Monday, February 23, 2009

Afternoon Tea

There are few hours in life more agreeable than the hour dedicated to the ceremony known as afternoon tea. ~Henry James, The Portrait of a Lady

Have you ever been to a tea room, or had a look inside one? The tea rooms I like the best are ones at special events, such as quilting shows. I always stop and take a peek. My eyes go straight to the tables. I just love to see the mix of teacups and what tasty treats are being served. My own small collection of teapots, teacups and sugar bowls, always put a smile on my face.

For a couple of years now, I've been collecting tea related patterns. Many of them free Internet finds. Inspired by a wonderful little tea room, in the basement of a one room schoolhouse, I thought it would be fun to make a bunch of, mismatched, tea related blocks and piece them into a quilt. I think I will call my first block, Elegant Teapot.
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Can you guess what this tea related item is?

I double posted today. If you are interested in going a little greener in your quilting room, see posting below for some Eco-friendly quilting products. Also, how-to dye your own fabric, the natural way and a couple of Internet sources for crafty people and quilters.

Until next week.....happy quilting!

Karen

15 comments:

Browndirtcottage said...

Well....I'm just in LOVE with this one!!!
The fabric you chose and the teapot design is
very elegant....she-she...fou-fou..I LIKE IT!
what a wonderful idea for the mix and match
tea related blocks. I'll really be anxious
to see it..keep us posted!!

Satu said...

I think the MOST ELEGANT teapot, which I have EVER seen! I'm looking forward to see the next one...

Betsy said...

That is the most beautiful teapot I have ever seen!

Dresden Plate said...

What an interesting idea!
I have just been reading your post about applique, something I dont always find easy. I'm going to try the freezer paper and see how I get on.

Funoldhag said...

Elegant, indeed! Your block is beautiful. What a great idea and what a fun collection. I will guess that the little ceramic dish is to hold the wet teabag. Enjoy.

Karen from Sew Many Ways... said...

Hi Karen,
I love your teapot block...the fabric is just beautiful. I have a teapot collection too. I'm with Carol in the previous comment...it either holds a wet tea bag or it's a spoon rest. Great post!!
~Karen~

Carrie P. said...

Wow, what fabulous fabric for the teapot. I am going to guess the little flower thing is for a tea bag after you use it.

Cathi said...

What a gorgeous block -- it certainly is a very elegant teapot! The ceramic dish? For your spoon or used teabag is my thought as well.

Kaaren said...

I'm guessing a spoon rest.

I LOVE tea and tea rooms too! We have a small tea room called The Trillium in our tiny town and they make the greatest soups, salads and gourmet sandwiches...not to mention the tea. Hot tea, just boiled and served in a china teapot and proper "ladies" cups and saucers...the kind you have to hold your pinkie out while drinking. Sandra must have 50+ teapots and tea paraphanalia throughout her shop. My friend Lucie and I try to go there at least once a month.

Browndirtcottage said...

Hi Karen.....I appreciated your visit!!! It
was good to hear from your corner of the world!

Karen said...

Such a pretty teapot quilt block. And I like your idea of all the mismatched items going into one quilt. Really would be like a tea room. I am not a tea drinker but love the pretty teapots & china cups.

Robin said...

What a lovely teapot! It is indeed very elegant. I love how carefully you planned out placement of the fabric design. If this block is any indication, your tea-themed quilt is going to be incredible!

Quiltgal said...

I am thinking a spoon rest but the shape makes me think that the Tea would slide off and stain the table cloth so then I was thinking perhaps a knife rest?

Janet said...

Thank you for commenting on my blog. I happy to find another quilter who enjoys combining traditional with innovative. The tea pot is great. Look for my posting of the ceramic quilt I made for the American Museum of Ceramic Art. You can see a smaller photo of it now on the link for AMOCA on my site. By the way,my sister and I visited our grandmother's home in Bellow Falls, Vermont last year and many quilt stores.

YankeeQuilter said...

When I lived in England I went out of my way to find interesting tea shops. My favorites were in the little villages though high tea at the posh hotels were an experience too! I brought home several of the three tier cake plates too...so much fun!

Last month we had an English Tea and silent auction to raise money for the animal shelter. It did really well.