When I saw that the Chinese New Year would be the Year of the Dragon, I just had to get my little dragon out and put him center stage on a table. I got this little guy for our MINIs on the Dragon event a few years ago.I got a long blonde wig and had him on my shoulder like Daenerys Targaryen from Game of Thrones while I worked registration. Since then, he has been used for not only those events, but he was also a photo scavenger hunt item on a picnic event last year. I put him on the dashboard with a picnic basket. For the table, I set him on a gold lacquer plate and surrounded him with gold beads and small votive candles.
This table has chopsticks instead of flatware, and no salt and pepper shakers, as it has soy sauce dishes. I like this elegant color scheme with black, white and gold.
On the upper left, black lacquer rice plates are set with a black spoon. I found these in a thrift store, and loved the gold butterflies.
The place settings have gold chargers with black and gold salad size plates on top. Chopsticks are placed horizontally across the charger, as is appropriate for Asian table settings. A sake (or green tea) cup, crystal water glass and soy sauce dish are placed around the top. On the right, another black and gold lacquer dish, perhaps to hold an egg roll or one of the salads below. The gold chargers, black lacquer plates, sake cups and soy dishes were all thrift store finds.
The napkins have a special fold rather than use napkin rings. This one is called a Bird of Paradise fold, and it is pretty easy. You can find a tutorial for it HERE.
In the center, the little dragon is all ready to be in a ring of fire when the candles are lit.
We are ready to eat! Now would be a great time to try some of my Asian inspired recipes. First up, from my Japanese Inspired February from 2018, these Zhenzhu Qiu or Asian Pearl Balls are fun to make and delicious. Essentially they are meatballs, rolled with cooked rice and black sesame seeds, steamed.
My Asian Cabbage and Broccoli Salad is a crunchy delight.
Or try your hand at my Pork Shumai. I serve these with steamed snow peas and egg rolls.
I make my Asian Noodle Bowls quite frequently with leftover meat and vegetables, and sometimes I use frozen shrimp. Served with steamed potstickers, it is a complete meal.
This easy lettuce and crab salad is a light side dish for an Asian inspired meal. I got the idea from a restaurant salad, and made it using ingredients easy to find. Get the recipe on my Asian Inspired Salad post.
Asian inspired table with Asian inspired food, what a fun excuse to celebrate.
I wrote a series of posts about other Japanese arts in February of 2018. If you are in the mood for more, here are a few more of the post links for gardens, quilting and more. First, Karesansui teien, a post about Japanese gardens.
Ikebana – The Art of Arranging is the art of arranging natural elements in a display.
My Sakura Tsuki Art Quilt posts take you through the entire design process and construction of this quilt.
Itadakimasu, and Musings on Gratitude is a post on appreciation.
Interested in a bit of slow stitching? Try Sashiko.
Are you inspired by the Year of the Dragon?
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Find things to celebrate the Year of the Dragon at Amazon.
Find Asian inspired fabrics at Fat Quarter Shop. Check out Today’s Flash Sale. This month get 20% off the Basic of the Month Spotted by Zen Chic, 30% Off the Notions of the Month from Olfa, Patterns of the Month and Books of the Month from Camille Roskelley, and see the Precuts of the Week!
Get Asian inspired recipes and ingredients at Milk Street.
C&T Publishing has great books on the Art of Sashiko.
Check out Sulky Threads for 35% Off Rolls and Bolts of Stabilizers!!
From My Carolina Home 
What a fun table scape Carole! We eat Chinese 2-3 times a month, though my fare is pretty plain compared to your pretty Asian recipes. DH is just not that adventurous of an eater! 😂
Our quilt club had a sashiko class last November, it’s about time I finished my project! I love your art quilt, it makes a beautiful window on your wall. Lots of good suggestions here to get ready for next weekend’s celebration.
Carole, your tablescape is elegant with gold, black, and white! Your food looks delicious and you are an adventurous cook!
I love your dragon, Carole! You always set such a beautiful table, and your recipes sound delicious. With our younger son here, we’re trying more Asian dishes, and he would be interested in those. Last night he made homemade General Tso’s sauce for our stir fry, and it is very tasty!
It would be such a pleasure to have a meal in your home Carole. Your tablescapes are always so beautiful and well thought out. Seemingly a simple thing but what extra pleasure it brings to the meal. Your quilt on the wall is beautiful too. I had a class in sashiko and enjoyed it but have never done much with it since. So many stitching hobbies, so little time!
Have you seen the mosaic embroidery of Tomomi Mimura?
“ A unique technique that uses drawing in a mosaic-like style using darning-like embroidery, pioneered by Tomomi Mimura, the founder of “mimster”. Her whimsical and colourful worldview is mainly created using the technique of mosaic darning embroidery.”
You can check out her work online, or see her kits at loopknittingdotcom which is in England. I have bought items from them before that I can’t find in the US. Her mimster kit of the mosaic embroidery rabbit is calling me to treat myself to a Valentine’s Day present. And I’d like to get her book too. Even though it’s in Japanese, the illustrations of the techniques are supposed to be excellent.
The creative arts in fibers and fabrics are like going down a rabbit hole. One leads to another. The creative work you’ve been doing lately with your embroidery machine makes me want to set up an old Bernina sewing machine of mine that has an embroidery attachment, and play with it again.
Thank you for sharing your creative arts, your gardening, the wildlife surrounding your home, your car club and your excellent book reviews with us. I don’t always comment but I enjoy every newsletter that you post. So many people have gone to Instagram or other social media. It’s such a pleasure to get an actual newsletter/blog in my email, with rich content and commentary on a wide variety of subjects. It’s like having a personal visit with you.
Beautiful table Carole! The black, gold and white is elegant and dramatic! I love all the Asian things you have and your recipes sound wonderful. Your little dragon is perfect for the centerpiece!
Jenna
Love your Asian tablescape. It is so serene. The color scheme with your little dragon centerpiece is striking. The Asian recipes look yummy. Thanks for all the references to previous posts. I’m going to grab a cup of coffee and enjoy the read.
That little Dragon is adorable! The recipes look so yummy – I’m starving now!!!!! We lost our “good” Chinese restaurant last year, but we drive about 1/2 hour to get some “real” traditional food. I made your quilt from that pattern – it garnered about $100 for the dog rescue auction. Easy to do. Thanks for all this!
Lovely to see your dragon taking centre stage. The setting is quite striking.
I thought of you when I heard it was year of the dragon. Special year. We love Asian foods too. Thanks for so many dinner ideas!
You aced it at the thrift store. Those plates and all are wonderful and your table is so beautiful — very elegant with that Asian simplicity. The dragon is fun! And your food looks fabulous!
Beautiful table and ethnic foods, Carole!