takes you on a creative journey through 80 of the world’s most popular collectibles. With stunning still-life photography, you’ll discover robots, stamps, lampshades, terracotta soldiers, trinket boxes, butterflies, seashells, cocktail shakers, and more. These collections will inspire you to transform your treasures into striking dining centerpieces.
Your collections are more than keepsakes—they’re conversation starters, each with a story to tell. Buy the book now or read more below.
In , you’ll learn how to arrange them with complementary tableware, linens, and design elements like color, texture, and light, creating a still life that rivals the masters. The book will inspire you to rediscover your collectibles and use them to set tables that delight and spark conversation.
Whether it’s The Guest Memories Table, The White Table, or The Emerging Textile Table, offers easy ways to get started.
will:
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Do you have something you like to collect?
Do you have a collection of items that makes you smile as it brings back memories, special people or just the love of a hobby or interest?
That is what is all about. It is a centerpiece created with items you have collected over the years.
reveal stories you can share with family and friends. They are dining experiences that encourage storytelling, generate more storytelling, and lots of laughs.
Creating a 
is an easy way to design an artful centerpiece with little expense or design knowledge. A beautiful still life scene is being created. A still life is a gathering of objects that creates a dynamic composition. Still life painters arrange pieces that have meaning or hold a memory for them. This is true for you as well. You already have the collection, and the designer of the items has already defined the color scheme, shapes, textures and mood for you. It is up to you to decide which design elements of your collection you want to incorporate into the rest of your dining
still life. The result is a beautiful setting that is all your own. Your guests will walk into the room and instantly feel special and warmly welcomed.
I hope you enjoy the examples I have presented on this website and that they encourage you to create your own !
"Collecttttables is a great book.
Such wonderful ideas and perfectly executed. Mayhew makes it look easy, and the more I have studied her book the more I realize I can do this! I am grabbing my collectables and going for it : )" -Mike P.