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| New teas and fancy tablescapes are part of the In/Out Zone 2022 |
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| Fun-do with scarce pots, but note the chargers! |
Food and drink
In: Fun-due! Fondue has been our family tradition for a quarter of a century, starting with our family of five and expanding over the years. It's an activity as well as a meal and, in times of over-caution, mini-pods of two can share the same pot. The host only needs to cut up and plate proteins and veggies and guests, with their own color-coded skewers for self-serve, can cook in their respective pot of simmering oil. As per our custom, this can all be followed by chocolate fondue, where one can dip fruits and sponge cake in melted dark chocolate. Added bonus, as my husband, Chris, the grand fondue orchestrator, proclaims every year, "if you don't like your dinner, blame the cook".
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| One of the many benefits of fondue: host is not blamed for bad cooking |
Out: of stock! As our fun-due celebration has expanded, so has our need for fondue pots. This year, in need of two more, we found these mini modern cauldrons in short supply. There were none to be found at Target, Meijer's, Costco, Macy's, Sur-la-Table or Williams Sonoma. Finally, we took a chance on an Amazon purchase with a sketchy delivery date, and, fortunately, they did arrive on time. Our advice: for your fun-due event, shop early!
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| Cheesecake cookie - always welcome |
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| Cookies baked from scratch, and no data privacy issues |
In: Accepting cookies - It's always a treat to be gifted cookies, homemade or from a great bakery. My daughter, Rachel, baked a different batch of cookies every day in December and many of us were the fortunate recipients. We also received a box from the Detroit Cookie Company which included a cheesecake stuffed cookie. Excessively scrumptious!
Out: Accepting cookies on the internet - although agreeing to a website's tracking system is not necessarily a bad thing, if you do accept, take caution. Your social media feed may provide more customized content, but cookies can clog your computer and invade your privacy. When in doubt, accept the cheesecake cookie instead.
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| Partea from Michigan's Short's Brewing, move over hot toddies! |
In: Tea for after 5:00. Move over hot toddies and partay with Partea, a sparkling hard tea from Michigan's own Short's Brewing Company. This is a blend of mango, apricot and black current tea mixed with rose hips, orange peel and cinnamon. With a low alcohol percentage (under 4%), it's equivalent to a light beer, but more at home on your tea table.
In-home Streaming and Movies
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| Gilded Age BTS talk from 2019, updated for 2022 |
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| Gilded Age "cottages" are back! |
In: Downton Abbey - A New Era The movie sequel is scheduled to premiere March 18th and BTS is ready! We'll be part of some great events at Meadow Brook and The Townsend Hotel, in February and March, respectively. Again, stay tuned!
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| Downton Abbey talks at Meadow Brook this year! |
In: Bridgerton, Season 2. More "March madness", with Brigderton, where the hoops are in the skirts at Court. The series returns to Netflix on March 25. It's Jane Austen meets "Gossip Girl", but with more disrobing. However, when in pursuit of a count or viscount, be prepared with your best Regency ball gown to gain the approval of Queen Charlotte. (We have ours!)
As noted in our blog last January (Fancy tea sets surge in popularity), Bridgerton has not only piqued our interest for Georgian England, but increased our appetite for the finer things, including fancy tea sets. Continuing on that theme, it's time to elevate the dining room.
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| Recent period dramas, like Bridgerton, have influenced demand in the finer things! |
Fine dining
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| Take charger of your tablescape with fine china, fancy linens, gleaming crystal and, yes, chargers! |
In: Dominating tablescapes - take charger of your life! BTS has long had a penchant for chargers, but I only purchased my own collection last year. As we noted in our blog last month (Christmas tablescapes), respected table design gurus promote them and even suggest employing the economical variety of chargers that can be found at many dollar or craft stores. The latter is where we amassed one hundred for our daughter and son-in-law's wedding reception in September. Since then, I've used them for almost every dinner party we've had to justify their existence as my husband is taking an unhealthy (IMHO) focus on how much storage space they occupy.
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| Chargers add a lot with little effort, but do require some storage |
Wherever you source them from, however, chargers will add color, texture, and interest to your table. Their magic lies in the punch they provide for so little effort.
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| Wedgwood - not just for jasperware anymore. |
In: Fine china. More "In" for your tablescape, we have two favorites:
(1) Wedg-would you be mine? Wedgwood is more than jasperware (Wedgwood blues) and we're onboard for more!! For Christmas, I was gifted a tea-for-one set in the beautiful Butterfly Bloom pattern. Tablescapes aren't just for large groups! Treat yourself to some luxury.
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| Herend, a DA trend in china circles back * a century later |
(2) Herend - another great china company, and although it's not from England, it did receive the approval from Queen Victoria. When we visited Hungary last fall, Herend's country of origin, we purchased a tea cup in the Chinese bouquet pattern - the same one used by Lady Grantham in Downton Abbey. (blog story: Herend's fine porcelain in Budapest)
Lifestyle
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| Friday night punch-out high replaced with Sunday night rush |
In: The Sunday evening rush from not clocking in on Monday morning.
Out: The Friday evening rush from clocking out. Oh, wait, these may be more specific to the recently retired. I joined that club last November - but only from my corporate job. That only means more time for Barb's Tea Service and we have so much in store for this year: events, books, travel and more!
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| City Bonfires both romantic and beautiful! |
In: City bonfires - Enjoy a bonfire on the patio without the fuss. Roast a marshmallow or two on the tabletop with City Bonfires, a compact fire pit that literally requires no heavy lifting. Romantic and pragmatic, just like BTS!
Outside: Even in compact form, this is for the outdoors only!
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| Don't "no worries", be Merry! |
Out: "No worries" - this year's list of banned phrases from Lake Superior State University includes the tired, oft used phrase. Many times, it's used to replace "you're welcome", but has become so common as to be meaningless. So, just be "merry".
In: Be Merry - not as easy to always subscribe to, but, like Bing Crosby in "White Christmas", we counted our blessings this Christmas. Chris and I had six of them under our roof this holiday season (not including the pets).
And, for our BTS family, where it's always "the more the merrier"! Thanks for stopping by and cheers (Partea or Earl Grey) to seeing you all more in 2022! "In"-clude us in your future tea plans, in any time or trend zone!
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