HYACINTHS FOR THE SOUL

Tuesday, October 15, 2013

Happy Birthday, Queen of Southern Novels

celebrations

Michael Lee West

Queen of Southern Novels

Happy 60th Birthday, Michael Lee!

This post is a tribute to

Michael Lee West,

host of Rattlebridge Farm, Foodie Friday,

and author of seven novels with

an eighth one, soon to be published.

Michael Lee lives on a farm

in rural Tennessee

with her husband, son, and

a menagerie of animals.

You can find Michael Lee at her blog,

Rattlebridge Farm

where she shares her love

of gardening, baking, and Yorkies.

I had intended to host a

birthday picnic in the garden,

but Mother Nature didn't cooperate.

Not complaining! We've had an incredible

12 inches, and it's still raining off and on.

Instead, I moved the celebration

inside to the sun room.

The table is set with all white dishes for

Cuisine Kathleen's Let's Dish Challenge.

I chose green as my accent color,

as I was the recent recipient of a gift package from

Carol @ Art and Sand.

Carol sent me a package of cute tags stamped in green

and white napkins with a beautiful lace edge

that she hand crocheted.

I tied a tag to each cup.

This is an adorable idea for

place cards for guests.

Each tag comes

with an engraved heart.

Yes, we all LOVE you,

Michael Lee!

Michael Lee writes with incredible wit,

all the while interweaving delicious vignettes of

food and recipes straight from the kitchens of

her vivid and distinctly southern characters.

Michael Lee's novels will have you

Laughing Out Loud!

Look at Carol's beautiful hand work

in this lovingly crocheted lace edging.

It's a perfect compliment

to the edges of the embossed plates

by Certified International . . .

As well as the graceful

carving on the Mother of Pearl flatware.

I tucked these darling towels by Waverly

between the salad and dinner plates

to separate the white on white of the plates.

They are a perfect match to the green tablecloth

and were a gift from Cuisine Kathleen a few years ago.

I don't think Kathleen will mind that

I mixed in a touch of floral.

Thank again, Kathleen!

~ White, Green, and a Touch of Floral ~

Probably doesn't pass the challenge!

A special thank you to

Carol @ Art and Sand

for the delightful gift package.

Now make a wish and

blow out the candles,

birthday girl!

Happy Birthday, Michael Lee!

I know all you Foodie Friday bakers

are eager to know how to make this special cake.

Lean in closely, and I'll share my secret.

First secure a large bag of packaged cotton candy.

Carefully unwrap and gently pull

apart to fill large martini glass.

Handle as little as possible and work quickly!

Presto, instant birthday cake

cotton candy style!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Click here to see Michael Lee's

work available on Amazon.