This and That...

During my blogging break while my mother was ill, there were a few things I wanted to share, but just didn't get the chance.  So today's post will be a compilation of a few of those things.

The chintz tea-for-one pictured above was a gift from my brother, and a complete surprise. There are no markings on it, but isn't it pretty? 

The teapot chalk board came from Michael's.  Thanks to my friend, Angela, at Tea With Friends blog for the heads-up to her readers.  I went to my local Michael's and they were sold out. So my girlfriend went to a store near her, and was able to get one for herself, and one for me. Thanks, Sandy!

One of my sweet blog readers [Joy from Georgia] sent me an e-mail in July telling me about the free Kindle edition of Tea at Downton from Amazon.  I don't have a Kindle, but I was happy to discover the printed book was also available at Amazon, so I ordered a copy.  It contains some great recipes for a Downton Abbey theme tea.

Next week I'll be traveling to Wilmington, Delaware to view the Downton Abbey Costume Collection at Winterthur.  It's a trip I'm really looking forward to it.  

I was so saddened to learn of Mr. John Harney's death last June while I was on vacation.   He was such a kind man, and very helpful to me on more than one occasion.  So it seemed fitting that I send a card to his family expressing my condolences and affirming what they already knew - John Harney was a great man!  I didn't expect a response, but I received a tin of tea that they gave to the guests at his funeral.  What a keepsake!  The card from his son, Mike Harney reads, "Thanks for the kindness.  He will inspire us."  Indeed he will!

And last, but not least, I've added one more photograph to my Gone With the Wind collection thanks to Ebay.  It's of Hattie McDaniel who played the role of Mammy, and Vivien Leigh as Scarlett.  How would you like to be served breakfast in bed with a tray full of silver accoutrements like that?  I'd wake up smiling too!  ;-)

A Tea Care Package

Don't you love receiving surprises?  I received a postal delivery a few days ago from a sweet friend. When she was visiting Annapolis, Maryland recently she stopped at one of Capital Teas boutiques and bought two green teas and a tisane for me.  

She said she loved smelling the aromas of all the tea samples on the "sniffing wall," which the company states is a multi-sensory experience. Formed in 2007, the company has four locations in Maryland, two in Washington, D.C., and one in Virginia. I love their mission statement on their business card:  "The mission of Capital Teas is to educate people and inspire lives through the wonders of tea, one cup at a time."

I haven't visited Annapolis since I was in high school.  I would love to go back again and include a stop at Washington D.C. [have tea at the National Cathedral and tour the White House] and Mt. Vernon. Hmmm... D. C.'s 2015 National Cherry Blossom Festival dates are March 20th - April 12th. I may have to give that some serious thought!

The two teas I received are organic green Cherry Blossom Rose, and Dragonwell, a full-bodied Chinese green tea.  

So far I've only sampled the Lemon Drop Fruit Tisane.  It smells just like candy lemon drops. Honeydew melon, apple pieces, hibiscus blossoms, and orange slices produce a wonderful citrus, lemon drop-like flavor.  It's perfect for late afternoon/evening enjoyment.

Close-up of the dry ingredients [left], and the infused ingredients [right].

Anytime hibiscus is an ingredient, the infusion will be a rich cranberry color.  The same friend who sent me the tea also gave me the lovely Wedgwood teacup [Wild Strawberry pattern], so it just seemed fitting that I should enjoy my fruit tisane in that cup.  Thanks for your thoughtfulness, Ruth!

Any readers a Capital Teas fan?  If so, what teas are your favorite?

Samovar - The Russian Tea Machine

Last week I visited a lovely antique shop in Romeo, MI called, Matters of Taste, and a Russian samovar immediately caught my eye.  I've always wanted one, but never saw one in my price range.

This one isn't an antique because it's electric, rather than having a fuel pipe to fill with coal, charcoal, wood chips or pine cones as the heat source.   It's beautiful nonetheless.  I asked the price and the owner told me $135, but because it needs to be adapted from Russian electrical standards to US standards before it can be functional, she reduced the price to $100.  Sold!  

The samovar is nickel plated brass, and the owner even included a tube of polish in the deal. It polished up beautifully, and won't tarnish like silverplate. Samovars and tea-drinking are an indispensable element of Russian culture - a symbol of warm-hearted hospitality.

A samovar is an appliance traditionally used to heat/boil water for tea.  Samovar translates into English as "self-boiler."  The small teapot on top is used for tea concentrate.  The concentrate is poured into a cup and diluted with the boiling water.  

I already had six Russian tea glasses [Podstakannik] that I bought when my hubby and I visited Niagara on the Lake a few years ago.  They will go perfectly with the samovar.

So far I only have one Lomonosov Russian porcelain teacup in the Cobalt Net pattern, but I think I foresee a teapot in the future!  ;-)

Several years ago when my pastor [who was also my boss] went to Russia on a missions trip, he brought me back a Matryoshka doll [Russian nesting doll].

I love collecting things from other cultures - especially if they're tea related. 

Romeo Peach Festival Parade

How did you spend your Labor Day holiday?  For the second consecutive year my church participated in the Romeo [MI] Peach Festival Parade.  We're a relatively new [10 years old] church plant, and are still meeting in an elementary school while we raise the money to build a sanctuary.  We have 24 acres of property in Romeo that are paid in full.  Participating in the parade has been a great way of making the community aware of our church. 

We met at 11:00 a.m. to decorate the hay wagon for the parade.

Last year I rode on the hay wagon, but this year my hubby drove the all-terrain vehicle that pulled the wagon, so I rode in the vehicle with him.  Does he look like "Farmer Jack?"  ;-)

Church people who participated in the parade.  I'm standing on the far right next to my son, Steve, who is the senior pastor, and his wife, Sharon.  

Jane and Grant - two cuties in our children's department.

Next Sunday, [Sept. 7th] there will be a large tent on our property where we will hold our Sunday morning worship service.  A pig roast with all the fixin's will follow, and the community has been invited.  We filled 5,000 plastic sandwich baggies with a Caramel Apple sucker and a baseball size card that provided all the details about the pig roast to distribute along the parade route.  The three people in the neon green shirts are distributing them to parade attendees in the photo below.

Romeo is  a very quaint town with beautiful Victorian homes.  I tried to photograph a few of them to share.

Rain threatened, but held off until the parade was over and everyone was back home.

Our people distributed all 5,000 baggies.  If everyone comes we'll need a miracle like Jesus performed when he multiplied the the five loaves of bread and two fishes to feed the multitudes! ;-)

~ Entering downtown Romeo ~

The parade has been an annual event since 1931 [83 years], and as you can see residents of Romeo and surrounding communities highly support it.  It's a Labor Day tradition for many.

I love to visit Town Hall Antique Mall pictured below.  Across the street is another antique store called Matters of Taste.  Tomorrow I hope to share a purchase I made from them on 8/26.

There are many apple and peach orchards in Romeo, which is why we named our church 'Orchard Ridge' Church of the Nazarene.  When the parade was over, we stopped at one of the farm stands and bought a fresh peach pie to bring home.  It was delicious with a cup of peach flavored black tea.

What a fun way to spend the last big holiday of summer.  Fall is a beautiful time of the year, but I hate to see summer come to an end.  Michigan children will go back to school either today or tomorrow depending on the community.

Hankies, Handbags & Hats, Oh My!

On Saturday, August 23rd, I went to East Lansing with two friends to attend my 16th theme tea at Cristy Bennett's house.  The theme was Hankies, Handbags & Hats, Oh My!  It was as charming as all the other teas. 

As usual, the entire first floor of the house was decorated to carry out the theme.

Several hat, glove, handbag, and hankie vignettes were displayed on the antique buffet.

~ Close-ups ~

~ Tablescape Decorations ~

Cristy used four color palettes for the tablescape:  pink, yellow, lavender, and aqua blue. Each guest got to select their preference for their place setting prior to the tea.  The tablecloth fabric was a vintage hankie print.

Since blue is my favorite color, aqua blue was my first choice for my place setting [pictured below]. The hatbox was filled with Hershey chocolate kisses, and the purse had a baggie of Goji Berry loose-leaf green tea, from Tealightful Teas.  It's delicious!  I'm drinking a cup of it as I type this post. The vase with fresh flowers was also a favor to take home.

~ Menu Card ~

The high tea began with Sparkling Cherry Juice.

The tea served throughout the meal was Cherry Almond Vanilla black tea.  Pictured below are miniature teapots filled with sugar for those who wanted to sweeten their tea.

Cherry-Almond scone pinwheels were served with mock Cherry Devonshire Cream, and Chilled Sweet Cherry Soup.  Yum!

Crustless Cherry Tomato Quiche; Watermelon, Feta Cheese and Salad Greens with Balsamic Dressing; and Cherry-Cola Jell-O Salad followed the scone and soup course.  The Jell-O salad, made with cherry pie filling, was delish!

And last but not least, Banana Split Brownie Torte for dessert.

Before we left, Cristy gave each of us an individually wrapped hat cookie to take home in keeping with her theme.  She leaves no detail left undone.

~ My girlfriends and me ~

[L-R:  Sandy, Lori, and Me seated]

Host and Hostess, David and Cristy Bennett, and their beloved poodle, Soapy. 

Thanks for a lovely afternoon!

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Today I'm joining the following blogs:
Antiques and Teacups for Tuesday Cuppa Tea
Rose Chintz Cottage for Tea Time Tuesday