Sunday, May 4, 2014

Hummingbird Tablescape


When Hummingbirds Come Home
May 3rd, 2014

Our hummingbirds returned to the home of their birth on April 29th this year. They came right up to our patio door and hovered there until my husband came to the window and acknowledged that they were home. Now it certainly is possible that they are some strangers hummingbirds, but I personally think they are the youngsters that  left here last September to spend the winter South of the border.  Instinct has brought them home to have families of their own.  They will be safe and well fed (and well loved).
I have been tracking the migration progress of the Ruby Throat Hummingbirds since the beginning of March.  You can follow the progress of the Ruby-throat Hummingbird migration at this site  Learner.org Ruby -throated Hummingbird Migration Spring 2014.
Joan is a lovely lady that resides in Metairie,  Louisiana,  she has made her yard into a home away from home for migrating hummingbirds. Sweet Pea is a Rufus hummingbird that stopped in at Joan's yard to fatten himself up before completing it's arduous journey North.  Read about Sweet Peas story at Sweet Pea's Long Journey.
 If you are interested in a flower garden that would attract hummingbirds to your yard and provide food sources for the little hummers  Flowering Plants For a Hummingbird Habitat  at learner.org has a list of hummingbird favorites.
There is a very sweet video on  YouTube rescued baby hummingbird    (Joan sent me the link),  about a young man that rescued an injured baby hummingbird and brought it back to health,  it is only about three minutes long.  The music with this video is very enjoyable.

This tablescape went through several transformations before I posted today.  I was having lighting issues and just was not liking how it came out.  The following pictures are from the last of the tables that were set.










 
 

The layers.........

From left to right:  The large red glass charger made in Turkey came from HG last year, the smaller clear star burst finish charger (or large dinner plate) that goes from clear to etched glass came from the Salvation Army last month,  the brilliant red Waechtersbach Fun Factory dinner plate was a recent Goodwill find,  the red glass salad plate came from HG a while back,  and the smaller hummingbird salad plate is from the Avon Crystal Collection as are the water goblets and candle holders.
 I came across the Avon crystal a while back at Goodwill here in Medina County, Ohio. There are six place settings of water goblets, wine glasses,  champagne glasses, champagne flutes, salad plates, coffee cups and saucers, two candle holders, two vases, and water pitcher. I was thrilled.  The moment I laid eyes on this set I knew there would be a tablescape in red (the color that hummingbirds are most attracted to) that would go with the crystal.






The red wine flutes were bought at HG after Christmas with the
gift card I won from Kathleen giveaway at Let's Dish. Of course the water goblet is from Avon, and the little parfait stem was a thrift store purchase.

Of course there are hummingbird figurines on the table that came from Marc's at least twelve years ago.
The tulips came from Walmart this morning.

Here are few pictures of the first version of this table........










And last but not least is one of our little Sweet Peas. There have been many generations of these little fellas in our yard through the years.  Some have met tragic ends in their zeal to compete with each other for the attention of the females.  One had the misfortune to fly into the glass of our upstairs window in one of it's soaring adventures while I was standing there watching.  He fell onto the deck and was lying there lifeless.  It's little body was limp.  I picked him up as gently as I could and held him in the palm of my hand and gently massaged his little chest to see if I could get him to start breathing again.  My husband said I would have given him mouth to mouth resuscitation if I could have to bring life back to this little boy.  I laid him into a flower basket hanging on one of the garden hooks on the deck to keep him safe from the cats,  a while later he was trying to shake off his daze and gather his wits to take off but it took another half an hour or so before he was steady enough to fly.  I should imagine that the hummingbirds that are sipping nectar in my yard today are his great grandchildren.
I am always thankful to the ladies (and gentlemen too) throughout the south that feed these little guys while they are making their way back north so that they can mate.  I always think of Melanie in Gone With The Wind when she was chastised for giving away a share of their meager dinner to soldiers straggling along the road to make their way home with the hopes that some Yankee woman would be sharing part of her dinner to help the confederate soldiers (mostly Ashley) get home.   This is the way I feel about hummingbirds. While I love them dearly, I know they are not pets.  They are following their instincts to migrate and perpetuate their species.  Anything I can do to help them in their journey will be appreciated by some stranger waiting for their hummers going back to their summer home in the North or on their journey back to their Winter home.



Linking with:

Alma's Seasonal Sundays

Nita's Mod Mix Monday

Susan's Tablescape Thursday

Mary's Masterpiece Monday

Sue's and Arod's Meet the Neighbors Party

Dawn's History and Home Link Party

30 comments:

  1. Hi Candy! I've just commented on your bunny tablescape and then looked at my blog list and saw you had posted again! So here I am. This is a beautiful table too. The dishes are gorgeous and you've just thought of everything to make it look so pretty!
    Be a sweetie,
    Shelia ;)

    ReplyDelete
  2. Candy,
    My Goodness!! Your tablescape is stunning!! You know that i am a lover of red so this just charmed me to death!!
    The piece in your first photo is breath taking!! As are your dishes and stemware!!
    I will definitely look into these sites especially on how to attract Hummingbirds to our yard!!

    Thanks so much for sharing!!

    Also thanks so much for your visit and kind words about my Kitchen!! I do love those rugs from Penney's!!

    Hugs,
    Deb

    ReplyDelete
  3. Love your table, Candy...reminds me of my mother...hummers were her favorite. The hummingbird plates are great.
    Have a great week.

    ReplyDelete
  4. OH Candy this is one of the most beautiful tables I have ever seen. the colors are striking together. and the hummingbird plates look like they belong in a crystal museum. And the story Wow you got me. Who does not love hummingbirds? I can't get over how gorgeous this table is.Susie

    ReplyDelete
  5. Ohh ohhh ohhhh - so very pretty. I have to read your posts over and over so I get a good view of all the dishes and pretties. I love the hummingbird plates and glasses. This might be one of your best tables so far - the red and white is spectacular. Love the whole post - start to finish - and over and over.

    ReplyDelete
  6. Candy,
    I have no idea what is the problem with some emails going through and some not. I did do a post on it and I thought that changing to a Gmail email address would solve that problem but apparently it is still not working all the time.....

    Hugs,
    Deb

    ReplyDelete
  7. I have loved Hummingbirds for years too, just adore them! As for the table, how can I get any work done when I have to spend so much time gazing at beauty here. I see your standing on ladders again taking beautiful photos. Thank you so much! I set some pins for Sunday when my Pinterest is the busiest.

    ReplyDelete
  8. Oh, what a sweet gesture to go to that hummingbird's rescue!!! That gave me little goose bumps! I know you will be blessed a hundred times over for that kindness.

    I've not seen a lot of hummingbirds in my day, but when I do I'm always enthralled with their rapid-fire movement. They truly are one of God's most fascinating creatures!

    You've set a lovely table to herald the return of "your hummingbirds." This really captures the spirit of the creature as well as the ruby color of the throats. (Seriously...they move so fast, who on earth was able to determine their throats are red? :-) )

    Have a wonderful Mother's Day weekend! Thank you for sharing!

    ReplyDelete
  9. Hi Candy,

    Such a beautifully set spring table, starring my favourite colour, red! How pretty are those tulips, all the dinnerware and of course, the darling hummingbirds, which add that touch of sweetness and charm to an already cozy table, bursting with the joys of the season. Just lovely!

    Poppy

    ReplyDelete
  10. A stunning tablescape in every way! Love the tulips and the hummingbird theme...very creative and beautifully done. Sharing far & wide:)

    ~Pam

    ReplyDelete
  11. This is a beautiful table ... I'm going to direct some of my hummingbird loving friends to your blog!
    Thanks for sharing ...

    ReplyDelete
  12. What an unusual and stunning table Candy! It reminds me of my mom, who loved hummingbirds and always kept her feeders full of red colored water/food for them~your table touched my heart especially with Mother's Day coming up~
    Jenna

    ReplyDelete
  13. Lovely table and beautiful tribute to hummingbirds! The tulips, the flutes, the plates...love it all.

    ReplyDelete
  14. Your table is breathtaking. Perfect for hummingbird lovers such as me. I am so thankful that you were able to rescue a hummingbird. We saved one who had somehow gotten his beak stuck in our front door screen. When our hummer comes back he lets us know to get the feeder out by flying around the pole where it should have been. One time he actually came right up to don's
    face and buzzed it.

    ReplyDelete
  15. Candy, this is absolutely beautiful. You've outdone yourself. It's always such a joy to visit your page.
    Sam from Creativelysams.com

    ReplyDelete
  16. Candy, I live north of you in Michigan. Maybe you are feeding some of the hummers that are making their way up to my house!! I haven't seen any yet, but my feeder is all ready! I love your table, and all your pretty red, including the beautiful flowers on the table and window ledge. I've never seen plates like those - stunning!
    Thank you so much for visiting my blog via Fabby, such a sweet lady, and your kind comments. I am following you now too.

    ReplyDelete
  17. Such gorgeous, vibrant colors, Candy! Very pretty!

    ReplyDelete
  18. What a beautiful and interesting post about little hummingbirds! They are so adorable! I don't think I've ever seen a tablescape with hummingbirds, very unique!

    Thanks for sharing with me how you also had unadorned china in the 60s and switched to OCR in the 90s! Debbie (Words on Wheels) said she is doing the opposite - adding all white china to her collection (her wedding china is adorned!) She's of a different generation, interesting how our tastes change over the years!

    Katherine

    ReplyDelete
  19. Candy, This is such a lovely post! Your table is so cheery dressed in red with all the hummingbird touches. It's the perfect way to welcome home our old friends! Our humming birds have also returned here to Missouri. Several stopped by our kitchen bay window to let me know to hang out the feeder. We now have two nesting pairs. Enjoy your weekend!

    ReplyDelete
  20. HI Candy,
    Love your Hummingbird table, just so beautiful with all the red and the tulips. Really lovely.
    Also wanted to thank you for coming by to visit my blog and for all your kind comments......
    am so glad that your china hutch situation turned out differently than mind, the Lord had surely gone before with you having just put plates there the day before, love when we see how he
    goes before and takes care of things we don't even know need taking care of..........lol

    I think I have missed my smokey green glasses the most. It was sort of funny cause at first
    it was in such smitterings that the clear glass pieces I saw I didn't even know for sure what
    they were cause you couldn't tell, and over time I have gone to look for certain things like a
    large glass crystal bowl and then realize it was one of the fatalities.............and then it was like
    oh no.............I really liked that bowl, so kinda think it was better not to know all at once!! lol

    So nice to meet you hear in blogland and sure hope our paths will cross again soon,
    Blessings, Nellie

    ReplyDelete
  21. Hi Candy,
    It's so nice to meet you and thank you for your visit to my blog.
    Red is my favorite color and I loved your hummingbird table. What great treasures you found to complete your tablescape. Your tulip centerpieces add the perfect touch. Thank you for all the info on hummingbirds, too.

    ReplyDelete
  22. I love red and your tablescape is beautiful! Love the dishes and the tulips are the perfect touch for Spring. Love watching the hummingbirds in my yard. Happy to be a new follower.
    hugs,
    Jann

    ReplyDelete
  23. Oh Candy, this is gorgeous! I love all of the Hummingbirds on your table. The etched stems and plates are beautiful, and I love how the reds pop on this table. Those little glass pots with Geraniums are so pretty, and so are the tulips. Such a beautiful table. laurie.

    ReplyDelete
  24. What a wonderful post, Candy. I have a lot to read up on and learn about Hummingbirds. I have only seen one yet this Spring here in Ontario. Fascinating little beings. I just popped over from Shelia's blog. I'll be back again. Deb (Ontario, Canada)

    ReplyDelete
  25. Now you have cinched it....I have to get a hummingbird feeder after seeing your beautiful table! You are about to convert me from purple obsessed to RED hot. Those dishes and colors are pure artwork.

    ReplyDelete
  26. What a gorgeous tablescape....I love hummingbirds and am mesmerized when they visit to my honeysuckly vine. Thanks and glad you enjoyed my post on tomatoes (determinate/indeterminate). Have a great weekend

    ReplyDelete
  27. Love your post Candy. I hang a feeder on my porch and love watching my hummers up close. Every year I attend a hummingbird festival just a mile down the road from me at Lincoln's New Salem park. The hummingbirds are trapped and banded so that they can be tracked. You can adopt a bird and hold them while they are being banded and then release them. You then are given the information to track them.

    ReplyDelete
  28. The hummingbird festival sounds like a wonderful event. I would adopt a hummingbird too.

    ReplyDelete