silverdresserset, originally uploaded by dancingteacup.
I love to browse through antiques shops and imagine how things would have been used. Was this brush set used for a first date? Given to her on her wedding day? Did she gaze into the hand mirror to check her appearance one last time before heading to the church to bury a loved one? Did her children and grandchildren play dress up and use it to pretend they were her?
What images come to mind when you see something like this?
grapevinesandp, originally uploaded by dancingteacup.
I purchased this set many years ago and probably paid too much for them, but look at how cute they are! What a clever design.
When I worked at the tea shop a few years ago, I was clueless on many aspects of tea. Time, not only heals but it also allows us opportunities to change things, to learn and grow, explore and discover, but only if we are willing. I thought, at the time, that there was no difference between the shapes of tea pots, coffee pots and hot chocolate pots other than to distinguish between them on a buffet table. While the shapes may very well aid in pouring the correct beverage into your cup, there is a difference. I thought I would give a little tutorial because while visiting other ladies’ blogs during Lah-Tea-Dah’s blog-a-thon, I saw other’s making the same mistake as I, and calling their coffee pots, tea pots.
Tea pots are more short and stout with rounder bodies. This allows the tea leaves to expand as it was and still is common for people to place the tea leaves directly into the tea pot to brew.
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Teapot
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Coffee pot
See the difference?
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Hot chocolate set
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This is a hot chocolate pot. Original chocolate pots were tall and narrow, had handles sticking straight out at the sides, and an opening in the top of the pot where the stirrer went, called a molinillo. You would roll it between the palms of your hands. The style below is still made today but you usually find it in boring white cafe’ type china. What is it with the current trend for plain white china? But, I digress.
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So that is your pot tutorial for Tea Tuesday.
Has your table sat empty for a while?
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Has it been a while since the last time some one has sat down with you, in your home, at your table, for a bit to eat and some good conversation?
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Or poured their heart out to you over a nice cup of tea?
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You could build a fire in your fireplace and use bundles of dried flowers as kindling.
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You could dress up in hats and costumes and take pictures of each other for a memento of the occasion and either place the single photo in a frame for a favor for your guests to take home, or make several copies of each photo and create a collage for each person.
It’s winter. Why not while away the day in the company of your friends? Find a day, make some time, not excuses. Use the good china, the good linens and make it special.
Corey Amaro over at Tongue in Cheek, is playing match maker. Why not go over and take a peek at how things are progressing? It’s very French, very romantic.
The time, the temperature, and a faux fire. What more do you need on a cold winter’s day? Oh, a cup of tea.
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On Jan. 4th I had posted a picture of a box to see if you could guess what was inside.
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Today the answer is revealed
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NAPKINS! How cute are they?
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Usually a fan speaks for the lady who holds it in her hands. Subtle signals tell a gentleman all sorts of things; ‘kiss me!’, ‘go away’, ‘we are being watched’, this fan can do that but it also tells another story. Can you use your imagination and fill in the dialogs?
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What are they saying? What are they watching? Is he about to be skewered?
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Whom is she with? Is that her husband? Her lover? With whom is this man fencing?
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Ah, of course.
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Carol, from Paris Breakfasts, has been a very bad influence on me. Completely addicted to her blog and loving her daring tales of taking photographs of things she really isn’t supposed to, “Don’t worry so much about supposed to.” Judy Denche’s character from Chocolat. I decided to take some daring photos myself. One tends to become brave when they are desperate for content for their blog.
My target? The Antique Mall just down the road from my house. I love this place. I’ve purchased a silver teapot from them-
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and antique greeting cards with poems about whiskers.
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Yesterday though, I found many goodies at the A.M. I wish I could buy them all. There was one thing in particular I might go back and get, but they are so cute, I don’t know if I could ever use them. Can you guess what’s inside the box?
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