Garden Flowers Today

I just love all the flowers blooming

in our gardens right now.

I see I have an awful lot of purple

 all blooming at the same time.

I love the daily changes happening

to the gardens.

Even knowing what will bloom

I am always still a little surprised.

And pleased it came back to us;

happy to learn winter's cold chill didn't stop its miracle.

As for the weeds (that virtually nothing can seem to kill)

I am just ignoring them today and enjoying the beauty.

My roses are showing themselves slowly but surely-

will share them in a post soon. 

I wish you all a wonderful weekend

 doing what you love the most.

~~~~*~~~~

As always, thank you for stopping by!

♥

~Michele

Linking:

Show and Tell

Finch Rest Emporium -Blog Shop

Wow, it's that time again!

Blog Market Shop Linky Day!

This week I am featuring cute

random things that are perfect

for your outdoor dining experience:

Tea Time amongst the flowers

Garden or Pool Luncheon

Dinner al fresco under the trees

And you may find all these good things at

The Finch Rest Emporium!

~~~~~*~~~~~

How about a set of 4 stoneware leaf plates?

Or a set of 4 bright floral linen napkins?

Fun hand-painted floral wine goblets for two?

(Each complete with a sweet butterfly!)

Salad/dessert plates for a garden-themed party!

(There are currently 7 of them available)

Or 4 gorgeous floral china napkin rings?

All this and more may be found in my shop -

which changes often as time allows me to add new things!

As always, thank you for your visit!

♥

~Michele

Linking:

THE MARKETPLACE

BLOG SHOP

Peony Inspired Tea Tablescape

Oh, the first of the peonies!

How I adore them!

They never fail to inspire me to set a pretty table

and feature them front and center!

They are so amazing, feminine, delicate and lovely...

and entirely much too short lived!

My wonderful neighbors a few doors down

have two of the sweetest little blonde girls.

Every year when their early light pink peonies bloom

they never fail to bring me a vase of them.

They know how much I love them and appreciate this gift.

(Their peonies are the first to bloom in this neighborhood.)

Apparently there are many many varieties of peonies.

I learned this from reading Carolyn Aiken's new book.

She and her husband planted all sorts of varieties of peonies

to prolong and stretch its pretty season at their home.

If you haven't yet been to Carolyn's incredible blog-

or have yet to order her new book

 do so soon- it's AWESOME!

Her gorgeous inspiration picture book would make

 the most thoughtful gift to anyone

 on your list who loves beauty and gardens! 

Go here to see!

I set this table with my prized antique Bavarian china
in the Orleans pattern.

I absolutely treasure this set, and of all  my china

 it is my absolute favorite.

I have been adding pieces to it for years now.

I found these bouillon cups that match it nicely. 

They are also Bavarian made.

For some odd reason I failed to think of grabbing

 their matching saucers too -

 and after taking all these pics no way was I going to redo it.

A simple white tablecloth was just the thing needed

to gently "feature" the peonies and floral china.

Nothing more was needed at all.

~~~*~~~

There is something about delicate

 pink rose china

 that just oozes sweetness.

These teacups are paper thin and feather-light.

This table would make a lovely bridal tea luncheon.

(There isn't much sweeter than a blushing bride!)

I also used my pink swirls glassware.

Gold flatware was used to match the gilding on the china.

Pretty pink floral china napkins rings complement the table.

As always, thank you for your visit!

♥

~Michele

Be also sure to check our Beverly's
nifty puzzle she posted yesterday!

Linking:

Pink Saturday  * Saturday Show Off  * Seasonal Sundays

Show Off Sunday  *  Mosiac Monday  * Tea Time Tuesday

Return to Loveliness  * Open House   * Share Your Cup

Tablescape Thursday  * Tea in the Garden

Finch Rest Emporium - Blog Shop

I just listed this sweet hand painted antique tea set in my shop.

It's signed by the artist F. Cooper and dated 1914.

It is shaped in the "rage" popularity of the time, Art Deco style.

It's just waiting for the perfectly right owner.

The hand painted pink roses are just SO SWEET!

I have a great deal of items to list so check back often -

 many of them are tea related

Thanks for taking the time to visit and browse the shop, too.





Have a truly blessed day!

♥

~Michele

Inspiration shop linky parties:



~and~

Common Ground Marketplace

Linking also to:

HOME

Lilacs, Chintz Teapot & The Grand Union Tea Company

I have the most fragrant 4 lilac bushes

 wafting their intoxicating scent all through the house!

With this amazing warm breeze blowing today

I am finding it difficult to concentrate-

all I want to do is daydream!

I am truly thankful for our yard and our plants and trees.

Here's a pic of a smaller lilac bush we transplanted

 from the big garden to put in the tree line of

the back yard. I was worried it wouldn't make it,

 but they are truly hardy and it DID!

I wanted it moved because it was growing so fast and large

that it wasn't leaving room for the roses where it was originally.

By the way - a fairly sad thing: 
our neighbors chopped down

 their huge lilac bush yesterday. 

They didn't even wait for it to finish it's lovely blooming time.

(We really felt a disturbance in The Force when it was gone.)

This is a treasured vintage Arthur Wood chintz teapot.

I think the colours in it are so pretty.

One little spray branch of lilac fits perfectly

in an old sweet vintage tonic bottle.

And this bottle is extra special because it is from the

GRAND UNION TEA COMPANY!

A little about the history of Grand Union Tea Company:

Cyrus, Frank, and Charles Jones founded what was to become Grand Union in 1872.
 They called the business the Jones Brothers Tea Co., starting with one store in Scranton, Pennsylvania, where the shelves were stocked with coffee, tea, spices, baking powder, and flavoring extracts. 

The brothers expanded the business steadily, branching out with new stores in eastern Pennsylvania, Michigan, and New York. By the time it built its headquarters and warehouse in Brooklyn, New York, the company was known as the Grand Union Tea Co.

For additional info please see the source here.

{Source}

As always, thanks for your visit!

Have a wonderful week!

Prayers go out to Oklahoma!

♥

Michele

Be sure to go visit

Linking also to:

Return to Loveliness  * Sunny Simple Monday  * HOME

Tutorials Tips and Tidbits  * Home and Garden Thur

Feathered Nest  Friday

Red Teatime in the Garden

Oh, finally a pretty spring day here!

It's a bright and cheerful day

 and perfect for my first teatime outdoors!

My Royal Albert red roses tea today is inspired

 by two wonderful gifts  from my husband

 for Mother's Day:

A red Gerbera potted daisy plant and raspberry cheesecake!

From there I grabbed a straw hat

 that I embellished last year

 with red flowers and a pretty red toile ribbon.

I just had to grab a pretty red roses sugar cube.

(Though I've shown you them before.)

I absolutely adore fancy sugar cubes 

and almost always have them on hand

 in all sorts of different designs and colours.

It's nice to keep pretty things around,

as we never know who may pop over for tea!

It looks right and happily situated on my golden fork.

I normally don't sweeten my teas so it's there for show only.

It sure is nice that the cold rain finally stopped

and I could come outside to enjoy tea time today.

The garden is coming to life again- the purple phlox is blooming.

I missed the yellow and purple iris because it bloomed then rained for three days, and now it all spent before I could share.

But rain is a blessing, and necessary, so I shan't complain.

Yes, it all started with a sweet red Gerbera daisy plant,

sitting on an old thrift store wicker table

with a lush green background on a pretty spring day.

Thanks for joining me for tea today.

Be sure to visit all the linky parties below

 for many lovely and inspirational tea times!

Especially visit Return to Loveliness
for Kathy's Downton Abbey tea post!

♥

~Michele

Linking:

Tea Time Tuesday  * Tea in the Garden  * Teacup Tuesday - Terri

Teacup Tuesday - Martha  * Outdoor Wednesday  *  Homework Wednesday

Share Your Cup  * Simple and Sweet Fridays  * Tablescape Thursday

Happy Mother's Day 2013

Happy Mother's Day!

“God’s Helpers” by George W. Wiseman

God could not be in every place

With loving hands to help erase

The teardrops from each baby’s face,

And so He thought of mother.

He could not send us here alone

And leave us to a fate unknown;

Without providing for His own,

The outstretched arms of mother.

God could not watch us night and day

And kneel beside our crib to pray,

Or kiss our little aches away;

And so He sent us mother.

And when our childhood days began,

He simply could not take command.

That’s why He placed our tiny hand

Securely into mother’s.

The days of youth slipped quickly by,

Life’s sun rose higher in the sky.

Full grown were we, yet ever nigh

To love us still, was mother.

And when life’s span of years shall end,

I know that God will gladly send,

To welcome home her child again,

That ever-faithful mother.

Wishing any mothers, step-mothers, grandmothers, godmothers or mother figures a wonderful day

 filled with joy and love.

♥

Michele

Linking:

Pink Saturday