A Book Lovers Tea for ATAA Members

Greetings one and all!

I am your hostess, Heather, bringing you our final June tea for Team Darjeeling.

Last week, Tilly TARDIS and I prepared our invitations to send out to the ATAA members who had agreed to attend our Book Lovers Tea.
But, before I get to that, let me remind everyone (in case ya missed it) what a TARDIS is.  TARDIS stands for Time And Relative Dimensions in Space.  Dr. Who is a BBC tv series, and his spaceship is hidden in plain site as an old-fashioned police box (but, it's bigger on the inside).  You can click here for more details.
Ok, back to the invites!  Since it is a book lovers tea, I decided to design my invitations to look like little books.

CLICK here to order these note cards
 (box of 20, each one different!)

I used blank note cards I already owned, and stapled in blank papers.  I also added a title, and author (that's me!) with a calligraphy pen.

Forward: This is the tale of the adventures of Tilly TARDIS and a Book Lovers Tea.  An opportunity for tea sisters from the group Afternoon Tea Across America to come together and fellowship, sharing their recipes and tea books, while brewing new friendships.
Ch. 1 The Date, Ch. 2 The Time, etc. etc.

Ch. 6 - 9

Music to greet the guests at the door (thank you to whomever posted this selection on the FB group page. I LOVE it!)

The lovely guests who traveled 

from far and wide through

time and space to be here.

Tea Music playing in 

our tea room.  Antonio Vivaldi 

6 hours on this YouTube link

The Tea Table

Last minute inspiration struck

this morning & I hung miniature 

tea books from the chandelier :)

citrus

A candle 

& more tea music

in the powder room

The Art of Tea

my #1 rule/tip for any party:

deep clean your bathroom

the day before, and give it a quick wipe down again

after you finish getting ready

the day of.  Your

guests will appreciate it! 

However, if you have a yucky

bathroom, your guests will remember. ;)

Here are our 3 teapots.  Tilly

is front and center.  For

inquiring minds, she holds 

approx. 24oz comfortably. 

For Lady Heather

For Lady Bonnie

For Lady Juanita

For Lady Kay

For Lady Mary

Napkin & flatware

tucked inside a paper doily, sealed with a sticker.

Thank you Pinterest!

And nooooooow, the FOOD!

Lady Mary & Lady Kay (twin sisters btw), brought orange dreamsicle fairy cakes, chicken salad sandwiches, and pastel ribbon sandwiches, thoughtfully placed

on a tiered stand.

Here is the recipe for the unique and 

tasty chicken salad sandwiches.  The ladies kindly brought the book!

I did not get

the ribbon sandwich

recipe, but hopefully one of them can post it to the FB page :)

Lady Juanita brought this scrumptious

crustless quiche featuring 

ham, spinach and artichoke heart spread.  

Why, yes, it was amazing!

She also blessed us with chocolate chip walnut drop cookies, white chocolate orange zest cookies, and I think baklava (sorry, I forget...but it was delish!).  

And isn't her plate gorgeous too?

Lady Bonnie prepared baked havarti cheese & dill croissants.  What's that? Oh, YES.  I will be

needing to diet for the entire month of July!

But, wait.  There's more!

She also brought this darling little cake in purple and lavender.  EEEEEK! 

My favorite colors!

Oh, pardon me... minor burst of excitement.

In the background are some of the books we

discussed.  The one on the far right is a Shutterfly book I designed featuring 2 of my daycare Littles posing with tea & featuring many favorite tea quotes.  The center book matches the invitation note cards and is available on Amazon.  The one on the left was gifted to me by Mary & Kay :)

We spoke about other books, and 

recipe tips as well.

I made: Blueberry Scones 

(Sticky Fingers brand)

Served with "The Works"!  I learned this from a former So Cal tea room, La Tea Da, long since closed, but still living on in the hearts of many .

You slice your scone horizontally, top with fresh fruits, and drizzle with creme fraiche (pronounced crem fresh).

Below is my customized recipe (it's good on waffles too!)

This recipe can easily be halved for small groups
such as we had today.

Speaking of La Tea Da; we reminisced of past tea rooms we had been to: Frills, Buttercup Cottage, etc.  And we made tentative plans to get together again and travel to ones we'd like to visit (click name to see their page): The Queen Mary Tea Room, The Tea House on Los Rios, Marlene's Tea & Cakes, and more, not to mention each others homes.  We can't wait!  BTW in Southern California, regarding travel time, we say "Only an hour away.",  such as the distance from the twins house to mine.  Whereas other states might say.  It was AN HOUR away!   Hee-hee.  Perspective.

One of the books Kay brought was this charming tale of Abigail complete with stuffed, talking bunny, tea blanket and plush tea-wares.  PS: She kicked off her vacation with today's tea! Woo-hoo!!!

Besides books to share (and give!), Juanita brought this lovely demitasse cup and saucer she recently found.  Notice how the saucer has been repaired at the bottom of the photo (glue and staples).  She shared about a recent surgery, and how this sweet little set (she found at Goodwill for under $2), really spoke to her heart, reminding her no matter how broken a person is God can make her useful again.  Isn't that lovely?  We were all touched, and other ladies shared about their own medical testimonies. 

The Favors:

Each lady received a bookmark,

with her name on it 

(doubling as a placecard), 

which I wrote in calligraphy.

It features the name

Blue Jeans

and Teacups, 

which is the name of my blog.

I choose this name because years

ago, when I was first

introduced to tea, I had

the misconception that

ladies needed to dress to the

nines to enjoy tea.

I would think rude thoughts 

in my head when "un-educated" guests came to my home in jeans.  Whatever were they thinking?

Well, God did a work in my heart, and I learned, it's not about the clothes or how fancy the party is.  It's about the fellowship, and the friendships that are cultivated by being real and being open, and being gracious.  These days, I want everyone to feel comfortable, and I don't mind it for myself either! :)

Juanita handmade these angel earrings for me.

She also gave me these tea samples.  Mary made the little cards with teapot bookmark charms, wrapped in tea gift wrap & also brought tea samples.

Kay brought me this teeny ornament!

The sisters also brought little porcelain treasure boxes for us.

Bonnie brought me this beautiful floral porcelain bag.  She suggested I use it for my sponge in the kitchen! How clever.

Sadly, Lady Sylvia was not able to join us at the last minute as she was busy being a faithful servant of the Lord, and caring for an elderly couple; the parents of a close friend.  Sylvia, you were missed, but we do plan to have you join us next time!

I am so warmed to have had the opportunity to host the traveling teapot.  I have made many new friends, and look forward to future memory making opportunities!  Thank you ladies, from the bottom of my heart.  And thank you LaDonna and Rain for facilitating.

For now, the TARDIS is on her way to St. Louis, MO.  I can not wait to see what Mary Guth will name her for the month of July, and what adventures await!

Thank you for joining me dear friends.

I pray you have a lovely rest of your weekend and look forward to your tea time posts on the group FB page.

God bless you. Hugs and a cup of tea!

~Heather Elizabeth for Team Darjeeling

My blog: BlueJeansAndTeacups.blogspot.com 

Flag Day Tea by the Sea with Tilly

Dolphin Fountain & Palm Trees
In front of the Aquarium

My next adventure with Tilly TARDIS takes us to the beautiful Pacific Ocean in Long Beach, CA and the Aquarium of the Pacific as we celebrate FLAG DAY 06/14/2015! 

Approaching the Lion Lighthouse

Patriotically attired: Niece, Daughter, Niece, Me, Sissy :)

Tilly TARDIS proudly posing
next to the American Flag.
In the foreground are flag
chocolate bars I found and
in the background is the Queen Mary
(where, by the way, you can also enjoy tea)

Drinks consisted of Iced Very Berry White Tea, Blueberry Lemonade, and water I embellished with patriotic whale stickers :)

I made my recipe for Curried Chicken & Fig (pinwheels), but modified it using Peppridge Farms Puff Pastry Shells.  At $5 for a box of 6, I really was not thrilled with these.  Biting into it reminded me of a Pillsbury Grands biscuit.  Additionally, instead of the fig spread I normally buy from Trader Joe's, I used fig spread I found at a dollar store from Egypt.  It was much more gelatinous; definitely not the same quality, so, lesson learned.  I have also tried this recipe on Oatbread, and find it quite pleasant.

Other menu items included Egg Salad Sandwiches with fresh spinach on Hawaiian bread rolls (thank you sis!), tomato basil Wheat Thins,  Strawberries, Blueberries, Watermelon, Red Vines and of course...

Cranberry, Blueberry Scones with Lemon Curd

Following our lovely meal, we headed to the aquarium and saw many exciting ocean creatures, and water fowl. 

[Gen 1:20-22 ESV] 20 And God said, "Let the waters swarm with swarms of living creatures, and let birds fly above the earth across the expanse of the heavens." 21 So God created the great sea creatures and every living creature that moves, with which the waters swarm, according to their kinds, and every winged bird according to its kind. And God saw that it was good. 22 And God blessed them, saying, "Be fruitful and multiply and fill the waters in the seas, and let birds multiply on the earth."

Upon entering, you are greeted by a life-sized
replica of a blue whale.

There are many types of jelly fish

And energetic Sea Lions

Adorable Sea Otters

Sea Horsies :)

Rays, fish, and sharks you can touch!

More sharks to touch! ...and no, I did not :)

BIG shark tank (noooo touching).

Penguins!

ummm?, birdie!

I was taking random shots of ducks splashing and
flying low on the water, and did not realize I had
captured this fun shot.  Look closely and you will see
MANY colors, like jewels on the water. :)

for a mere (eh, hem) $3, you can feed the
Lorikeets a tiny cup of nectar.  They will land right on
your arm (head, shoulder, etc.) to get to it.
I figured they did not need any
more food from me, so polite pass. :)

Guam Kingfisher (I will have to ask my dad if
he saw these when stationed in Guam
while in the U.S. Navy).

Cute Mary Englebreit tea mugs spotted in the gift shop
(but at $16 - no, no, no)

This sweet little fairy sized mug came
home with Tilly, and will make its
way through time and space to
become a gift (for someone
else's fairies).

We really enjoyed our day and give praise to God from whom all blessings flow.

Thank you for joining me for another exciting adventure!!

Until next time,

Hugs and a cup of tea!

~Heather Elizabeth

 for Team Darjeeling

my blog: bluejeansandteacups.blogspot.com

PLEASE NOTE: ALL HIGHLIGHTED TEXT HAS A LINK IF YOU CLICK ON IT. :)