Tuesday, August 28, 2012

A Different Teacup

On a recent shopping trip to TJ Maxx, I came across a set of these popular silicone baking cups.

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I knew that it would be fun to bake some teacup cupcakes as a surprise for my little granddaughter.

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She seemed delighted with her cupcake and dug right in. 

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I know that we’ll be enjoying these little cakes often for our special tea parties.

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You can find these cute silicone teacups online, or maybe at your local TJ Maxx store.

"What Makes Life so Sweet? Cupcakes to eat and Someone to Love."
~ Marie Williams Johnstone

Monday, August 20, 2012

Canada From Sea to Sea

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This pretty Royal Albert “Canada From Sea To Sea” pattern teacup was purchased on my recent trip to Canada.

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I found it at the Care & Share Thrift Shop near my brothers home in Stouffville, ON.  They had an abundance of beautiful cups and it was difficult to choose just one, but I was running out of space in my carry on bag.

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The pattern includes maple leaves in green and raspberry with a Canadian flag on the cup.

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The cup is in the pretty Montrose shape, with a lovely feathery scroll handle.  Both pieces have 22k gold trim.

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This is the second cup in my collection with a Canadian theme.  I also have a Windsor teacup in the Royal Canadian Tartan pattern.

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It’s been a while since I’ve participated in Teacup Tuesday and I’m happy to have some new cups to show you.  Be sure to see all the gorgeous cups at both Terri and Martha's beautiful blogs.

Saturday, August 18, 2012

Animal House and a Teapot Handbag

In my last post I gave you a little glimpse of my brothers splendid lake house.  Part of my trip was spent there and the rest of the time I stayed at his home.  He jokingly says that coming home is like “being on safari”, hence Animal House.

P8024711  You’re greeted in the foyer by a life sized bronze gorilla sculpture.

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This elephant carving hangs above one of the fireplaces.  There is lots of art, including Robert Bateman wildlife.

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A giant wooden fish sits near the hot tub.  You can get a glimpse of its mermaid companion behind it.  There is something interesting everywhere you look.

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Even some of the furniture has an animal theme.  There are giraffe, zebra, elephants, lions, monkeys and more throughout their home.  My sister-in-law realized her lifetime dream of visiting Africa in January and now they say they can’t wait to return.

Seems harder than I thought to get caught up with my blog and blog friends.  I still haven’t taken photos of all the tea goodies I bought in Canada.

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We were looking in a little shop in Haliburton (or maybe Parry Sound) when my brother saw this handbag and decided that he wanted to buy it for me.

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It is from the Amliya Leather Collection and came with a handy shoulder strap.  This purse is large enough to be practical, as well as cute.

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Most of my tea purchases came from Teaopia.  I learned that they are soon merging with Teavana and so are selling off their logo stock (75% off).  I bought two pretty teapots, double walled tea glasses, a Teaopia tea tin and some hibiscus wellness tea for a friend.

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My dear, if you could give me a cup of tea to clear my muddle of a head

I should better understand your affairs.

- Charles Dickens

Monday, August 13, 2012

Up North

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Just returned from a trip to Northern Ontario to visit family.  Part of the time was spent at my brothers lake house.  What a gorgeous spot.  Swimming in this beautiful spring fed lake was such a treat.

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Their two Samoyed dogs were my constant companions – they thought I was their personal masseuse. 

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There is nothing quite like paddling on a quiet lake and catching a gorgeous rainbow trout for dinner.  My brother was terrified that I was going to tip the canoe, but we made it back to shore – dry and with our prize. 

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The weather and the bugs cooperated and my time there was pure bliss. 

While in Ontario I visited a few small towns and found some great tea bargains.  I’ll post more on that later and also show you some pics of “animal house”.