The Purple Door Tea Room: Delightful Afternoon Tea in Ferndale

The Purple Door Tea Room in Ferndale, offers a variety of tea fare menu options

 

Beyond the eponymous brightly hued entrance, The Purple Door Tea Room offers a splendid afternoon tea in a room filled with pastel colors, fresh and silk flowers and pretty tea accoutrements. We visited this charming Ferndale tearoom this week with family and thoroughly enjoyed our tea time experience.

Family outing for afternoon tea at The Purple Door Tea Room

The Purple Door Tea Room offers a variety of tea fare menu options, ranging from the "Tulip Tea" with two tea sandwiches and soup for $15.00 to the traditional "Afternoon Tea" which includes soup, salad, tea sandwiches and two desserts for $35.00. They offer gluten-free and dairy-free options as well.

All of the tea fare comes with a choice of tea, offered tableside in a tea caddy.  Tea bags are used, but every guest gets their own teapot with a tea bag holder. Once you're happy with the steep time, you can remove the bag and set it neatly aside.

Tablescapes are decorated with fresh and silk flowers and pretty tea accoutrements

Three at our table ordered the "Magnolia Tea", which is just a slightly abbreviated "Afternoon Tea", having soup or salad as on option and one less dessert. (If you order the salad, you are treated to a chilled salad fork.) The tea savories included an English cucumber sandwich, a turkey and smoked cheddar on sourdough, chicken salad on an apple slice and a roasted red pepper bruschetta flatbread, all tasty and beautifully presented.

Savories are scrumptious and beautifully presented

Our dessert was a cinnamon/sugar "tea cake", which co-owner, Matthew Dixon, explained was like a coffee cake, but with a name more appropriate for the venue.  😉

Cinnamon/sugar "tea cake" for dessert

Matthew also filled us in on a brief history of The Purple Door Tea Room. It's been in the family for several years, starting as part of an art gallery in downtown Detroit. The tearoom moved to its current Ferndale location eight years ago.

The Purple Door Tea Room is open Tuesday thru Sunday from 11:00 to 5:00. Advanced reservations are required. For more information, visit their Facebook page:  The Purple Door Tea Room.

Downton Abbey comes to the Townsend Hotel: Celebrating a "new era" for DA and BTS

Barb Gulley and Rachel Brown of BTS present a DA tea at The Townsend

Last Sunday, Barb's Tea Service presented a "Downton Abbey-inspired afternoon tea talk" at The Townsend, ushering in a new era for both the movie and BTS at Birmingham's luxury hotel.  Like the 1920's of the new Downton Abbey movie, we had a roaring good time at the sold out event.  We enjoyed the great tea and tea fare, the excellent customer service and getting to know the most wonderful guests in attendance.

Sold-out event the tea lobby was filled with delightful guests

Rachel and I donned our vintage dresses and "set up shop" in the beautiful Townsend afternoon tea lobby with its welcoming fireplace and glittering crystal chandeliers. After the challenging conditions of last two years, it was wonderful to be back The Townsend.  Having presented a number of Downton Abbey-inspired teas over the years at this elegant venue, it felt like we were back home, but this time with inspiration from "Downton Abbey:  A New Era" (we revealed no spoilers!) and a lot of new material from BTS.

Guests came as far as Midland and Downriver - paired with significant others or mom/daughters and a number of bffs - all coming together for fun, food and fabulous Downton Abbey. 

We shared a "scoop" with our new (and "old") friends about an upcoming BTS trip out east (will disclose more shortly!).  In turn, we learned about some tea trips our guests were planning and spilled the tea with a delightful couple who had amazing stories of their own.

DA attire changes with the era

Afternoon tea fare at The Townsend

We've been hosting teas at The Townsend since 2014 on a variety of topics -  and Downton Abbey-inspired talks for almost as long. Our dress styles have changed as Downton Abbey made its way from pre-World War I to the jazz age, but our fondness for the Crawleys and their extended families, both upstairs and downstairs, remains unwavered. 

Barb's Tea Service and Downton Abbey are ready to embrace the new era. It was truly special to celebrate it at The Townsend with its awesome guests!

Having tea in the home of the World's Biggest Tee: Casey, Ilinois - a small town of big things!

The World's Biggest Mailbox resides in Casey, the small town of big things

This story is big, really BIG!

Last month while my husband, Chris, and I were on a short road trip from Detroit to southern Illinois, a few "local attraction" signs along the highway caught our attention. First, we saw the claim of the "World's Largest Mailbox".  That in itself was impressive enough to tempt us to take a detour. But wait, we found there was more - so MUCH more!

The sign for the MAILBOX was followed by more billboards boasting a host of other "world's biggest" things including a rocking chair, a set of wind chimes, a truck key and a golf tee.  I began to suspect this magical place must surely have a giant magnet as well as we were pulled so strongly off the highway and into Casey, the small town of big things.

The World's Biggest Golf Tee is conveniently located on a golf course in Casey.

According to Enjoy Illinois, the on-line official guide to Illinois, I found that the genesis for these large-scale attractions came from a local businessman who wanted to open a tea shop!

In order to bring visitors to Casey, Jim Bolin, knew he had to "think outside of the box" - and what a big box that was.

World's largest truck key

World's largest wind chimes

Using resources from his family-owned pipeline and tank maintenance business, Bolin built a 54-foot set of working wind chimes, his first "world's biggest" creation, acknowledged by Guiness in 2011. The tearoom, Whitling Whimsey Cafe, followed in 2012, with eleven more big things on the way. 

Casey is currently the official site of twelve Guiness World Records for World's Largest Attractions.

World's Largest Rocking Chair

Big excitement from big things

On our first stop to Casey last month, we visited the mailbox, golf tee and truck key.  Last week, on another trek to southern Illinois, we extended our stay in this alluring town, along with my brother-in-law.  This time, we made it to the Whistling Whimsey for a cup of tea. Situated next to the wind chimes and across from the rocking chair, we had a grand view from the outside patio.

Having tea at the Whitling Whimsey Cafe, next to the World's Largest Wind Chimes

The Whitling Whimsey is more "cafe" than "tearoom", but, like its over-sized neighbors, it's big on charm. 

We had tea in the home of the World's Biggest Tee, Casey, Illinois. A great place to escape the bustle of the highway and take a moment to "smell the roses", whether they are the world's biggest American Beauty's or not.

 

Herend porcelain pairs well with tea time and TeaTime Magazine

Enjoying tea time with Herend tea cup and TeaTime Magazine

Herend porcelain is beautiful china from Hungary with a rich past. Its elegant tea cups - in a variety of unique patterns - pair well with afternoon tea and TeaTime Magazine. In fact, the history of Herend is included in the current (May/June) issue of TeaTime Magazine, featured as one of its cover stories. Your humble BTS blogger had as much fun writing about this amazing porcelain manufacturer as we did shopping for its fine products in Budapest.

 

May/June issue cover stories include "The History of Herend China"

Last fall, as part of a Blue Danube cruise, we visited Germany, Austria and, on its final stop, Hungary. While in Budapest, we supped on goulash, visited a castle, and sampled several varieties of paprika, but, perhaps the most exhilarating experience was shopping at one of the three Herend shops in this capital city.

Outside one of the Herend stores in Budapest with tea cup in the bag

For the full scoop, turn to page 75 of the May/June TeaTime Magazine. 

We are super fans of TeaTime and have found many connections via this very special specialty publication. Starting back in 2014, when we read about a Denver tea lady and, after meeting her in person in Colorado, shared the experience in "The Tea Diaries" feature of the magazine. We later wrote stories about Highclere Castle (aka "the real Downton Abbey") and a couple of unexpected tea rooms in Italy, all included in the pages of TeaTime.

We're still bonding with lovers of tea and of TeaTime wherever we travel, including just last month, when we stayed at a most charming Virginia B & B. The owner had a display of  TeaTime magazines on a wicker table in the sunroom and she brought out the May/June issue that had just arrived.

The History of Herend penned by Barbara Gulley

We're making Herend porcelain our new collector's obsession, as time and budget allows, but TeaTime is a most affordable luxury every other month and it pairs well with just about everything.

Bonding with fellow tea enthusiasts over TeaTime in our travels

Tuesday Tea and Tomes: We give plenty of stars to "The Giver of Stars" (and, perhaps, a gold one to a remarkable First Lady)

The Giver of Stars, like the horseback librarians, covers a lot of ground

The Giver of Stars, like the horseback librarians in the small town of Baileyville, covers a lot of ground. A fictionalized tale based on actual events, the most recent book by author Jo Jo Moyes, weaves the stories of five women who find support for themselves and their community as part of the  Depression era traveling librarians initiative. From diverse backgrounds, they battle their struggles, (abuse, sexism, racism and poverty) finding courage in service and friendship. 

The strength these women find in purpose may take its cue from a "silent partner", Eleanor Roosevelt. Although  the First Lady is not central to the story,  she was instrumental in supporting the mobile library, bringing books to rural areas scarce in reading material, as well as a trail blazer in coal miners' rights, another struggle in areas like The Giver of Star's Baileyville, Kentucky.

The Roosevelt home in Hyde Park, NY

At the FDR library with the Roosevelts

In fact, like the traveling librarians, Eleanor Roosevelt faced criticism for taking on issues as a woman. She was attacked for visiting coal mines and highlighting safety issues. Her response, "In Defense of Curiosity" was  published in the Saturday Evening Post (August, 1935). The following is a most moving excerpt from the article:

"Somehow or other, most of the people who spoke to me, or wrote to me about it, seemed to feel that it was unbecoming in a woman to have a variety of interests. Perhaps that arose from the old inherent theory that woman's interests must lie only in her home. This is a kind of blindness which seems to make people feel that interest in the home stops within the four walls of the house in which you live. Few seem capable of realizing that the real reason that home is important is that it is so closely tied, by a million strings, to the rest of the world. That is what makes it an important factor in the life of every nation."

In that spirit, the Baileyville librarians, who brought books - and, with that, possibilities - to the most remote areas of their community, made their own homes better in the process. 

Eleanor Roosevelt Tea Talk at The Townsend

As great fans of Eleanor Roosevelt, having traveled to the FDR library and the Roosevelt home in Hyde Park, New York and presenting Eleanor Roosevelt tea talks at such notable venues as The Townsend Hotel, we were immediatly drawn to this storyline. 

Our monthly chats:  books, friendship and challenges, the latter mostly in video technology 

I must give stars and, much gratitude, to my long time friend and recent book club cohort, Loretta, for not only putting this book on my radar, but supporting a monthly book discussion as well. And further kudos to Loretta's sister for her list of amazing reading recommendations. This was the first, and we heed all your future suggestions!

For our book club de deux, over coffee and tea -  and, without giving away too much of the novel -  we discussed the characters we were drawn to, the grocery store tip-off/redemption and the likelihood of the librarians' epilogue. 

Overall, a very readable book that covers challenges, perseverance, friendship and purpose (much like Loretta's and my monthly chats!). Also, it highlights a time in our country's history where equal and civil rights along with fair labor practices were coming to the surface and championed by some unlikely, but remarkable, ladies. They all deserved stars, whether they lived in the White House or a mountain cabin in rural Kentucky.