal point to “rest”
on. You will know when you go into a room and your eye has no place to rest.
Similarly, with a table setting, if everything is flat against the tablecloth, there
is really nowhere for your eye to rest. The eye travels from plate to plate and
has nowhere to stop.
Add something simple, a vase with flowers. Your husband may already bring
you flowers home for Shabbos. Tell him what colors you like. Or a nice tall
water pitcher. Or put your tall candlesticks on the table. Anything to bring your
eye upwards.
Napkins
I’ve had a hard time finding napkins that are easy to wash with no ironing. If
you find some, please let me know where you did!
Cloth napkins are always nice. Go with a dark color to hide stains and use a
color that can go with almost any color scheme you pick.
For napkin rings, keep a variety of styles if you like, or just tie up napkins with
a ribbon or piece of raffia or use a jewelry pin. For napkin folding ideas, go to
http://www.table-settings-with-pictures.com/napkin-folding.html.
*******************************************************************
I hope you’ve enjoyed the Shabbos Table course as much as I
did writing it. I would love to hear what inspired you from this
course and what you implemented into your Shabbos table.
Send me a picture or let me know what I can do to further
assist you in your Beautifying project! Good Shabbos!
Make Money with Beautiful Shabbos
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