My newest obsession.....altered art!

I have been looking at altered art for awhile now and collecting bits and pieces to make something but I was never quite sure what it would be. Well, last week I decided to give it a try. I started with an old wooden cabinet door and a page from a vintage children's book and went from there. What I ended up with was a piece I call "Let us crow old together".

This piece is the love story of two crows who come from different "backgrounds" (read the handwritten note to the left of the nest), but are deeply in love (read the love note above the crows). They are watching over their three little pearl eggs and surrounded by shiny red apples and autumn leaves. The piece is embellished with vintage buttons, ribbon, glitter and paint. I have to say that I really had a good time working on this and plan to do more altered art in the very near future. To read more about this piece and see another photo you can go to my website.

RECIPE OF THE WEEK

MEXICAN CASSEROLE
Serves 4-6

This recipe has been around for years, but here is my family's rendition of it.

1# extra-lean ground beef
1/2 onion, chopped
1 can cream of chicken soup
1/2 cup salsa or taco sauce
tortilla chips
grated cheese (I use colby)

Brown ground beef and onion in skillet over med-high heat until meat is done and onion is tender. Add cream of chicken soup and salsa/taco sauce. Stir together until bubbly, then remove from heat. In casserole dish sprayed with non-stick spray, layer meat mixture, tortilla chips and grated cheese. Hint: Bottom layer should be meat mixture and top layer should be cheese. Bake at 350* for about 15 minutes or until cheese is melted and casserole is heated.

Serve with tossed salad.


www.countryclipart.com

And the winner is.........

Congratulations! Dolly of From My Cherry Heart blogspot is the winner of my beautiful roses teacup and saucer. The names of everyone who commented on my tea parties were all put in a hat and my husband drew out Dolly's name. So, Dolly....please get in touch with me so that I can get your gift sent to you!

Autumn Leaf Tea Pots and Friday Tea

Two favorite teapots in my collection were made by Hall China in the 1930's and 1940's. They are decorated in the Autumn Leaf pattern and were distributed by the Jewel Tea Company. Here is the story of Jewel Tea and my teapots.

From The Collector's Encyclopedia of Hall China 2nd Ed. Margaret and Kenn Whitmyer

Hall China with the Autumn Leaf decal first appeared in 1933 with the introduction of a large 9" mixing bowl. Hall produced this Autumn Leaf line exclusively for the Jewel Tea Company of Barrington, IL. In the early years pieces were offered to Jewel customers as premiums for the purchase of other products. (Jewel Tea advertisement courtesy of The Collector's Encyclopedia of Hall China )


Since Autumn Leaf developed as a premium line, new items were added regularly, and old pieces were discontinued periodically, giving customers the incentive to buy more products so they could obtain the premiums while they were still available.

The "Rayed" long spout teapot (shown above)was introduced in 1935 as a combination teapot/coffee pot and discontinued in 1942. It was sold for $1.50 in 1935, and is now valued at about $60.00. The Aladdin teapot (shown above) was introduced in 1942. This teapot was listed in a 1960 catalog for $4.25. It continued in production until 1976 It is valued now at approximately $65.00.

All pieces of Autumn Leaf were discontinued in 1976, although some pieces were reintroduced in 1978. At this time 106 of the long-spouted "rayed" teapot (shown in my photo) were reintroduced, and were given by Jewel as awards to outstanding sales people.

The Hall China Company was founded by Robert Hall in East Liverpool, Ohio, on August 14, 1903, and is still operating today.

Thank you for stopping by my Cozy Cottage today. Please leave a comment to be entered in my drawing for my lovely roses cup and saucer seen below:

Tea for Two at Cozy Cottage

Welcome to Thursday tea at Cozy Cottage! Today's theme is "Tea for Two"....remember that golden oldie? Our tea will be served from my pretty pink Camark teapot with pink Camark accessories. I have a variety of sweets for you to choose from.

While you are visiting today take a minute to read about one of my favorite old movies, Tea for Two, starring Doris Day. Just go to this website and you can also hear Doris sing many of the songs from that same movie: http://www.dorisday.net/tea_for_two.html .

Don't forget to leave a comment so you will be entered in the drawing to win my pretty roses tea cup and saucer shown below:

Wednesday tea at Cozy Cottage

"I wish we could sit down together,
And have a cup of tea,
But since we can't
When you have this one,
I hope you'll think of me." ~Anonymous

Welcome to Cozy Cottage! Today's tea is served in a lovely blue Camark teapot with matching candle warmer and stand. Don't the cups and saucers make you think of pretty blue flowers? Your tea choices today are Earl Grey, English Breakfast, and Darjeeling. To accompany your tea choice I offer freshly baked biscuits served toasty warm with homemade blackberry preserves and fresh creamery butter.



My special guest for tea today is my sister-in-law, Bertha Mae. She is a writer and has published a novel, Redemption of Quapaw Mountain in which she brings back to life the isolated Arkansas highlands of the early 1900s and their unique people, culture and mythology. For a preview of her book please visit BeWrite Books at http://www.bewrite.net/merchant2/4.00/merchant.mv?Screen=PROD&Store_Code=B&Product_Code=1-904492-38-X .

Our discussion today centers around proper attire for afternoon tea. Luckily, here at Cozy Cottage casual wear is the norm, but that wasn't always so.

The Afternoon Tea Gown was first introduced, in the 1840s, by Anna, the Duchess of Bedford. The gowns were fashioned on the styles and times of the day. Tea gowns were constructed in several segments, allowing the hostess to change from the lingerie-inspired overtops to the more revealing off-the-shoulder, lower cut silhouette for the evening hours. Fabrics ranged from elaborate gowns with fanciful hand work of embroidery, beading and smocking to the delicate white handkerchief linens accented with pastels. Since Afternoon Teas were mostly attended by family and close friends, the hostess' tea gown was often uncorseted for the first time in centuries, introducing the casual form of dress our society has adopted to the present day. The fashions complimented the Victorian era from which they were born. The gowns were accessorized with magnificently embellished gloves, parasols, fabulous hats and small handbags. The fashions complimented the Victorian era from which they were born. The gowns were accessorized with magnificently embellished gloves, parasols, fabulous hats and small handbags. Fortunately, some of these beautiful gowns and accessories have been preserved by the Costume Institute at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York City. With increasing difficulty, more can be found at vintage fairs and shops throughout the United States. (http://www.seedsofknowledge.com/teagowns.html)

I hope you enjoyed our tea time today! Be sure to leave a comment so you will be entered in the drawing for my roses tea cup and saucer pictured below.



Tomorrow's tea will be extra special so please make plans to drop by Cozy Cottage again!

Tuesday tea.......a date with the Earl!

Come in and sit a spell here at Cozy Cottage....today's tea is my favorite, Earl Grey. Did you know that the Earl Grey blend is named after the 2nd Earl Grey, British Prime Minister in the 1830s, who reputedly received a gift of tea flavoured with bergamot oil that he liked so well that he now has a similar blend with his own name?

I was in a bit of a rush today preparing tea....so many errands to run this morning....that I didn't have time to prepare our tea accompaniments so I picked up tiny white powdered donuts and mini cinnamon rolls while I was in town. I don't think the Earl will mind this one time and I hope you don't either.

My special guest for tea today is my good friend Sue who lives in New Hampshire. She is a very talented crafter and does beautiful mosaic work on tables and mirrors which she sells on eBay under the user name sueb19. http://search.ebay.com/_W0QQsassZsueb19


Today's tea is being served in a pumpkin-colored Ovenserve dinnerware cup made by Homer Laughlin China. The Ovenserve pattern is my very favorite collection! I began collecting it about 30 years ago and now I have literally hundreds of pieces of Ovenserve! The cups and saucers were a rare find and I only have four of them which I bring out on very special occasions. Produced during the 1930s, Ovenserve dinnerware was the predecessor to the more popular Fiesta pattern that appeared a few years later. If you would like to see more pieces of Ovenserve dinnerware you can go to this website: http://www.ohioriverpottery.com/pages3/hlcline32.html.

As we enjoy our tea today let's take a moment to remember those whose lives were touched on this day in 2001. This is also a time to be thankful that we enjoy the freedom to take tea together both here and in our own homes.

Thank you for coming by today and enjoying tea with me here at Cozy Cottage. Be sure to leave a comment so you will be entered in the drawing to win my pretty roses tea cup and saucer seen below,


and come back tomorrow to see another of my pretty Camark tea pots!

Monday tea at Cozy Cottage

Hello and welcome to tea here at Cozy Cottage! I'm so glad you stopped by today to enjoy my delicious herbal teas....we have a choice of Cinnamon Apple, Honey Lemon, Mint Medley or Orange Spice, each one guaranteed to sooth your soul.

My special guest today is my mom and best friend, Verna. Mom is a retired nurse and lives in Oklahoma. Now that she is retired she seems to be busier than ever as a volunteer at the local museum, member of the PEO club, and being very involved with her church. She and her friend Jim are planning to do some traveling here in the U.S. in the near future.

Tea accompaniments include mouth-watering Asparagus Finger Sandwiches and Cucumber Finger Sandwiches, and for your sweet tooth I have prepared delicious Cream Scones with Currants.

Tea will be served in my lovely lavender Camark pottery tea pot with matching cups and saucers. Camark pottery is one of my favorite collections and if you would like to know more about collecting Camark pottery, here is an excellent reference: http://asms.k12.ar.us/armem/reynolds/index.htm.

While you are here today be sure to leave a comment so you will be registered to win my lovely roses tea cup and saucer set pictured below.


Thank you so much for stopping by today and having afternoon tea here in the parlor at Cozy Cottage!

Be sure to come back again tomorrow for my Tuesday tea party.

Recipes for today's finger sandwiches and scones can be found at http://lotsofinfo.tripod.com/recipe/xTS3aspargusfill.htm, http://www.angelfire.com/bc/incredible/xTS3cukesand.htm, and http://www.foodnetwork.com/food/recipes/recipe/0,1977,FOOD_9936_15929,00.html.