It’s a weird kind of Easter this year, as the Easter Bunny observes social distancing. We will need to hop to it and make do with pretty pictures and virtual gatherings. And some non-virtual chocolate.
I set this table a few weeks ago, pre-pandemic, in blissful ignorance of the looming turn of events.
It’s a “posh” Easter table with antique Venetian glass compotes, candlesticks and hand-painted Moser goblets.
Not a table for eager, pint-size egg hunters. 🙂
The topmost plates are part of the Famille Rose Dinnerware Collection by Williams Sonoma.
The set has had something of an on-again-off-again record with Williams Sonoma but is still available.
I picked up two sets of the appetizer plates on a very deep discount at the end of the Easter season last year. Currently, they’re full price (?!), while the rest of the collection is offered at wildly divergent markdowns. I’m sure they understand their pricing strategy; it’s less apparent to me.
I have to say, though, the Famille Rose Easter appetizer plates inspired an elegant table.
They sit happily on top of vintage Dresden Flowers luncheon plates by Schumann and Bordallo Pinheiro Cabbage pattern dinner plates.
It’s a bit of an odd combination of casual modern, and elegant vintage, capped with a current interpretation of the priceless antique Chinese pattern, Famille Rose.
The antique Moser hand-painted glasses are from Elise Abrams Antiques.
The pink Venetian glass compotes and candlesticks are from there, too.
I’ve had them for years. Pre-grandchildren, they often graced our Christmas dining table. These days we tend to go for more child-friendly arrangements!
The Venetian glass compotes are quite delicate, so I was careful to choose light fillers, comprising hollow pastel-coloured speckled eggs and moss-covered grapevine balls.
The napkins are part of a tablecloth/napkin set I picked up in Italy a few years ago. The soft pink embroidered roses coordinated well with the early spring table setting.
Delicate porcelain placecard holders added another layer of floral detail.
I have sent off Easter parcels for the little girls, containing pretty spring dresses, some chocolate chicks and carrots, and eggs covered in brightly coloured foil. No doubt, the Easter Bunny will be doing his rounds, and egg hunts will be held on a smaller scale this year.
I will miss doing the big egg hunt at our house, complete with “weigh-off,” which is how we have divvied up the eggs for the last few years. Each diminutive egg seeker teams up with an adult (Aunt Kain is always in demand as the partner-in-crime). While Nana cooks waffles, bacon and Peameal Bacon Hash, the hunting pairs scour the house for eggs hidden by Papa Easter Bunny. The hunt ends with the serving of breakfast or the discovery of the last egg – whichever comes first.
After breakfast, each team’s eggs are weighed and the pair with the heaviest haul is declared the winner. We then divide up the spoils equally among the households. That way, the littlest participants still get a fighting chance at a fair-sized egg stash. (Can you tell I was the youngest child)?
I clearly remember one Easter – I must have been about 4 – sneaking downstairs early Sunday morning to find the house completely barren of eggs. Not a one. Bursting into tears, I flew upstairs to wake Peter, my 10-year old brother, and share the terrible news. Together, we woke our parents and reported the disaster. Peter suggested that perhaps I had been a little too early and that maybe the Easter Bunny was still coming. We could go to his room and play for a while. As we left my parent’s room, I heard my mother hiss to my father something about “forgot eggs”. Soon came the sound of the front door opening, followed by some thumping noises downstairs, as if a giant hare was hopping clumsily around the house. I heard Mum’s sewing basket squeak open and close. More thumping and banging. The front door opened and closed again. Peter and I dashed downstairs and started hunting. Rather than the eggs we expected to find, we found a rather motley collection of candy, consisting of orange and lemon jelly slices and some hard-boiled sweets from my Dad’s private sweet stash. Apparently, Easter had crept up unawares on the Bunny in our house that year!
I hope everybunny in your house has a very Happy Easter.
I’m sharing this post with Between Naps on the Porch.
This is so nice to see on a very dark and dreary day on Cape Cod. It’s very uplifting to see all the brightly colored dishes enhancing your beautiful Easter table. The dishes and glassware are so pretty. We too will miss sharing Easter with our granddaughters with all the excitement that goes with hunting eggs, candy,etc. We hope you both have a happy day and refrain from eating all the candy! Take care
I’ve confined the candy to some dark chocolate covered caramels, which is probably a good thing, because last year I overindulged in Cadbury Mini Eggs.
We will all next forward to next year, when we will be celebrating with family and friends once more. In the meantime, Happy Easter to you and Bill.
I saw this table setting last Easter and now Williams Sonoma has a great deal of my money! I love their Famille Rose pattern and have done two tables inspired by this—one for Eater and one for Valentine’s Day.—but mine do not compare with yours! It is possibly the most beautiful table setting I have ever seen. What a gift you have! Thank you for sharing your photos.
Gail, you are too kind. It’s a zany hobby of mine! But I really enjoy it and appreciate readers letting me know that they do, too!
I saw that Williams Sonoma extended the pattern to a blue version, which I’ve fallen for. I had so far restrained myself from acquiring the green dinner plates (love, love), but admit to indulging in the blue! 🙂
I bought a full set of these dishes, 8 table settings, plus the matching tablecloths in two sizes. I bought these lovelies last year from the Williams Sonoma flagship store on Union Square in San Francisco. What a fabulous store that is!
The dishes plus the tablecloth pattern plus Bordello Pinhiero charger plates are like a flower EXPLOSION! ………Like I fell flat face-down into a gorgeous English flower garden LOL!
Thank you for sharing photos of your GORGEOUS table. :0)
Oh, Elena, that sounds marvelous! Did you get the green or the pink dinner plates? Or some of each? It looks like a terrifically versatile set.
And yes, the Union Square store is just spectacular. What a place!
Happy, Happy Easter to you!
I bought some of each color, love them! I absolutely love the Union Square WS store!! Husband and I visit SF at least twice a year, and I never miss a chance to go to the WS store.
We were just in San Francisco in January! The day we flew home, the airport shut down the international wing because of the corona virus. That very same day we had gone to my favorite Chinatown neighborhood restaurant, The Capital on Clay Street. The restaurant itself would be in the category of “dive” LOL but the food is great and affordable, celebrities go out of their way to eat there. Chinatown was awesome, all kinds of Chinese New Year events and a dragon parade were going on. What a treat for us!
The day after we arrived home, the City of San Francisco shut down all public Chinese New Year’s events. The rest is history, sigh.
Haha – I’m still laughing about your Easter Bunny story! And your table is lovely! Thanks so much for the smile and the inspiration Helen. Hope you have a nice, if quieter, Easter. ❤️
You too, Barb! I hope you and yours have a lovely Easter.
Gorgeous table setting! Love hearing your stories. An update on Dundee would definitely lift my spirits in this depressing time! Happy and Blessed Easter.
His Handsomeness would be happy to feature in a blog. I think I’ll have to use video function on my iPhone and catch him while he is snagging my sweater to demand treats.
Happy Easter, Bev!
Dear Helen,
What inspiration! At 83 degrees around a tropical lagoon pool, it will be odd to set the table with Worcester Doreen, Versailles lace serviettes, and aubergine glass, but I’m gonna try it. lol. I couldn’t even breathe around your glasses–I might break one.
My virologist friend Dr. Ian Lipkin, consultant on the film Contagion, had a podcast the other day in which he said even a fast-tracked vaccine will take at least a year. I always loved working with him, because he made complex science so easy to understand. Sigh.
A very happy Easter to you and yours.
Yes, I think herd immunity is the way we are going to have to go. One step at a time, but we can’t stay locked up, for a year, I’m afraid.
Please send pics of your table!
Stunning compotes!! WOOOW!