Welcome December 1/12/23

I and celebration December with art by one of my favorite illustrators, Cicely Barker.  I present to you the Holly Fairy.

https://flowerfairies.com/category/collections/winter/

I'm not sure I'm ready for it to be the last month of 2023.  Seems like the year is passing quickly.

Happy Thanksgiving

 

Tea Stands for Tuesday 11/14/23

Happy Tea Party Day.  We've been at the River House for a bit.  It is a beautiful time of year in California.  The sun is out but it isn't too hot.  Great porch sitting weather.

I've posted views from the porch before, even some with the same cup.  I don't think I've ever caught this tree dressed in red before.  We don't get the kind of leaf colors found in the North East so even this much is a delight to the eye

Our front porch was just made for spending time on.  It is wide and deep, plenty of room and pretty much sheltered.  I think it is the reason we bought this particular place.  I usually take my morning cup of coffee out there.  Sometimes I even knit out there,

Now that you have my report, please join me at Elizabeth's blog to visit everyone.

Second on the Second. 11/2/23

Today is the day Elizabeth invites us to bring back a previous post for a second look.  It is getting cold enough here at night to need a quilt so I was reminded of this post.   You can find Elizabeth's blog here.

Originally posted on my old blog.  Quilts - 10/23/14  

 I really like old quilts.  I admire people who piece them and do hand quilting.  I only own a couple of them.  One was made by a woman who was then in her 90's.  She made it sometime around 1970.   Her daughter was a friend of my parents and they bought me the quilt I have.  I've attached a picture of one block.

I found the following old article and thought it expressed what I feel about quilts really well.

* * * * * *

How true this is: There is a charm about patch work quilts, says Jennie June, for which every woman has a weakness. They are full of secret memories, and incidents, and stories, and associations, which are recorded in every square and block as clearly as if traced by the pen of the recording angel.  Such contains squares of every body's dress.  "Here is the blue which you wore to school, and which was made very low in the neck, and always looked to pretty ; and the pink, which was a present from Aunt Abby ; and the calico, which was worn for the first time to go to a certain quilting ; and the dotted muslin, which was such a favorite" 

Cincinnatti Daily Press 1862

Do you own any quilts?  Ever tried quilting?

Tea Stands for Tuesday - 10/31/23

Good Morning friends.  I'm starting the morning off with a cup of coffee and a cranberry orange muffin.

I've been reading quite a bit lately.  I enjoyed this book very much.

Diane Setterfield

 

Setterfield sets the tale along the banks of the River Thames in 1887. True to our own history, this time is rife with superstition and folklore, tales of ghosts and fortune-telling.  It fits the Halloween season.

I'm including this very old scrap paper/ink drawing.  She still makes me smile and I hope she does the same for you.  

Be sure to visit Elizabeth's blog and see what Spooky Things are taking place at the tea party

Tea Stands for Tuesday 10/2/23

 Here we are in October.  I have missed everyone and am very happy to be able to join the Tea Party today.  

my tea ticket

I've spent more time with medical professionals lately than I'd like.  Among other things, I had cataract surgery recently and my world is so much brighter.

Knitting has served as my creative outlet.  Here's a baby blanket I'm working on.  Perfectly displayed for you on the top of my dryer.  Presentation is important but sometimes it is a  case of use what you have, or what you can get to,  Lol

I am using Berrroco yarn in Vintage. a machine washable acrylic/wool blend.  The pattern is from the Purl Soho site and it is what is called a mosaic stitch.

That brings me pretty much up to date.  I am anxious to catch up with my friends on Elizabeth's Blog.

* not my artwork - not sure where I found it.

Second on the Second 10/2/23

Today is the day Elizabeth encourages us to revisit an old post.  I enjoy reading poetry and shared this poem before on my old blog.  I hope you will visit Elizabeth's Blog to see what other people have chosen to share again.

LOST WORD

Jean Burden

I do not believe in a God

who bothers Himself in the trivia

of this planet, but

Lord, could you find me this word?

I know it as well as my name,

but it is running backwards into darkness

as I lurch after it.

It stands for the small mammal

that ate raspberry parfait

at the back door in Big Sur; the huge one

that climbed through Eric's window,

and clawed at his cats:

the old one that made a shambles of his kitchen.

I say possum, skunk,

porcupine, knowing it is not any of these.

The word, Lord! You are supposed to be good

at words. Remember the Word? It is midnight

and I yearn for the elusive thing. I sleep

and waken. It is coming closer. It skitters by

avoiding my eyes. I scurry from attic to cellar

of my mind. It is not there.

Weasel, squirrel, badger, rat.

I am not asking to see the dark side of the moon, God.

Only one word. Will you give it to me with Your light?

I roll to one side. The beast

turns its black triangle of a face

full on me. Ah, raccoon.

Welcome October

Welcome October!  

Its the beginning of pumpkin spice everything season.  What is your favorite way to spice it up?

getting my kitchen ready

I do like a good pumpkin roll cake and I'm a fan of pumpkin pie.  I am not putting pumpkin spice in my coffee though.

Tea Stands for Tuesday 8/15/23

Good Morning friends.  I have Lady Grey tea in my cup this morning.

I'm enjoying a piece of blueberry cake along with the tea.  

In Snacking Cakes, the indulgent, treat-yourself concept of cake becomes an anytime, easy-to-make treat. Expert baker Yossy Arefi’s collection of no-fuss recipes is perfect for anyone who craves near-instant cake satisfaction.

All the recipes are for small cakes, most in an 8x8 pan.  Perfect for the two of us.  Some of the recipes are online.  You can get the recipe for this cake here   The blueberry cake went together easily and turned out to be delicious.

Please join me and others at the tea party Elizabeth hosts on Tuesdays.  You can find the party here.

Welcome August

 Gladiolus are an offical flower for the month of August. I love them for their old fashioned look. I don't see them in gardens very much anymore,

Tea Stands for Tuesday 7/18/23 10th Anniversary

Time to celebrate 10 years of Tea Stands for Tuesday.

Such a big THANK YOU to our hostess, Elizabeth for keeping this going.

You can visit Elizabeth and previous Tuesday posts here.

As part of the celebration, Elizabeth hosted a Swap.  My swap partner was Iris Flavia who is in Germany.  We decided on exchanging a postcard along with out two tea bags.

I was excited to see mail from Germany.

Here is a closer look at the stamp.  It looks like there is a bar code attached to one sside.  I havent seem that before.

Iris created a postcard for the exchange.  I love how colorful it is.  If you are familiar with ther blog you will recognize the lion as her signature animal.

The two tea bags she included are  Tuddel, a blueberry tea and the second one is Sunshine in Cup, an herbal tea with lemon grass.  I have not tried them.  I wanted to be sure to get pictures  before opening them.   I will of course be saving the tea wrappers for mixed media art.

Last of all here is the well decorated back of the envelope.  Notice the lion once again.  Thank you Iris for everything.  I will think of you as I enjoy the tea.

My computer has not been cooperative this morning but after numbers of tries I think I have a post,  I'm going to make that cup of tea now and have it with a nice big cookie.  I'll be heading to the Tea Party to see what people swapped and visit all the gang there.

 

Tea Stands for Tuesday 7/10/23

 July is becomming a very busy month.  

I discovered this tea at Sprout's grocery.  I'm afraid it doesn't taste as good as I expected it to.  I actually had to steep a slice of ginger in it to get much flavor at all.  I think I fell for the colorful packaging.

A few days ago I had cataract surgery on one eye.  I will have the cataract in the other eye fixed later this month.  Every thing is so bright.  I can't believe how dingy the cataract was making things look.  

Since I can't see well enough to drive and I don't have a car I've been back to walking the neighborhood,  I don't go as far as I used to but I'm trying to build up my stamina. The insurance from my car has been settled and soon I will be car shopping.

Three family members have birthdays this month and a wedding is coming up next Saturday.  It is Party Central here.

Speaking of parties, lets hop on over to Elizabeths blog and check the Tea Party there.

Happy 4th of JUly

 

Tea Stands for Tuesday 6/19/23

Things are broken around here.  I did drink some mandarin orange and ginger tea earlier though.

 

Three days ago I was t-boned in an intersection.  The driver of the other car had a stop sign, I did not.  It was on a city street about 6 blocks from home.

Police, firemen and ambulance all showed up.  Several people came out of their houses to see if I was ok.  I was badly shaken but nothing worse.   I was seen in ER and the next day by my own doctor.

The car was totaled according to insurance and several pro's say I'm lucky to have walked away from it with no serious injuries.  Of course I'm left with the aftermath of insurance and trying to decide about another car.

That's my rather unhappy report.  I'm heading to the Tea Party at Elizabeth's to cheer myself up.

Tea Stands for Tuesday 6/12/23

Hello everyone,

I"m enjoying some green tea in my newest mug.  Another "Nana Cup" for my collection.  A gift from the Great Grands this time.  DH picked some lemons from our yard but lemon in green tea just sounds wrong so I will save them for later.

Yesterday was Knit in Public Day..  I took my knitting to the park but no one seemed to notice, LOL!  I finished this pair of fingerless mitts though.

This pattern/method  is about as simple as it gets.  I'm trying to use up a bunch of small amounts of yarn left from projects.  It is hard to see but the mitts are grey until just above the thumb and then the top is a dark wine,  

My exchange went in the mail last week.  

I'm heading to Elizabeth's blog now.  Hoping to catch up with everyone.

 

Knit in Public

 I think I will get a cup of coffee on 4th St. and sit outside and knit for a little while.

Tea Stands for Tuesday 5/23/23

Tuesday and time for tea.  We have been at our River House recently.  I don't have internet there so I have to catch up on things when we return to the Bay.

This is the view from the back of our property.  The river is running really high for this time of year.  That is due to the snow melt from record amounts of snow in NoCA this past winter.

It is so enjoyable to sit our our front porch and drink my coffee.

The jasmine around our courtyard is in full bloom and smells wonderful.  Everything is quite lush.  The gate is open, come on in. 

Here is a closer look at the vine that covers the trellis over the gate.  I don't know the name of it, do you?

Join me in visiting everyone having tea at Elizabeth's blog.  There is always something interesting going on there.

 

Tea Stands for Tuesday 5/2/23

Hello Tea Party friends.  I've been away for a bit but I'm back now and happy to try to catch up with everyone.  If you stumbled upon my blog and wonder what I'm talking about check out Elizabeth's blog.  That is home to the party.

 Home is also where the wi-fi lives.

Speaking of home. While away from the computer, I found time to create some art.  

pen and water color

5x7 card

  

This most recent art work was inspired by Tori Burt.  There seems to be a lot of the similar theme going around art groups right now.  I quite enjoyed working this way.

Sunday Morning 4/9/23

 

Happy Easter

Wishing everyone a wonderful weekend.  We will be heading to the river soon.  Spring should be showing some colors there.

Tea Stands for Tuesday 4/4/23

 The sun is shining and it is time to join Elizabeth for the first tea party in April.

(internet photo)

I'm currently drinking coffee in a mug you've seen too often,  If I were drinking tea I'd like it in one of these cups.  Perhaps not the middle one.  When I look at it I see two eyes peeking over the cup underneath.  Ok.  Maybe I need to get off the caffeine, Lol

1

walnuts from our property

We have a really big old walnut tree on our river property.  One of the neighbors said he'd harvest all the nuts for us if he could keep half.  I thought that was a good deal.  Little did I know he was going to shell them and give me beautiful walnut halves.  We got this jar full plus a gallon bag more.  I gave the  bag of them to my daughter.

candied walnuts

I made candied walnuts for the first time.  They were delicious;  One batch used  3 cups of walnuts so I may go through that jar quicker than I think.

What would you do with so many walnuts?

Second on the Second 4/2/23

 Good morning friends.  Elizabeth has invited us to bring an old post back for a second look.  Here is one of mine from 2015.  I can no longer take long walks and I miss it.   To see what others are sharing check here.

From 2015:

By now everyone knows I go out walking every morning.  Walking gives me lots of time to think, to look, to imagine.  Here are a few things that caught my eye on a recent walk.

I like shabby old fences.  I particularly like the points on these pickets.  I wonder why those vertical parts are pickets.  Anyone know?

This planter bed is in a commercial part of my walk.   I like the texture and imagine someone placing all those pieces of stone just so.  Another question.  What kind of stones are they?  The word "shale" comes to mind but I really haven't a clue.  Do you?

I spotted these very colorful animal figures in a window I was passing.  Hard to capture just how bright the colors were, too much glare on the window.  The shop carries a mixture of items, many imported.  I wonder what the country of origin was for these,

Last but not least I stopped at my favorite coffee shop to buy a pound of beans.  When you buy beans they give you a free cup of coffee.  Usually I drink my coffee black but this time I decided to follow Elizabeth's example and add half and half.  I took my coffee to a nearby bench and settled in for some people watching,

Speaking of people, why don't you join me at Altered Book Lover and visit the Tea Tuesday party.

Welcome April

 

“April hath put a spirit of youth in everything.”

 William Shakespeare

Tea Stands for Tuesday 3/28/23

 Hello Tea Party friends.  It is nearly noon at my house so I'm going to sneak in at the last minute.

I've been drinking lots of tea and saving the tea bags to experiment with in my art.  

Two tea bags, one on top of the other, enclosing a piece of dried flower.  This will be nice for a nature journal.  I will surely be drying some flowers in the future.  I didn't have much dried material to use in my eperiment.

 Here I used square tea bags.  I slit them from the back and put my dried bits inside.  The bags were a darket color and I didn't get all the tea out.

This time I again slit the back and inserted some small stamped and water colored pieces.

All the tea bags were covered/sealed with Golden's mat medium.  I had fun with the idea and will be saving tea bags and dried flowers to try the process again.

That's my tea talk for this Tuesday.  Best hurry over to see Elizabeth's blog before Tuesday is over.

Tea Stands for Tuesday -3/21/23

We all know the best time to drink our tea is on Tuesday.  However, here are some further instructions in case you need them 

I'm writing on the day of the Spring Equinox.  I'm so ready for spring.  Poppies are favorites of mine.  I draw or paint them fairly often.  Here are some poppies to celebrate spring.

oi pastels, ink, mixed media paper

I have been working on various ways to create my own blank sketch books,   At  the same time I want the books to be made using recycled materials as much as possible.  I have lots to learn.  Have any of you created your own blank books?

Hoping everyone is enjoying the changing of the seasons no matter which hemisphere you are in.  

Thanks again to Elizabeth for hosting this Tuesday event.  You can find out about Tuesday Tea and much more on her blog AlteredBookLover.