Hello February

February - the most romantic month of the year.

some Valentines Day favourites

red velvet cupcakes

a slim volume of garden poetry

love locks on a bridge in Paris

fine bone china at tea time

old fashioned french roses

sterling silver sugar shaker and basket

strawberry roulade

cupid's love tokens

love is in the air

linking to 

Amaze Me Monday with Cindy @ Dwellings - The Heart of Your Home

Mosaic Monday with Judith @ Lavender Cottage 
Bernideen's Tea Time

Laurie's Annual Valentines Party @ Bargain Decorating with Laurie

Tea and Tea Things Swap - the reveal!!

Can you see me doing my happy dance?

No, well believe me I am!

The lovely Beth @ Beyond The Garden Gate recently arranged a Tea and Tea Things Swap amongst her friends and followers and lucky me because I got Beth, the gracious hostess, as my swap partner.

Today, our post lady delivered a great big box all wrapped up in pretty paper and it was addressed to me.
Take a look at what was inside.

Quelle surprise when I unfastened the clasp on the small Parisien attache case and discovered new and exotic fruit teas (Tazo "Berryblossom White and Pomegranate, a green tea produced by Harry & David) and a teapot shaped tea bag holder festooned with roses.

This beautiful book "The Art of Tea and Friendship"  is sure to become a firm favourite and will inspire me endlessly when writing my tea time themed blog posts over the coming months.

Here is just a sample -

"May your home always be too small for all your friends", reads a plaque in my friends house. I once lived in a home that was so small that a guest remarked, "I can't believe real people live here!"
Even if your home is too small to host all of your friends at one time, you can throw open the doors and welcome them all with a "Come and Go" Tea Party, an idea I learned from my mother.
By staggering the times on your invitations, you can enjoy all your friends at one special party. Invite one third of your guests to tea from 1 - 3 p.m. one third from 2 - 4 p.m. and one third from 3 - 5 p.m.
Enlist the help of two or three friends to serve the food and tea and clear the tables so you can be sure to be available at the door for every "Hello" and "Goodbye".
Not only will you enjoy seeing so many friends together, each of them is sure to find some new friends at your house!"
SANDY LYNAM CLOUGH -
Marietta. GA.
Click here to go to the author's website.

Thank you so much Beth, for initiating this delightful Tea things swap and extending the hand of friendship to me and everyone else who took part.

An English Cream Tea.

Whilst in the UK last week I was able to indulge and I really mean indulge (my ever expanding waistline can testify to that fact) in two of my very favourite English things to do.
My very favourite thing to do is take afternoon tea in quintessentially English teashops and my absolute favourite afternoon tea is to be found in the tearoom of a National Trust property.
There you will find the most wonderful English Cream Teas, such as the one pictured here which we enjoyed after touring Berrington Hall, near Leominster, Herefordshire.

Coming a close second, to a cream tea, is browsing through one of the "Charity" shops that line the high streets of every town we visited.
I think that Ross on Wye has the most!
What was I looking for I hear you ask?
As my dear friend Kate would answer "old pots".

Kate doesn't understand my fascination with antique/vintage china and faience, but she happily shopped with me and even found the bargain of the trip in the Sue Ryder shop in Ledbury.
More about that soon.
A little while ago I bought some mismatched china on ebay.co.uk and had them delivered to Kate's home.

When she brought me the box to open at Little Quebb it was like Christmas morning.
The cup and saucer are Royal Albert English Bone China, decor: Lavender Rose and the plate, which doesn't match but I feel with it's lavender ribbon detail complements them, is by Aynsley.

The Asiatic Pheasant red and white transferware creamer produced by Enoch Wedgwood was a French ebay purchase earlier this year, and is the perfect foil for a small posy of old fashioned roses from our garden.

This afternoon I couldn't resist creating an English Cream Tea vignette to share with you all and will be linking this post to the Tea parties listed below.

A home made scone slathered with
 thick double cream and red fruit jam.
Irresistable!

Lady Katherines Tea Time Tuesday

Tuesday Tea For Two @ The Plumed Pen
Teacup Tuesday with Martha & Terri
Teatime Tuesday @ Rose Chinz Cottage
and
Petite Hermine's Sunday Linky Party

I've not joined in with any of these before but they all seem like lovely ladies so why not pop in and have a cuppa with them too?

Just click on the links above.