La Fleur de Fevrier - Violettes

How could I let February pass by without a tribute to its lovely little flower - the humble violet?  That would be impossible since violets are my favorite flower!

So delicate and sweet, they are the perfect decoration tea things.  (For full disclosure, I have mixed in some pansies with my violets - but after all, the are really called Violas.)

The hot chocolate station has become a tea tray.  Much more springlike don't you think?

These beauties deserve a closer look.

Can you believe that these were all gifts - including my 'new modern' teacup that I received on my fiftieth birthday more than 20 years ago!

What could be better than a lot of violets? More violets!

One day one of my daughters pointed out to me that I was a violet person and she was a rose person.  She was right!  So I traded her my rose dessert set for her violet set and I have been very happy since!

This little pitcher, a gift from another daughter, was one of my first violet pieces.

Well, I have more pretty violet things, but I'll save them for next February.

Meanwhile, select some special tea, find a flowered teacup, and join me for teatime!

And above all - THINK SPRING

Staying on Top of the Weather

An overnight temp of -10 and a high of  2 degrees for the day is very unusual for mid February here in Northwest Indiana.  More snow is expected today.  Winter still has us in its grip!  But like true mid-westerners we soldier on and try to stay cozy , warm, and cheerful.

New Haviland plates and brass napkin rings.

This winter we developed a little hobby of setting up a pretty table once a week using things that were usually just stored away.

For some reason the tablecloth looks red in this light.  It is actually burgundy.

Mr. Bill said we should keep the settings up all week for our use.  What a great idea!  It is so nice to have a pretty table to sit down to for breakfast, lunch, and dinner.  And speaking of cozy things, there is nothing like a cup of tea mid-afternoon.  This week I am using an heirloom teacup from my Grandmother.

I love the little pedestal on the bottom of the cup.   The markings say "Hand Painted" , "Nippon", and there is  a small logo.  I have done some research on it and discovered it was made about 1912 in Pre-WWI Japan.  The cup has 1 miniature painting on it and the saucer has two.

Click on any of these pictures to see the paintings close up.  

So much beautiful artwork for such a tiny cup!  Needless to say, I am very careful with it.

Stay warm and cozy - and THING SPRING!

Joyeause Saint Valentin II

Cupid sent some beautiful Spring flowers my way.....

So, I changed my table to show them off to their best advantage.....

In the corner of the picture above, you can see Mr. Bill's liqueur tray.  I have my cocoa station, but he has his Chamord station.  I wonder if you can combine the two......

Actually I prefer tea to both cocoa and Chambord.  I chose a pretty rose teacup to use on Valentine's Day.

And, through some crazy string - pulling, Cupid arranged for me to visit a tea shop this week....

Where tea and lace and all things pink are the rule......

and where everything is cute and quaint and tastes really good!

I hope you have a Joyeause Saint Valentin celebration, too!

Joyeuse Saint Valentin

I believe this translates to 'Yours Forever'

A subtitle for this post could have been 'Fifty Shades of Red'.

I really, really like red.