June tablescape: Depression glass makes me happy!

June's tablescape takes place in the garden: a perfect place to display a collection of green Depression glass on a white linen tablecloth.

Much like our April tablescape, we've added some pieces to this set and brought it all outdoors for a lovely light summer repast on our front patio. This glassware will serve up a fruit compote, fruit-infused water and two cups of decaffeinated tea. And, later, a bit of the bubby for a late evening Tost!

Another set of dishes from my Grandmother Signe, these  pieces are from her Depression glass collection.  

Just what exactly is Depression glass?  From personal family accounts, I know that it was mass produced glass during the Depression era, found in a variety of colors and shapes, and given out as promotional items in cereal or soap boxes or handed out at theaters.

In an on-line D-Brief  article from 2019, Jonathan Fuhrman of the Michigan Depression Glass Society explained a little more about this period glassware.

"Right around the time of the Great Depression, advancements were made in glass manufacturing that allowed companies to quickly produce large quantities of glassware, which were previously only able to be produced one at a time by hand. Unfortunately, when the depression hit, there wasn’t much of a customer-base to buy this stuff. So rather than selling to consumers, these companies struck deals with businesses. They sold their glass in bulk as a premium item that would be given away with products. You could find a creamer in a container of oatmeal, a sherbet dish in a bag of flour, or a plate at a movie theater. This encouraged brand loyalty – consumers had to keep buying the same brand so they could collect a full set of dishes."

I've identified this particular set as part of the "Block Optic" pattern.  Pitchers go anywhere from $30.00 to $100.00 and sherbet glasses start at $5.00.

So, this inheritance isn't going to make me rich, but I love it. It's bright, fun and brings back many joyful memories.

Depression glass makes me happy!

Not just for tea parties, the parasol is a great accessory for social distancing, too!

Dust off your parasol - it's not just for tea parties anymore.

The fashionable sun protective accessory of centuries ago is in favor again and it has a new purpose:  social distancing enhancer.

Last week, The Wall Street Journal wrote about this trend, noting the comeback of the parasol is due to its ability to provide shade from the sun, protect your hairdo and fashionably accessorize an outfit. Now, with social distancing in force, add boundary-keeping to the parasol's functionality.

As noted by Lily Selwitz,  featured in the WSJ article and owner of  Lily-Lark, a parasol company in New York, when carrying one of her products, "it's pretty difficult for someone to invade your space".

The parasol dates back over 4,000 years ago - it was used by the ruling class of ancient Egypt and China to provide shade from the sun.

In Lily-Lark's blog, titled Those Wacky Victorians, the obsession with accessories was great in 19th century England, and, along with gloves and fans, the parasol was also de rigueur of the time.  According to the blog, a few other benefits were attributed to the "sun-umbrella":  it could be used as a weapon for self-defense (some had stiletto tips) and, if rose-colored, the sun filtering through this shade could provide  a more youthful look to the carrier (think low-tech soft focus).

Today, parasols can be found beyond the traditional lace and fringe styles of years past. Lily-Lark offers a variety of UV fabric shades (abstracts, florals and even bridal designs) with bamboo handles to go with any occassion.

Although we still love our Battenburg lace parasol for tea time, we're seriously considering a rose-colored sun-umbrella for occasions outside the home. Social distancing and soft focus - not bad attributes for a stylish (and functional) accessory.

National Cream Tea Day: Do you serve cream or jam first? (the story behind Sconegate!)

Rachel and Barb Gulley of Barb's Tea Service enjoying a cream tea at The Wolseley in London in 2015

The last Friday in June is National Cream Tea Day in England. Here in the US, we at Barb's Tea Service proclaim National Cream Tea Weekend (!), but we're in favor of avoiding controversy. Whether you serve your scones with cream first, then jam or vice-versa, it's a holiday we can all enjoy.

A cream tea is a light meal, eaten in the afternoon, that includes tea, scones, cream and jam.

But this oh-so-civilized event is plagued with controversy, especially if you live in the regions of Devon and  Cornwall in England.  It was just two years ago they were embroiled in "Sconegate" (I kid you not!)

Cream teas are a light afternoon meal served with scones, cream, jam and tea

As noted in the BTS' book, "Twelve Etiquette Essentials, Formal Dining and Tea Time", this topic is covered in Chapter 12, "How to Eat a Scone".  Cream and jam are traditional additions to the quintessential  tea time biscuit-like treat, however, the order in which they are placed on the scone can turn neighbor against neighbor.  Devon folks serve their scone topped with cream first, Cornwall residents insist the order is jam then cream.

Cream tea controversy covered in BTS'  Twelve Etiquette Essentials, Formal Dining and Tea Time

In an article from 2018, from  Good Morning Britain, the conflict came to full boil when Lanhydrock House in Cornwall advertised its annual  Mother's Day cream tea. The picture used on the ad featured a scone with cream as its first layer, followed by jam on top!

The good people of Cornwall were furious - as one can imagine. They threatened to boycott the event. But, greivances were soothed when Lanhydrock made the following statement:

"We'd like to sincerely apologise for any offence caused by a recent scone-shot on the page. The member of staff responsible has been reprimanded and marched back of the Tamar". (Tamar is the river that serves as a border between Cornwall and Devon.)

There's room for all opinions for those celebrating National Cream Tea Day

This weekend, we'd like to celebrate Cream Tea Time with all. Whether you layer your scone with cream, then jam or the other way around, say skōn or skän or drink tea milk-in-first or milk-in-last, we can all agree, a cream tea is delicious and delightful to share no matter which side of the aisle or river you reside.

Tuesday Tea and Tomes: At Home at Highclere inspires gracious living everywhere!

At Home at Highclere will delight fans of  both Downton Abbey and gracious living.

"At Home at Highclere, Entertaining at the Real Downton Abbey" is one book that most assuredly fits the definition of our Tuesday feature - this is a true  "tome" in size, weight and hefty material. Approximately 11.5 by 10 inches, slightly over four pounds and just shy of 300 pages, the English country manor's guide to entertainment is a showpiece in and of itself.

But like the fashionable Crawleys of Downton Abbey, there's more to this book than just its fancy appearance. The contents cover a variety of topics from the history of Highclere's inhabitants (the Carnarvon family) to famous guests which included  Henry James, author of "Portrait of a Lady" and "The Turn of the Screw" (see May 5, 2020 Tuesday Tea and Tomes),  and the Prince of Wales, son of Queen Victoria and eventual King of England.

BTS visited Highclere Castle in 2015 (Rachel in the foreground), but still so much to learn!

Although we visited Highclere in 2015 and interviewed Lady Carnarvon for TeaTime Magazine that same year, it's impossible to learn everything about this impressive abode in a few way-too-short afternoons. "At Home at Highclere" provides interesting details on various rooms that will be very familiar to Downton Abbey fans, such as the library and the drawing room.

We welcome you to Highclere and Pemberly Pines!

In between tales of entertaining from past eras to present there are inviting and scrumptious-looking recipes which include preparations for  meat, game and fowl as well as,  our favorite,  afternoon tea (there are two scone recipes!).

Ready to greet for our weekend guests at Pemberly Pines, like the Carnarvons of Highclere, with a cup of hot tea.

"At Home at Highclere" was written by the current countess, Fiona Carnarvon, in 2017 and I purchased  it shortly after it was published.  I confess, I really didn't do a "deep dive" until recently. Although I truly enjoyed reading all the tales from the past eras of wining and dining, I found I was a bit partial to the end of the book where Lady Carnarvon writes of how she and her family host guests in modern times at Highclere.

Lady Carnarvon details preparations, iternaries, menus and dress for weekend visitors. Bedrooms are filled with fresh linens, towels and flowers from Highclere's gardens. Although there are several bedrooms and bathrooms, there are only four ensuite accommodations (one at each of the four corners of the castle). Lady Carnarvon stresses the importance of dressing gowns if your room is one in which you must use a hallway to reach the nearest bathroom.

Guests at Pemberly Pines also enjoy fresh linens, flowers and (an exclusive!) custom embroidered bath towels.

Lady Carnarvon greets weekend guests with a hot cup of tea or champagne cocktail, (the recipe for the latter is included in the book).  Dinner dress is more relaxed than decades past, but women generally wear a cocktail dress and men, like Lord Carnarvon, favor a smoking jacket and velvet slippers.

Afternoon tea featuring lavender scones from Pemberly Pines garden.

I found some similarities to hosting a weekend at Highclere Castle and our own northern Michigan country home, Pemberly Pines. We greet Friday evening  guests with a freshly brewed cup of Earl Grey or glass of wine. Visitors' rooms are equipped with fresh sheets, flowers from our gardens and (something Highclere may not have!), custom-made  Pemberly Pines bath towels, courtesty Honeywood Embroidery.

Dress codes, however, are much, much more relaxed, except for tea time in the garden (and could I tempt Laird Gulley with velvet slippers/crocs?).

Dress code at Pemberly more relaxed than Highclere, except for tea time. 

If you are a fan of Downton Abbey and/or gracious living in general, you will enjoy this wonderful book filled with the flavors, festivities and fauna of Highclere, accompanied by beautiful pictures of the country estate.

Whether you are hosting a gathering at your 30,000 square foot English country estate or a humble northern Michigan cottage a mere fraction of that size, there's something surely to inspire all  in "At Home at Highclere".

At Home at Highclere, Entertaining at the Real Downton Abbey is available at the Highclere Castle website or Amazon.com.

Lavender cream scones courtesy TeaTime Magazine and the herb garden!

Lavender cream scones courtesy  TeaTime magazine and the herb garden

Scones and lavender -  apart, they are wonderful, together they are magic!

Last weekend, two events inspired me to bake (something I haven't done in well over a year): tending to the herb garden and perusing TeaTime Magazine on-line.  While taking in the sweet aroma of a bumper crop of lavender,  I discovered "Our Favorite Spring Scones" on TeaTime's website.  One of the featured scones was lavender cream and it looked so good, it wasn't long before I was asking my husband to help me find the  Kitchen Aide and other baking essentials.

Ingredients for TeaTime's  lavender cream scones include self-rising flour, lemon zest, butter, sugar, eggs, vanilla, whipping cream and, of course, dried lavender.

Herbs in back and on the side of flowers.

Since I was making the scones on Sunday, I hadn't had the foresight to bundle up the lavender two weeks before and let it dry in a dark, warm space, so I searched for alternate methods. I learned you can also dry lavender in the oven and in the microwave (5 Easy Methods of Drying Lavender at Home). (I did both, to see if there was any difference. I discerned none.)

The TeaTime scone recipe calls for kneading.  I was a little rusty and feared I'd "overwork" the dough. I also rolled out the flour mixture a little too thin, so I bundled it back up for another try.  I'm thinking this recipe must be almost fool-proof, because the scones came out absolutely delicious (something I'm not accustomed to with my infrequent kitchen escapades).

A sugar glaze  (confectioner's sugar and whole milk) is added to the top with pretty lavender flowers as the perfect garnish.

Not "picture perfect", but for scone match-up app, I'd swipe right.

I can't say my scones turned out "picture perfect", nor would I recommend too much fussing with the dough, but I can say, they turned out to be scrumptious and, actually, not unattractive at all. If their photo ended up on a scone match-up app, I'd swipe right.

The recipe states these are best enjoyed the same day as baked. We had no problem following that instruction. We'd only add that these scones are best served in the garden, drinking tea and reading TeaTime Magazine.

Scones best served with tea and TeaTime

Tea in the gardens: Herbs, tea, flowers and fairies

A great time of year to be outside enjoying tea in the garden  - iced or hot!

Although I could never be accused of having a green thumb, I love gardens.  Outdoor spaces become beautiful retreats with the adornment of flowers in a variety of hues, the bounty of fresh vegetables and the aroma of sweet smelling herbs. Add some comfy chairs, a small table and a pot of tea - or a tall pitcher of iced tea! - and gardens become the perfect spot for  entertaining friends and family or providing a little "me time" with a favorite book.  With the cool temps hanging in for so long this spring (we were still seeing freezing temps in northern Michigan in May!) and the quarantine extended into June, this year, gardens seem even more special. We couldn't wait to get started!

Pemberly Pines tea garden grows every year

We have a number of different gardens, mostly under the design and care of my husband, Chris.  Our tea garden at our "up north" home, is going on its eleventh year.  Over the past few years, Chris has built a variety of raised planting beds and those containing the hearty perennials continue to surprise me every season, making it through the cold and snowy Michigan winters/springs. In the other boxes, we plant bright colored annuals.  

Hearty herbs make it through the winter

 

It's no surprise to us, that this has become one of the favorite spots to convene for guests at Pemberly Pines.

Pemberly Pines tea garden, a favorite place for family and friends to gather.

In addition to our tea garden at Pemberly Pines, we have a wild, wild flower plot and an explosion of water lilies in the pond. New this year, a container herb garden on the back deck, to aid in our culinary delights. This can also be easily brought in when the temperatures begin go in the other direction.

At our home-base residence in southeast Michigan, we have a flower garden in the front court and  window boxes hanging on the second-floor balcony filled with ivy and geraniums. This patio space is where we spend most of our outdoor time when weather permits.  When we first saw this condo, as we walked through the private courtyard, before reaching the front door,  I was sold. Seriously, I thought - what a great place to enjoy a cup of tea! And, it really is. (Fortunately for us, the interior turned out to be pretty nice, too).  

The courtyard "sold" us on our new home. Fortunately the interior was okay, too.

We have an herb garden here as well. So far, we've harvested a good bounty of lavender and, it smelled so good, I was inspired to bake some scones this weekend with the fragrant herb. (Stay tuned this week for a blog story on those scones - they are fabulous!!). 

New this year at our patio oasis - a fairy garden, complete with miniature homes that look as though they've been plucked from the English country side. My mother-in-law painted these rock-houses several years ago and, while we've always had them on display in some fashion, it was time to give them a worthy designation. We're just starting to build the "village", but looking forward to adding more.

Fairy garden with rock-solid English country houses

A garden can grow anywhere with some imagination and however it develops, it can bring joy and comfort. Whether it be filled with herbs, flowers, veggies or fairies, it's great place to unwind with a pot of tea and folks or books of your choosing! 

As noted, stay tuned for the lavender scone blog coming up as well as more gardening focused stories (with tea, of course!) on the way.

Tuesday Tea and Tiny Tomes: 'European Treasures' features Giverny, inspiration for Pemberly Pines Pond

Monet's lily ponds in Giverny were the inspiration for Pemberly Pines lily ponds.

What does a magnificent artist's retreat in France and a humble family northern Michigan abode have in common? Aside from the obvious (which there is none), it's the engineered pond, cultivated with love and lilies.

This week's Tuesday Tea and "Tiny" Tomes is brought to you by "European Treasures" a Victoria Magazine special edition from 2015. We purchased this - on sale! - at the online  Hoffman Media store last month. (Hoffman Media publishes many specialty magazines, including our favorite "TeaTiime Magazine".)

European Treasures from Hoffman media boast "The Best of Ireland, Great Britain, France and Italy". 

We were very interested in this special edition because its cover boasts "The Best of Ireland, Great Britain, France and Italy - romantic retreats, glorious gardens and favorite destinations".  I thought we might find a few familiar places among the covers, but of the eighteen sites listed in the table of contents, there was only one we've actually visited: Giverny, France, home to impressionist artist, Claude Monet. But, that brought back some wonderful memories from 2008 and reminder as to the inspiration of our own Pemberly Pines pond one year later.

Monet's water lily pond - a picture we snapped when visiting in 2008

Twelve years ago, my husband, Chris and I, celebrated our 25th Wedding Anniversary with a trip to Paris, which, included a few day trips: one to Versailles and one to Giverny (blog story from 2008, Tea Tour in Paris). 

From the King Louis' crazy rich palace to the rich landscape of Giverny, the latter was impressive in its natural beauty - but that doesn't mean it "just happened".  Monet "tapped into" a nearby river to create his pond and planted those oh-so- famous water lilies before he painted them. As we learned on our trip in 2008, Monet not only painted in his garden, but enjoyed a cup of tea there as well.

Mini Monet print from Giverny gift shop now hangs in Pemberly Pine's gallery

And, as many of you may know, I enjoy gift shops as much as the historic places they reside in, and, I purchased a mini-Monet-masterpiece of the water lily pond. 

Like Givery, Pemberly Pines Pond was "engineered".

One year later, my husband "created" a pond at our up-north home. Like Monet. he planted water lilies and every summer for the last eleven years, we've enjoyed the proliferation of the pond flower garden which brings us increasing numbers of bright white and deep fuchsia  blossoms. (See 2010 blog, Show me the Monet).

Water lily garden and blossoms  at Pemberly grow in number every year

Along with our  mini Monet, we've curated our own gallery of water lily paintings at Pemberly Pines so we can enjoy nature's beauty inside and out.

Pemberly Pines water lily gallery.

Although, we've only visited one of European's Treasures, we're inspired to visit more in the future. On the top of the list is the home of Beatrix Potter in England's lake district. Chris and I stopped in this beautiful area of England in 2018 and vowed to come back.  If we need any arm twisting, I think European Treasures has accomplished that.

Visiting England's lake district, 2018. Hope to be back soon to  the land of Peter Rabit!

In the meantime, I'll enjoy the other of Monet's favorite pastimes - drinking tea at the (Pemberly Pines) pond.