Autumn Tribute To My Fisherman - Tablescape

I thought it would be nice to share a Tablescape from the past that I enjoyed creating for My Special Man a few years ago prior to his passing.  I have missed creating Tablescapes for us.  Perhaps, in the coming months I will become motivated especially since my many hours in the garden will not be necessary.

This is a Tablescape in recognition of my Special Friend and his devotion to me and his love of fishing. Again, I have had fun creating this table design by looking for interesting dishes that work with the fun items that I already have around the house or in my garage. There are so many items that work well with the theme of Autumn and the hobby of  Fishing.

My inspiration and starting point was this Mary Lake Thompson designed Fishing Creel dinner napkin that I found at a little gift shop. I enjoy the detail of her work.

There were a lot of items that I easily found that became a part of this tablescape. The Yellow Flatware has been in my picnic basket since the 70's. The dimensional brown leaf bowls jumped off a store shelf at reduced 50%, and that was after I thought I was finished! What can be easier than picking up pine cones from my driveway that have fallen from my pine tree. And, the lemons are from a bowl of lemons I keep on my kitchen counter.  And, then we have little guys with smiley faces that blend nice with the color scheme.   Salt anyone - Pepper anyone?

I had a nice surprise in my picnic basket when I saw my small Parquet Teak round cutting board by Dansk that I picked up from somewhere in the 70's, probably a yard sale. It's a very inventive design with a knife that slides into the side of the board. One side of the board is flat for cutting cheese and the other side is concave for cutting lemons/limes so the juice stays on the board - not on the table.

The woven brown and black wedge place mats are from Bed, Bath and Beyond, years ago. Maybe a dollar each!  The place mats were placed on a Burlap tablecloth followed by heavy Koyo Stone Ware brown/cream dinner plates that have a masculine presence.

My focus plate is the salad plate from Rivers Edge with a beautiful large trout encircled with a fishing rod and real.

The brown stemmed Glassware and candle sticks are from a nearby Thrift Store. Votives are from Dollar Store. Wine caddy is from my garage!

And, there must be a fishing Creel and fishing Reel thanks to Ebay.

Now, the Piece de resistance - a vintage amber cod-liver-oil bottle with the embossed image of a fisherman carrying a large fish.

It's just something a little different and adds a little whimsy!  The bottle is something I had in the garage that I picked up years ago at a yard sale. There are a lot of "bottle collectors" out there. Who would have thought that I would use the Cod-Liver-Oil Bottle some day in a Tablescape?

Can you see the fisherman embossed on the bottle?

And now for a little trivia about these Vintage Amber Bottles. (Source)   "The man stoops forward, glances out from under the brim of his hat, legs braced under the weight of his load. A thick rope, wrapped around his waist, shoulders, and hands, secures the load on his back—a huge fish with gaping mouth and glassy yellow eye, its tail sweeping the ground. A common codfish, the Gadus morhua is recognizable by the brown and amber spots on its body, the light stripe down its side, and the three dorsal fins. The man has few identifying features, but the words “SCOTT’S EMULSION” appear along the hem of his jacket."

"By 1900 'the man with the fish' was famous. His image was engraved and embossed on countless boxes and bottles of a cod-liver-oil preparation; printed in full color on advertising trade cards, booklets, and posters distributed around the globe; and in one instance painted several stories high on the side of a building in lower Manhattan. The man with the fish endures today, a testament to the persistence of an age-old tradition, even as scientific and commercial interest in cod-liver oil has waxed and waned."

I am thinking a nice autumn dinner of Sweet Spicy Country Style Pork Ribs and Beans along with some Crusty Bread. Some kind of a salad and maybe some homemade Spiced Pumpkin Cake with Vanilla Ice Cream.

I believe the table looks quite lovely.   And, the dinner was great.

I was amused with a definition of Tablescaping that I recently read. It was something like - Tablescaping is an event where grownups play with dishes and then take photos of what they have created to post on their blogs. Don't you just love it?

I wrote in an earlier post about how my love of dishes started when I was a very little girl. I guess some of us just never grow out of it! 

Thanks for stopping by and sharing my Tablescape from the past with me.  I really miss My Special Man.  But, I am thankful that he does not have to live through the horrible world events of the recent past.  Blessings to all.

Mary