Savannah trip

We just got back from Savannah, GA and we’re off again tomorrow to Villa Rica for a week.  I hope to share more photos and tell you a little about the trip when I return.

The historic district in Savannah is such a beautiful area.  The buildings are gorgeous and there are 22 famous squares to visit, plaques to read, sculptures and fountains to see and lots of great stores and restaurants.

I had afternoon tea at The Tea Room twice and also visited The Gryphon tea room with its authentic Tiffany glass fixtures.

Walking here is such a pleasure and everywhere you turn there are moss draped live oaks and brick paved pathways leading to wonderful historic homes.

 If walking becomes tiresome, there are tours by horse drawn buggy or by trolley.  We did an Oglethorpe trolley tour which included a 90 minute narrated tour of the historic district on the trolley and then unlimited van travel for the rest of the day. 

The fountain in Forsyth Park was created in 1858.  This is where we met the interesting “Gullah man” who was weaving lovely roses from reeds.  He was a poet and a veteran too.

This wonderful fountain is one of only three or four like it in the world.  The sculpture is magnificent.

Can you see the detail in this center section with the bulrushes and birds with outstretched wings. 

Our hotel (The Planters Inn) was in a very convenient location.  I could walk out the door and be at The Tea Room on Broughton St. or on River Street in the opposite direction within five minutes.  Every afternoon we would relax in the lobby before dinner and enjoy the complimentary wine and cheese.  Room service meals were provided by the famous Olde Pink House restaurant right next door to the hotel.  We were told that the red Georgia clay building was whitewashed and so it turned pink.

There is much more to share from my Savannah trip, but for now I’d better get back to doing laundry, repacking and getting ready for a tea presentation I’m attending this afternoon.  I’ll look forward to catching up on all your terrific blogs in a week or so. 

Home Away From Home

I’ll be hanging my hat at the Planters Inn in Savannah GA for the next few days.  I can’t wait to once again take afternoon tea at The Tea Room on Broughton Street.

There are several new spots to visit thanks to suggestions from friends.  Here’s hoping for lots of new tea things to share when I return.

 

Teacup Tuesday

The teapot and matching teacup are from my dinnerware service and are Wedgwood Queen’s Ware in the Edme pattern.  The other cup and saucer is made by Wood & Sons in their Toile de Jouy pattern. 

The Queen’s Ware or cream ware is such a lovely neutral and mixes well with lots of china patterns.

I really like the texture and the pedestal base of this pattern.

The Wedgwood site has a lot of information on Queen’s Ware which got its name from Queen Charlotte wife of George III. 

I’ve always loved toile fabric, so this cup by Wood & Sons is another favorite.

This pattern was also made in pink and blue.

There are lots of wonderful teacup and teapot posts to see today.  Check out Artful Affirmations, Martha's Favorites, Silken Purse and Sandi.

Lavender Green Tea

On one of my visits to Jade's Tea I tried a lovely Lavender Green Tea.  I quite liked this tea and decided to purchase some to brew at home.

It says on the bag to use boiling water, but a lower temperature is better for the green tea. 

It occurred to me that this would be easy to blend myself at home.  Why not add some culinary lavender to a favorite loose green tea.  This way I could control the amount of lavender flavor.

This worked out perfectly and it was easy to just sprinkle some lavender into the filter basket with the loose green tea before brewing.  Now I can enjoy a cup of relaxing and fragrant Lavender Green Tea whenever the mood strikes.

Sadly, I just learned that Jade’s Tea will be closing on July 30th.  I’ve only just begun to enjoy her tea room and now it will be gone like so many others.  I wish her all the best with the new online tea business.

Cross-stitch

Many of you are aware that my hubby likes to do cross-stitch in his spare time.  His work is gorgeous and his workmanship is meticulous.  People are always amazed when they look at the back -they say “it looks almost as good as the front”.  

Here is a pretty old home with a lovely country garden.

This gated garden is based on a Thomas Kincaid painting.  Would you believe that all the flowers are multitudes of tiny French knots. 

 He stitched this one because I love the beach so much.  Right now he is working on a tea theme sampler for me.

Sometimes he likes to stitch something that is more to his taste like these wild horses.

He did a couple in this birds pattern.  One was a gift for his sister Dianne.

These pieces are all quite large.  Sometimes he likes to make smaller pictures and every year he makes me some cross-stitch Christmas cards to send to a few friends and family.

 All of these and many more are tucked away in boxes, since the cost of framing these days is ridiculous.  They have not been stretched, etc. and so are a little wrinkled.

His last completed piece is a large Winnie the Pooh birth stats picture with a checkerboard border.  He has stitched the same pattern for each of our three grandkids, but this latest one has a lot more pink – hooray!

My uncle Tony used to knit socks to relax (he also made his own wine).  I’m curious - how many of you know men who do needlework?

Teapot and Tea Things Tuesday

For my first teapot and tea things Tuesday, I’d like to show you a teapot that belonged to my Mom.  She received it as a gift from her older sister Betty around 1950.  I carried this beauty home by airplane after Mom insisted that I take it during one of our last visits together and I treasure it. 

It was made by Arthur Wood in England.  It is such a pretty pink, white and gold color.

Since it is marked Arthur Wood it was probably made sometime between 1904-1928.  I have read that the name changed to Arthur Wood & Sons in 1928.  It looks like the pattern is 5401 or  Athans, but I have not been able to find any information. 

The pretty cup is Duchess fine bone china and made in England.

 It has such a lush floral pattern in gorgeous colors.

The A. T. Finney & Sons company used Duchess in many marks from 1947-1960.

  Please visit Wanda Lee to see her beautiful tea things and for a list of other tea lover blogs.

 

Teacup Tuesday – Royal Grafton

This is another of my favorite teacups by Royal Grafton.  It is fine bone china and was made in England.

It is a little hard to see in my photos, but the background color is a lovely pale pink.

I love the botanical pattern with the finely detailed fruits and berries.

There is the number l423 in gold on the back, but I’m not sure what this pattern is called.  I saw it at Ruby Lane antique store online and they just called it mixed fruit.  Also their teacup seemed to have more gold and a little darker pink color.

I’m hoping that a book I ordered at Amazon “Collectible Cups and Saucers” will be helpful.  Does anyone have a recommendation on books for the cup and saucer collector?

Be sure to visit Terri and Martha to see lots more beautiful teacups. 

Tea and Toast

Bread and water can so easily be toast and tea.
     -Anonymous

Since childhood I’ve been what my Mom always called a “worry wart”.  I admire those friends who are optimists and who seem to take the many ups and downs of modern living in stride.

The Word Detective has some interesting facts about the definition of the term “worry wart”.  For those of you who may never have heard the term and for a little word humor, you can check out their website here.