Fun and Fanciful for Tea Time Tuesday

Life is like a cup of tea....it's all in how you make it.~ Irish Proverb

Hello friends and welcome to my last Tea Time Tuesday in September!

Well, Autumn is in full swing here and we have had some lovely warm days with nippy nights. Jack Frost has been paying us a visit over night more often and my lovely yellow begonias have finally succumbed. But, in their place are pumpkins. It is that time of year, after all!

The gold finches' plumage is fading from their brilliant yellow but they are liking our new bird feeder as do the purple finches.

These little feathered friends will be with us for the winter months, I'm happy to say.

Now on to my tea....I am excited to share a new teacup with you this week! I have been keeping my eyes open for red transferware teacups for years and finding none. I had pretty much given up hope of ever finding any around here. Then, lo and behold, I walked into a shop one day and found this.

Do you remember what it was like to be a little girl walking into a candy store? Well, that is how I felt when I saw this little beauty. I'm sure my eyes grew as big as saucers. You know I did a happy dance.

Where there is tea, there is contentment, hope, and friendship.

You see, I have one red toile teacup without its saucer, and three red Burleigh teacups without their saucers. I have lots of red transferware bowls, plates, and teapots, but no teacup sets. I have been pairing my red teacups with creamy white saucers but I longed for a set.

So I was pretty pleased to find this one. She was pricey but worth it!

This teacup is called {red} Felicity and it's made by Burleigh Staffordshire, England.

Happiness is having a cup of tea in a red transfer ware teacup!

This is their breakfast cup and saucer; my happy cup for either coffee or tea.

This teacup makes me feel young at heart. I suppose it's because it reminds me of the wonderful era of the 60's and 70's.  

Felicity is a small delicate flower pattern reminiscent of elder flowers originating from the 1930's. I just love the old-fashioned pattern, don't you?

While reading up on my new teacup here, I was fascinated by the way in which Burleigh makes their pottery. I had dabbled in ceramics at one time therefore I was most interested in Burleigh's process.

Internet

Notice the tissue paper. This is an example where tissue paper is transferred on to a piece of biscuit ware. This is where my pattern came from. Neat, eh?

This teacup goes naturally with all of my red transferware teapots but I am using this one today. This is Hubby's and my favourite red teapot. 

I thought my little cow creamer would add a bit of whimsy. I take my tea black but she is very cute and was made in Staffordshire, England as well. She was a gift from a good friend. Perhaps you take milk in your tea.

Now, let's enjoy some tea and cookies, shall we? 



Peanut butter chocolate chip cookies, fresh from the oven. I will share my recipe later in the week.

I am enjoying my favourite David's Pumpkin Chai tea.




Next week we will be into the month of October and as you all know it is Breast Cancer Awareness month. 

Pink is the theme colour so I thought it would be fun to do pink tea posts for the month of October. Now, perhaps you are a blue person and don't own any pink china. Blue with a vase of pink posies would be perfect. 

We have all been touched by cancer in one way or another so let's show our support by sharing Pink for October. Hope you can join me!

Thank you for joining me for Tea Time today. I do enjoy your company so please come back again soon. Have a delightful day everyone!


This is the day which the Lord has made; Let us rejoice and be glad in it. ~ Psalm 118:24


I am joining the following parties as well~

 A Return to Loveliness
 Tea Cup Tuesday
 Tea Cup Tuesday
 Tuesday Cuppa Tea
 Tea in the Garden
 Share Your Cup Thursday
 Home Sweet Home

An InLinkz Link-up

 Sharing from my heart~ Sandi

An Autumn Tea

“Autumn is the hardest season. The leaves are all falling, and they're falling like they're falling in love with the ground." ~ Andrea Gibson


Welcome to my Autumn Tea, dear friends!

The leaves are changing and many have already dried up and fallen to the ground thanks to Hurricane Arthur back in the summertime. 


The word is that the trees won't be as pretty this year because of the damage done. The photo above was taken last year on one of the trails not far from our home. 

I have set my Tea out on the dining room table and I have layered a pale peach tablecloth beneath a lace one. A few pumpkins decorate the table instead of the usual floral arrangement. 

These little pumpkins I have added some gold metallic paint to as well as some glitter and rhinestones. 

The table is set with a mix of patterns which is how I envision this new season. The teapot is made by Ganz called Bella Casa.

The plate on which the teapot rests is The Friendly Village made by Johnson Bros. of England.

My pretty peach teacup is Royal Chelsea bone china made in England.

This teacup is brown transferware made by J&G Meakin of England called Romantic England which I found at a second hand shop this summer. Have I ever told you how much I love transferware?? I adore the pastoral scenes found on transferware and china! It suits this old-fashioned girl to a T-ea as I find them simply charming.

The matching bowl is also Romantic England by J&G Meakin which I found years ago at a thrift shop. Now I have a set. I think the bowl cost me something like a dollar. It will hold the whipped cream today.

And this is a set of two bowls made by Johnson Bros. called The Road Home. They too were found at an antique shop.

Muted coloured leaves as well as golden hues mixed with a little frost because Jack Frost has been paying us a visit overnight more often now.

"It was one of those perfect English autumnal days which occur more frequently in memory than in life." ~ PD James {Victoria magazine}

Gingerbread cake is my tea treat today. It smelled so good coming out of the oven and filled my home with a spicy scent. There is a bowl of whipped cream and a jug of Vinegar Sauce to have with your cake if you wish. I don't have it on the table but a nice home made apple sauce would be lovely with your gingerbread too.

The vinegar sauce is my grandmother's recipe and this is her recipe book which she started in school when she was just a girl. It's almost 100 years old. 

I shared her recipe book once before here. It is very fragile having been used many times over the years and I am thankful to have it! You can see the pages are all soiled and very delicate from her many years of baking. She was a fabulous cook!  

This is my Granny's own handwriting.

This is the sauce my mother always served on her gingerbread when I was growing up. It may not sound very appealing, but believe me when I say, it really is delicious! It adds a sweet zip to your dessert. I hope you will try it and let me know what you think.

Here is the recipe:

Vinegar Sauce
1-1/2 cups boiling water
1/2 cup sugar
vinegar to taste; I use about 3 Tbsp.
1 Tbsp flour with 1 Tbsp melted butter mixed together.
Method
Boil 1-1/2 cups of water. Melt the butter in a small saucepan and add the flour to make a roux. Add the sugar and boiling water a little at a time while stirring constantly. Add the vinegar and then boil. Serve over hot gingerbread.

Cuppa tea anyone?

Whipped cream or Vinegar Sauce?

Tea began as a medicine and grew into a beverage. ~ Okakura Kakuzō

It's always such a pleasure to have you join me for Tea Time. I would love to see your teacups or coffee cups, your teapots or coffee pots, tablescapes, visits to a tea room, or a new tea you may have discovered. I welcome recipes too. Please link up below and I will be happy to visit you. Have a beautiful day, dear friends.


You will keep in perfect peace all who trust in You, all whose thoughts are fixed on You! ~ Isaiah 26:3 


I am joining the following parties as well~

A Return to Loveliness
 Tea Cup Tuesday
Tuesday Cuppa Tea
Share Your Cup Thursday
Home Sweet Home

An InLinkz Link-up

Sharing from my heart~ Sandi

Something Sweet for Tea Time Tuesday

Life is like a camera...

Focus on what's important,

Capture the good times,

Develop from the negatives,

And if things don't work out

Take another shot.~ Unknown

Welcome friends to Tea Time Tuesday a blog party where we sip a little tea and share some conversation.

It is the middle of September already and everyone is getting their Fall out. Well, I'm still hesitant to do too much in that way but next week, whether I like it or not, Autumn will be here. 
So, next week, I may as well embrace it and host an Autumn Tea.

Let's gather our Autumn tea things and perhaps show off some Autumn decor or a yummy dessert you only serve during the Fall season. Hope you can make it! I know Autumn is a favourite season for many of you.

"What do you do when you fall in love?"~ From the song, "I'll Never Fall in Love Again," sung by Dionne Warwick. Written by Burt Bacharach and Hal David 1968

Don't you just love this teacup?


I was smitten with this pretty teacup the first time I saw it and I had added it to my Acquisition List a couple of years ago. Then this Summer, I found it and was able to bring this little beauty home with me. Actually, I found a few pieces of tea ware over the Summer months and will be sharing them in the coming weeks.
 

This is an Aynsley bone china teacup and saucer, circa 1980 made in England, and it is in such perfect condition that I wonder if it had ever been used. In any case, she now belongs to me and will be used often.

The stamp on the bottom tells us the Aynsley company was established in 1775.

This sweet pattern is called Rosedale. Although another site claims its name is Hathaway. In any case, it is an embossed crocus shape sprinkled with pink roses. 
I am always attracted to a cottagey look it seems. Both the cup and the saucer have a crocus design. Can you see it?

There are a few roses adorning the inside of the cup as well.
 

The cup is footed with a rich gold trim and has an unusual handle with a flat thumb rest. Very comfy to hold.

I once read somewhere that this is the pattern Princess Diana chose for her wedding china when she married the Prince of Wales. I don't know if it is indeed the pattern she chose but how romantic the thought!

I chose these sweet Autumn roses from the grocery store and the colour is a perfect match to the roses on the teacup.

These roses are small and they seem to stand up much better than the bigger roses. I think another reason I was attracted to them is because they are the same shade as my wedding outfit which I wore so many years ago.

Teacup Tip~ When adding sugar or cream to your coffee or tea, swirl the spoon around in the beverage without touching the cup. Hitting the metal spoon against the porcelain will make minute scratches in it, damaging the glaze. ~ Internet

The plate in the background is called Briar Rose.

In my cup is Bigelow Constant Comment, a wonderful black tea flavoured with the rind of oranges and sweet spice. Delicious!

Perhaps it is while drinking tea that I most of all enjoy the sense of leisure. ~George Gissing, The Private Papers of Henry Ryecroft, 1903

My tea treat is a parfait glass filled with bananas and strawberries topped with strawberry yogurt. 

The glass, which I believe is Depression glass, is pink and so thin one has to take care when using it. It has a beautiful etching of a flower and vine on it.

The china dessert plate is Rose of England.

Love my birdie topped teapot in its trellis design!

Have you found something special lately?

I am delighted you have stopped by for tea today! Your presence always makes my tea party that much more special. This tea party is all about sharing your joy of tea time and any thoughts you may have on the subject. 

Do you have a favourite teacup/teapot, coffee cup/coffee pot, or tablescape that you would like to share with us? I would love to see it and I'm sure others would too! A trip to a Tea Shop is always fun and if you have discovered a new tea we'd love to hear about that too. I would also welcome a recipe which would be a good accompaniment for tea time.

The good you do today may be forgotten tomorrow. Do good anyway.
Give the world the best you have and it may never be enough. Give your best anyway.
For you see, in the end, it is between you and God. It was never between you and them anyway. ~ Mother Teresa



I am joining the following parties as well~

Mosaic Monday
 A Return to Loveliness
 Tea Cup Tuesday
 Tea Cup Tuesday
 Tuesday Cuppa Tea
 Tea in the Garden
 Share Your Cup Thursday
 Home Sweet Home

An InLinkz Link-up

Sharing from my heart~ Sandi