Tea Cup Tuesday

Hello All

Welcome to tea cup Tuesday!

Being mid May, we are right in the middle of spring.

Weather has been changeable...we have had some lovely days,

and some really strong storms.

Today is a chilly day.

Great for tea!

Taking a few moments to enjoy the outdoors,

the upper porch is a nice spot for reading.

Our three year old lilac bush was very kind to 

burst into full bloom and bless us with such a 

display of beauty. 

I think she loved the cooler temps and 

wet wet days.

Two great books from second hand shops.

(...see how dainty the southern lilacs are?)

(mmmm...I think I could use this tea for aromatherapy too! lol!)

I have been testing out Teadrops. 

This one is Cardamon Spice. 

It is delicious. 

Each flavor of tea smells wonderful.

I have tried 4 types now and found them all good.

Sashee (inventor) has encouraged me to embrace 

tea in a new form, no strainer or no bag 

(better for the environment...)

as her recipes dissolve in the hot water.

I did find the floating leftover tea bits 

a bit off putting... 

but I could get used to it for the delicious flavor!

Truly, the aroma and flavor is wonderful. 

For me the portability of this type of tea was 

good for my picnic plans too. 

Thank you Sashee for introducing me to your tea!

(she is not paying me in any way or form)

I am privileged to assist a young woman entrepreneur.

I am enjoying reading A Country Diary Of An Edwardian Lady,

especially with the birds twittering around me.

I could sit here all day and listed to them play.

Usually, though, I must be about my day too : )

My cup today is an old favorite for this time of year.

She is a pretty vintage, waisted cup. 

 Forget me nots are lovely inside the cup too.

I was not surprised at her pattern name...

Royal Standard manufactured this pretty cup.

The company, Chapmans at Longton, owned the 

Royal Standard backstamp.

 This backstamp being used from 1949 onward.

(Blue Star Creeper coming along after only 3 springs!)

 I feel so blessed to be visiting with you all today.

Life can get very full, 

and sometimes we can not spend the time 

we wish online visiting our amazing blogging buddies. 

This year is a full one for my family and me.

If I am not here as much for a while,

just know all is well, 

and that I will be back. 

Starting June I will be doing T.T. every other Tuesday 

and dear Martha says she will be there each week. 

Yay Martha!

During busy times,

it is even more important to stop

and take some moments...

have a cup of tea, 

read an uplifting passage

listing to some beautiful music....

I know it seems impossible if you are already full up...

but it pays such dividends!

Sitting on the porch amidst the trees...

feels rejuvenating to me.

I wish you the very best week!

Thank you for stopping by!

Hugs,

Terri

Tea Cup Tuesday-Mother's Day

Hello All

Welcome to Tea Cup Tuesday!

Sunday was a beautiful day to celebrate Mother's Day,

I was lucky to go on a breakfast picnic 

at a local park that is just gorgeous. 

 We arrived early and found a spot by the pond,
under a Japanese maple tree.

The contrast of the intense sun and dappled shade,

made my images all come out dark. 

So we only have this image from across the pond.

It was a serene and lovely morning.

The picnic basket made packing so easy!
(Picnic basket post is Here)

And our light fare (of tea, watermelon and

egg salad sandwiches) was delicious...

made even better by our view.

So my picnic basket was a success!

We walked around the large area of gardens 

There were beautiful spring flowers everywhere.

Beautiful colorings...

Our gentle spring has benefited the gardens.

The flowers were stunning

and very inspiring!

 When I returned home my daughter had

decorated the kitchen table area 

to celebrate Mother's Day.

I was surprised!

She gifted me this wonderful book,

That I am enjoying very much.

Later on while reading, I enjoyed tea in this special cup...

which  I think my have lavender on it? 

I am not totally sure of the flower.

What do you think?

She is a pretty vintage cup,

She does have some bits of whimsical 

decor around her rim and pretty handle.

Which I love about her.

And here we see on the backstamp

that she was manufactured by Tuscan.

It was a fine company in Staffordshire England.

1947-61 was the time period for this stamp.

Thank you all for stopping by today!
 

 If you would like to join in Tea Cup Tuesday,

just go and create a post with a tea cup in it,

then come back here and link up below. 

Martha and I are enjoying our tea time visits

with you all!

...and I thought you all might like to know
That  Kimberly of Art Joy Stuff
is having a tea themed giveaway!

 

Hugs,

Terri

To all of you who have mothered from your hearts...

May you feel loved and cherished today.

Hugs,

Terri

Tea Cup Tuesday-Picnic Ready!

Hello All!

Welcome to Tea Cup Tuesday with Martha and me!
We have been having a blast
visiting all of you each week!
We have seen some gorgeous china,
serene tea settings
and mouthwatering desserts...
and
enjoyed tea poetry.
But best of all we have
enjoyed visiting you friends!
Thank you all!

A couple weeks ago I shared a post about the basket 

I was painting to use for a picnic.

The idea of sitting by a lake, 

watching geese swim by while 

sipping tea and reading a good book,

seems like heaven to me. 

So I have been collecting the china to use,

picking out the linens,

choosing fabric and crafting containers. 

I just finished sewing
some padded sleeves of various designs
to protect the china and cutlery.

A larger sleeve for the Bavarian luncheon plates.

(simple cream and gold...)

The fabric is a sateen cotton,
so it has a bit of a sheen.

...and I needed to figure out
some kind of design to
hold the tea cups safely.

I am not much for patterns,
so I just visualize what I am wanting
and go from there.
lol!

I chose two of my inspiration cups from my first post

to use for this basket set.

here is the beginning of the tea cup protector

They ended up being a draw string pouch....

which seems to work well. 

There are two layers of padding between. 

The tea cup image is from the Grapics Fairy.

Thank you Karen!

The tea cups sits snugly in their pocket,

the top half tucked inside the cup for extra protection.

The saucer sleeves have some pretty ribbon

and "Time For Tea" on the front.

I somehow missed taking a full pic 

of the silverware holder.

It is a simple roll and wrap thing. 

Here is the inside,

I used an old cotton/linen textile.

I found it and some other older fabric

at a local estate sale. 

I left the gold printing 

that indicates the fabric.

I love the feel of old linens

They are so soft yet strong. 

The pocket placements called for a little math.

And a a little fancy stitching.

I have some lovely silverware I found at a local

antique shop a few years ago.

They were used as a reference as to how 

wide all the pockets should be.

 All but the silverware roll is visible in the basket.

Oh here you can see the silverware roll

bottom right hand side.

So...

How will I make tea out doors? 

What a coincidence and surprise when  Sashee Chandran 

e-mailed me and asked if I would be willing to try her

new tea product called Teadrops.

She has created a way to have tea without a tea bag.

Very portable!

This is the box of tea she sent me to try out.

It smells heavenly!

I am so impressed with this young woman's venture.

My first tea picnic I will be using Sashee's tea for the first time.

You can read more about Teadrops at myteadrop.com 

I have decided just to take boiling water in my stainless steel thermos.

And as to where to have a tea picnic...

I have chosen a beautiful park with roses 

and a peaceful pond.

We have been having some good weather,

so this week looks really good for it.

Next week I will share how my picnic 

and the new tea goes.

Wish me good weather : )

I hope you are all well,
and that your week is full of 
creativity.

If you would like to join in just add your tea cup post below.

Thank you so much for stopping by!

I appreciate your visit and I love reading your comments.

Hugs,

Terri

You can visit my co host, the wonderful Martha
at Martha's Favorites

I am joining these ladies for tea this week too : )

 Sandi, Bernideen, Ruth and Kathy
(their names are links to their lovely blogs).

Tea Wallets!

Hello All!

In my last post I shared a lovely tea wallet

my friend Gale made....

(She sews beautifully,

all neat and tidy.)

This one is going in my best purse.

I did not even know they existed!

How could that happen?

lol!

Normally I would use an old zippy bag and put a variety of tea bags inside.

Eventually though, some would escape to the roomier bottom of my purse,

where I would fish while at a restaurant, only to cup up with old cough drops.

And how many times did I end up using an old crumpled tea bag!

I find this invention brilliant!

Also,

I was inspired to make some myself.... 

just because I love to make things!

(I am not a neat and tidy...)

There are many tutorials online for these beauties.

I went to Pinterest and viewed many different ones.

Wow! There are so many artistic bloggers out there!

 Here is my first tea wallet!

I tried to make it proper, 

turned it inside out to sew,

but I did not go all the way around

on the outside with stitching. 

My machine wasn't fond of all the layers. 

 I used a vintage oval doily, cut in half,

for the pockets. 

I found the tea cup graphic at Pinterest,

I could not find the original place it was

pinned from, and I did really try. 

There are a few versions of it.

Here is one...

My version has more green in it.

I do like the shabby look of the old linen. 

So I thought I would try to 

make one even more shabby....

This one I didn't even to turn it inside out.

I thought since it was shabby,

why bother?

lol!

I used two different old doilies,

one that I had previously dyed.

It is delightful to have a stash 

of textiles, some dyed different colors.

 Here is the back...

And the simple button closure. 

Now I have three tea wallets,

one for each purse.

Yay!

What fun too.

I was so inspired by all the amazing tea

wallets I saw on Pinterest. 

Go have a good look : )

I have a few more pinned and ready to sew.

Sewing seems to be my latest crush. 

Happy Weekend 

and

Happy Creating!

Thank you so much for stopping by!

Hugs,

Terri