Six In The City....San Francisco

Welcome to my table setting contribution to this week's Tablescape Thursdays which is hosted by Susan of Between Naps On The Porch.

Please visit BNOTP for more creative and unique table arrangements submitted by her readers and subscribers.

The location for this mocked (but at least with real flowers ;-) ) table setting for a party of 6 is on the balcony of the San Francisco 2 bedroom condo we're currently renting for the duration of my partner Dan's twin sister Dana's hospitalization at the UCSF Medical Center.


Since the time Dana was first admitted back on March 8th of this year, she has been doing and is continuing to progress remarkably well.

Both her physical and speech therapy show great improvement each week. Thank you to those that continue to keep her in your thoughts and prayers.

The beautiful china in this setting belong to the condominium owners.
The collection is Viana by Vista Alegre, a porcelain manufacturer located in Portugal.

Awhile back I created another tablescape inside the condo but with dishes purchased from a nearby Ross store that I thought (or, perhaps I'm just unwilling to admit I couldn't figure out how to successfully incorporate this traditional classic pattern into the condo's very contemporary decor) would complement the contemporary space better.

I like this set quite a bit and its vibrant blue & yellow colors on the crisp white porcelain backdrop inspired me to arrange them outside on the balcony.

The silver gray tablecloth is actually a pair of the homeowner's drapery panels I borrowed from one of the bedrooms(yes, I often have behind the scenes improvisations) Hopefully, if they (homeowners) come across this post they wont be unhappy about my use of their window coverings.


Of course, this was a mocked setting so actual food and beverages never made it to the table.

My only personal addition to the table was the blue runner I picked up from the nearby Supermarket for $2.75 and the Hydrangeas & miniature mums from Costco for $18.00.

Because I underestimated the amount of flowers I actually needed, I ended up picking apart the few hydrangeas I had to help conceal the floral foam.

The porcelain tureen used for the floral centerpiece is by Lynn Chase Designs.

It's from the Costa Azzurra collection.

Well, that's it for this submission for Tablescape Thursdays. I hope you enjoyed the photos and thank you for stopping by. Please don't forget to stop by Between Naps On The Porch for more table settings.

Vibram Five Fingers....The Foot Glove

I'm writing this from an 8th floor waiting room at the UCSF hospital as the nursing staff attend to Dan's twin sister Dana. I found a February 2010 Time magazine with an article about the Vibram Five Fingers, a rubber foot glove.

Since first spotting a pair of these on the streets of San Francisco about 3 weeks ago, I cannot seem to go anywhere these days without seeing or reading about these gloves.

I ran into a neighbor walking the park with pair a week and a half ago. She just loves them. A student of Dan's showed up to class wearing a pair a week ago who says they are great for sports.

According to the Times article, the Tarahumara Indians of Mexico run ultra marathons barefoot or very thin rubber sandals. Apparently, this is their endorsement of this new glove sensation.

I will have to stop by a nearby REI store to try on a pair which costs from $85.00 to $110.00.

P.S. Dana is making remarkable progress. Last week she was moved from the ICU to the facility's step down unit and is currently undergoing physical therapy. A heartfelt thank you to everyone for your continued support and prayers.

An Inexpensive IKEA For A Room Makeover With Help From Martha

Several weeks ago, I started a weekend room makeover project which I haven't had a chance to photograph and share on my blog until now. This is an upstairs spare room that has served as our guest bedroom. Unfortunately, we usually only have guests spend a night or 2 maybe 3 times a year. So, naturally, I thought it made sense to redo the room to allow for daily use as well as continue to offer overnight accommodations for guests.

I got rid of the 4 poster queen size bed and replaced it with an IKEA sofa bed. We kept the Tempur-pedic mattress overlay for added comfort to the new sofa bed.

The child's chairs and coffee table were purchased from IKEA as well. The outdoor area rug from Ballard Designs is perfect for standing up to messy spills made during playtime.

The blackboard easel is yet another IKEA find. The storage benches are from the Martha Stewart Living Collection for Home Depot. I thought they were a great bargain at $68.87 each which included the cushion. The canvas storage bins were sold separately with up to 16 great color choices at $6.87 each. There are plenty of wicker boxes and storage bins in the room for all of little Daniel's toys.

The Little American's cooking corner also from IKEA.

Because this was also a spare guest room, I made an effort to minimize the numerous bold colors typically found in children s play rooms. Instead I opted for a more selected and coordinated color palette that I thought would appeal to guests of all ages.

Have a happy Easter holiday weekend!