American Beauty

I believe I have seen this tea cup on one of the Teacup Thursday posts before, but you haven't seen this combination yet! This is an "American Beauty" orphan tea cup, with an orphan saucer from my favorite tea cup, which alas is no longer with us in its entirety. 

These two orphans look lovely together, the pinks match just right. 

The other side of the cup has a single rose on it.

The bottom of the cup says "American Beauty, Royal Albert, Crown China, England. As a treat to those of us who look under the cup at the label, there are some roses there, too!
The saucer is Royal Grafton. 

Linking to Teacup Thursday at
http://missspensersblog.blogspot.com/

the picnic

The Picnic, circa...

James Tissot

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the Upright Egg

We interupt this "Teacup Thursday" to bring you a special post on balanced eggs. 

We were at this tea party today, and someone proposed that we go into the kitchen and start balancing eggs.

I acted as photographer, though I see now that with a little bit of patience, egg balancing can be acheived. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Ahoy

This fine tea mug was a gift to a ship-lover. I found it at a little local antique shop, for a dollar! The tall ship in full sail is very vivid.

It is a souvenir mug from the Bahamas. It is very lightweight, a good sign of fine bone china, and it is smaller than most tea mugs. 

The bottom label says "Royal Grafton Fine Bone China, Made in England."

Linking to Teacup Thursday at
http://missspensersblog.blogspot.com/

Don't Wake the Baby

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Don't Wake the Baby

Baby sleeps, so we must tread

Softly round her little bed, 

And be careful that our toys

Do not fall and make a noise. 

We must not talk, but whisper low, 

Mother wants to work, we know, 

That, when father comes to tea, 

All may neat and cheerful be.

-McGuffey's Second Eclectic Reader

"Queen's" tea cup

Here is a beautiful tea cup, with delicate golden floral sprays on the outside, and a pleasant surprise on the inside. 

White roses tinged with pink circle the inside of the cup, with an aqua blue just behind the roses for the sky. The nice thing about this tea cup, is that you can see the inside decoration whether you are right-handed or left-handed. A left-handed friend once pointed out to me that the tea cups were mostly decorated with a rose, etc. on the inside of the cup, only where right-handed people would see it.

I think this cup requires tea without milk, so you can see the pretty design. Perhaps an herbal tisane?

For those of you who like to turn the cup over, the label says "Queen's Find Bone China" and "Churchill Brand, Made in England."

Linking to Teacup Thursday at
http://missspensersblog.blogspot.com/

Easy Stamped Card

A quick and easy rubber stamped card, with coordinating envelope made from scrapbook paper.

I have been watching some rubber stamp technique videos.  I like the videos from StampTV. Though I have few of the products mentioned in the episodes, I can make do with my drawers full of stamps and materials already accumulated over the years. A new idea or two makes card making fun again! 

I used an old stamp from my 20-year collection of rubber stamps. This one was from Personal Stamp Exchange (PSX E-528). My heart still beats fast when I flip through my old PSX catalog! Most of their stamped images were shown embossed and colored in. Beautiful and elegant, but time consuming. I have been on the look out for card ideas that require simple stamping in ink and that's it!

I like this card idea, it is really fast to make!

Here is the tutorial for the above card. I used scrapbook paper for my color layers rather than cardstock as shown in the video. Because my paper is printed with designs, I left 1/4 inch border around the image so more color comes through.

Here is another one I did, this time with a sunflower stamp. With no embossing or embellishments, I can "run over" these cards to make sure the glue is sticking and that all the layers are nice and flat:

I can use a brayer for this (make sure it is clean, no ink!), 

Or I can put it through my Cuttlebug between the "B" plates.
I know, maybe cards don't have to be that flat, but it is fun to use the Cuttlebug:)

Teacup Thursday: The Elizabethan Tea Cup

This elegant tea cup, with its shower of roses and deep golden edges, is suitable for the finest tea party. 

There is a spray of roses inside the cup, as well.

 

The back of the saucer says "Elizabethan Fine Bone China, England."

I'm joining Miss Spenser's Teacup Thursday here:

http://missspensersblog.blogspot.com/