Afternoon Tea

Recently my sweet friend Heidi was entertaining

some family members from out of town.

{Waaaaaaaaay out of town.  They were from Canada and Australia!}

The guys planned a golf outing,

so Heidi thought it might be fun to do 

something  special for the ladies.

She extended invitations to my mother and me, 
plus another good friend, to meet her visitors for tea.

Our party of six met at the Victorian Lady of Academy Hill

in Greensburg, PA on a Sunday afternoon.

{Photo from Victorian Lady of Academy Hill gallery}

{The tearoom is located within a historic 1880's Queen Ann house.}

{Photo from Victorian Lady of Academy Hill gallery}

Besides the tearoom, there is an impressive gift shop,
spilling into the various

rooms of the Victorian house.

All sorts of tea-themed items are available for purchase.

Soft music sets a gentle mood for browsing and chatting.

There are also many Victorian accessories among the teacups...

jewelry, stationery, and home decorating items.

Even the bathroom was stocked with pretty treasures!

Oh, if I had a little girl...I would have to choose one of these

miniature tea sets, in a picnic basket!

We requested seating in the sunroom,

and it was the most pleasant of surroundings.

{I had to restrain myself...I had the urge to speak with a British accent!}

We were presented with a full menu of tea types,

and we could each select two different flavors.

There were classics, like Earl Grey, available in several blends.

There were also fruity flavors, like peach and raspberry.

Seasonal selections were offered, too. 
 I had Snickerdoodle,

and Heidi tried the Pumpkin Spice blend!

The most popular flavor is French Creme Brulee...so delicious!

We enjoyed a full afternoon tea, which started with a poached pear.

{Warm and luscious!}

Next a three-tiered plate arrived.  

There were frosted grapes and scones on the bottom tier.

{Just look at these pretty dishes of lemon curd and Devonshire cream!}

Next were tiny sandwiches with savory fillings.

On the top layer were tempting cookies and brownies.

{Photo from Victorian Lady of Academy Hill gallery}

My mother needs to follow a very strict gluten-free diet.

I had contacted the wonderful proprietor ahead of time,

and she advised us on what to bring 

to make sure my mom could enjoy her teatime. 

 My mom's eyes lit up with delight when her special plate was served.

I was so glad to meet the visiting women,

and I hope we can get together again someday!

We had a leisurely afternoon, 

sipping and talking, and getting to know one another.

Well...I did have to leave a bit early,

to go directly to work, but I had a great attitude when I got there!

{Two pots of tea...three cups per pot...do the math...I was feeling great!}

I would highly recommend gathering a few friends

and family members for a special afternoon tea.

I've never been to a spa...yet...

but I would bet a tea party is every bit as relaxing,

and...you get to keep all of your clothes on!

{Thank you, Heidi, for a truly wonderful day!}

{Photo from Victorian Lady of Academy Hill gallery}

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Zakka Meets Martha's Vineyard

If you've visited my blog before at all,

you'll know how much fun I've been having

with the Zakka Style Sew Along.

{There is still plenty of time to join the sew along!}

I've been conspicuously absent for

more weeks than I care to count, but

I'm back in the Zakka again, having more fun than ever!

{Here's a peek at what I just made!}

Last week's project was

Patchwork Pot Holders,

contributed by the skillful and creative

Kim of retromama.

{This project was the tipping-point for me...when I saw it on the book cover,

I KNEW I had to get a copy of Zakka Style!}

As Kim noted in her blog post about the pot holders,
there were problems with the instructions in the book for 
binding the pot holders.

It's so much easier to do the bindings as seen in

Kim's update.  

I even made a couple of changes,

and it was actually a very pleasant experience,

even though I've never made circular binding before.

{My bindings are entirely machine-sewn.}

While making the two pot holders,

I learned quite a bit.

I prefer the double-fold binding for the pockets, 

as shown here.

{The 2 1/2" double-fold bound pockets on the top pot holder look better to me.}

I stitched on the outer binding, using a 3" double-fold bias.

I had perfect results when I first sewed 3/8" from the edge on the back side,

then turned it to the front for the final stitching.

{My binding pressed into place like magic!}

For all you fabriholics, I'll describe the fabrics I chose, and why...

for me, this was kind of time-consuming,

but so much FUN!!!

I had just ordered some fabrics from The Stitching Post

to complete my Winter Dresden Quilt.

{They offer flat-rate $5 shipping, so of course, I shopped for some fun fabrics to ride along in the package!}

I just about squealed when my package was delivered...

very quickly, I might add... 

and I saw "in person" the fantastic

Susan Branch prints I'd chosen, from the Tea Party line.

{Look at how adorable even the selvages are!}

I just know there will be lots of

Zakka involved in using these charming motifs

and text prints, as well as the tiny coordinates.

{Who would have thought that zakka style would look so great on Martha's Vineyard?}

I stitched together a few little happy motifs I'd fussy cut,

making strips of the right size, so they would not be cut off

in the final 8 1/2" round pot holder.

{Amanda the Patchsmith was disappointed when some of her 

favorite strips didn't make the cut.  :( }

For the other fabrics, I used some cheery cherries

from Oh Cherry Oh by Moda...

{I think this line was from about 2009.}

and little bits of lime and red, keeping a picnic feel going.

I love Darla by Tanya Whelan...

{as I might have mentioned once before.}

These pinnies inspired my color scheme for the pot holders.

The lime gingham was so absolutely perfect

for the bias binding!

Love the backs, too, with the little pockets for gripping.

My sister, Susie,

thinks these are too pretty to use.

{Uh-oh...I've listed them in my shop on Etsy, eamylove.

I hope someone doesn't feel the same way!}

Like this motif says,
"When you come right down to it, the secret
to having it all
is believing that you do."

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