Thanksgiving for Three (But Make it Blue and White)

This year, we decided to keep Thanksgiving simple and keep it just to the three of us. I have a week off from school, which means travel is feasible; however, my sibling-in-laws are coming over for Christmas and we are going up to the mountains then for some skiing, so a simple Thanksgiving was the best option. Come Christmas, I will be doing more après-skiing, as I still struggle with the mental block that comes with learning to ski as an adult. 

Moreover, traveling to Singapore and the Philippines over Fall Break this past October, while amazing, definitely took a lot out of me, so I was looking forward to relaxing on the couch and binge-watching "The Crown" and "The Mandalorian," the latter of which was pushed upon me by my 7th graders. I just caught up on all three episodes and I am enjoying it! What was hard was figuring out where the story placed in the larger Star Wars timeline, but I got it figured out (it falls after "The Empire Strikes Back," if I remember correctly. 

As for Black Friday shopping - I do more of that online since my birthday is next month and I take advantage of the sales so they are the treats to myself, as well as Christmas shopping for family (along with knitting many hats). 

Nevertheless, I could not pass up an opportunity to set the dining table. This was taken while the light in my house was still good so the food is not yet done (see my IG stories for that). 

Ginger Jar/Pitcher: HomeGoods * Drinks Glasses: Kate Spade Madison Square Double Old-Fashioned
(from our wedding, discontinued) * Runner/Napkin Rings: Target * Faux Floral: Michaels * Placemats: RL Home via HomeGoods * Napkins: Kate Spade via HomeGoods

I threw this together with the leftover ginger jars that I was not using for the holiday decor; I put the "Christmas edition" into the office for the afternoon, and set the table as you see it. 

When I usually use faux floral from Michaels, I never trim the ends; I fold the ends over and over each other on a loop, that way I can adjust the size or the height of the floral arrangement depending on what I am doing. I also do not fold them all the way either to the point that they break. 

I actually got the idea of the green and yellow flowers off an arrangement I saw in the Magnolia Home section of Target last Spring; the blue ranunculus was from the Fall floral collection and 80% off! I am slowly building a pretty large faux floral collection which means I can mix and match to suit the occasion. Next on the list is enough hydrangea to make a proportional arrangement for my larger ginger jars. 

As for the placemats and napkins, I had those from our first year in the house (I went on a bit of a spree at HomeGoods and bought ALL THE LINENS) and actually have the matching placemats to go with the napkins. This year, I thought I would mix it up; the yellow and cream in the napkins tie the runner and the floral arrangement nicely with the blue and white, I think. 

The brass items are pretty special; Mel and I got them from when we went to Greece in 2014 to see my family. Mel fell in love with the way traditional Greek coffee is prepared at a particular cafe on along the river in my dad's hometown of Florina (located in the mountains), so we purchased a traditional grinder (in the back) and the small pot (front), called a briki. 

We actually don't use either for their intended purpose but it serves as a nice memento of our trip (I do have a more "everyday" briki that I use to make Greek coffee when I have a minute to prepare it - let me know if you are interested!). I like that it adds a bit of texture to the table as well and compliments the rusticity (is that even a word? To me it is) of the table runner. 

Hope everyone had a Happy Thanksgiving!