Plate Paradise Found...or... Come to Mama!

I was Christmas shopping at the outlet mall when I came upon a sight that made my heart stop...plates edged with grapes! Now if you read my very first post, you may remember that my whole addiction came from a beautiful set of Limoges china that I had to leave behind when I left France. And while these plates are not identical because the grapes and grapevines are larger, it's the closest I've seen. Even better, they were on clearance AND I had a 15% off coupon. So these babies jumped in my trunk before I could stop them!

They are Oneida "Chardonnay" from their casual settings. I bought two sets, so I now have 8 dinner plates, salad/dessert plates, soup bowls and mugs. I only paid $72...that's $9 per place setting! Pretty good, huh? My old stoneware is hitting the storage closet and making room for my new babies!

Now, I'm not claiming that this is a tablescape, so don't judge it by those standards. This is more like show and tell. I 'm not very talented in the tablescape department since many of my plates wind up on the wall. At last count I had 59 of them up there and I'm looking for a place for #60 so I'll have an even number. That doesn't even count the ones you see in the hutch. But...I digress...let me show you the detail on my new babies...

Here's the soup bowl...lovin' those grapes. That's my mom's silverware..."Silver Flutes" by Towle. My service is pewter because that was the style when I got married. I'll show it to you sometime.

Here's the dessert/salad plate. See...I told you this isn't a tablescape. I think I'm too much of a purist to excel in that department. I'm going to have to learn to be less matchy-matchy.

And here's the dinner plate. Don't you love them?

I just love grapes! I think I'd buy almost anything if you put grapes on it.

Look at the leaves! You can even see the veins.

And look at the little tendrils! They even go down onto the plate. I tried to take a picture so you could see, but it didn't work very well. Can you see?

I think part of my love for grapes comes from this...my mom's soup tureen. It was always on the dining room table when I was growing up in the '50's. Isn't it beautiful? I have since seen one in an antique market, but it didn't have the ladle.

I love how the knob looks like a bunch of grapes. Isn't it wonderful?

And look at the handles...they look like grapevines! Don't you love it?

I have saved the best for last, but I am sure you saw it coming...look at how my new babies match my mom's soup tureen!! I am so excited! These guys are not going on the wall...we are going to actually eat from them. As my friend who was with me when I bought them said, "What a novel idea!"