Blue Willow Monday

Welcome to my Blue Willow Monday

It's Blue Monday over at Smiling Sally's, and I'm thrilled! Our home is filled with blue!

We have several rooms with blue walls,

Wingback chairs in blue leather,

blue upholstered French bergere chairs,

Dinner plates in Spode's Blue Room series, . . .

The list could go on and on.

Blue is one of those magical colors that compliments other colors. Think of the fresh feeling that combinations of blue and yellow provide.

Or the patriotic spirit of red, white, and blue.

Homes with collections of Blue Willow in blue and white always catch my attention and imagination. Though I don't personally have a collection of these age old charming ceramics, I can visit some mighty fine collections in homes of friends. The fresh, crisp feeling of blue and white never fails to fill my senses with joy.

What I do have is a very limited, but extremely sentimental grouping of a child's set in the Blue Willow pattern.

When my parents married in 1939, as a new bride, my mother dreamed of having her very own set of Blue Willow for her dining table. Placesettings of this fine china were far too expensive for the young couple's household budget, yet Mother must have longingly admired sets and continued to wish for a set of her own. As a surprise one day, my sweet and clever father brought home a set in miniature. It wasn't the table setting Mother desired, but she loved and appreciated the little set all the same. During our youth, my sister and I, along with our friends, hosted many a tea party with the treasured little set of Blue Willow. Unfortunately all that remains of Mother's set is this small group.

The Blue Willow pattern was first designed in the late 1700s by Thomas Minton. Over the years it has been produced by many different manufactures, and all these years later this classic pattern is beloved by many a collector.

The classic pattern portrays a Chinese legend of two young lovers. The elements within the design all have significance from the legend. The border of a zig-zag fence represents the father's efforts to separate the young lovers.

Weeping willow trees,

various fruit trees,

three figures on a bridge,

a boat,

and pagodas,

all have significance in the story of the young couple.

There are many variations of the legend, but all end with the young star crossed lovers being transformed into immortal love birds.

My Parents in 1939

Today, the few remaining pieces of this cherished child's set have a place of honor in the living room of our home. Not only do they bring me memories of happy childhood tea parties, but they also speak of the romantic days my parents shared as newlyweds. Years ago I offered to purchase a set of Blue Willow for my mother. She simply smiled and said, "I'm happy with the set your father gave me." I treasure these little dishes as heirlooms.

Who knows, perhaps this little chard of a long ago broken plate will become the topic of a future Metamorphosis Monday right here at Hyacinths For The Soul.

Thanks for stopping by. I hope to see you again real soon.

It's A Celebration!

Did I hear the doorbell? Greetings! 
I'm delighted you stopped by.

When I found BETWEEN NAPS ON THE PORCH and discovered Susan's extraordinary blog, I was hooked. Thursdays are now my favorite day of the week! Truth be told, Tablescape Thursday is the primary reason I started 

HYACINTHS FOR THE SOUL. 

I wanted to play too!

So please do come in. 

I'm having a party to celebrate the inaugural week of 

HYACINTHS FOR THE SOUL.

Entertaining in our home is always a joy for me. 

I'm forever daydreaming about table settings 

and how I can make gatherings special. 

My MacKenzie-Childs ceramics often 

provide the seed of inspiration. 

MacKenzie-Childs Courtly Check design is one of my favorites.

 In the end though, it's the friends and tasty food 

that are the key ingredients for a successful party.

Detail of coffee table arrangement

May I offer you 
a glass of bubbly?

A glass of one of 
my favorite champagnes?

Perhaps you'd prefer sparkling Italian pomegranate soda 

or a glass of sparkling water?

Please help yourself 
to some "Afternoon Bites".

We have turkey avocado panini with ailoli and homemade potato chips, smoked salmon tarts with crispy capers and créme fraich, and baby vegetable crudites stuffed with herb Boursin cheese.

Please have a seat, visit, 
and enjoy the music.

Do you have a request?

No celebration is complete 
without something sweet.

The chocolates are made 
with expresso coffee beans.

These petit fours were designed 
for the Courtly Check theme.

Delicious!

Let me fix you a cup of coffee?

Just pick your choice of coffee. Would you care for an expresso? Rather have a decaf? Whatever your choice, these coffees are dark and rich. They are made from pure, premium beans. This little machine makes the perfect cup of coffee!

I'm so pleased you stopped by today.

Please sign my guest book, 
and I hope to see you again soon.

Don't forget to stop by 

BETWEEN NAPS ON THE PORCH 

where you'll find many wonderful posts 

celebrating the art of the table.

Welcome to Hyacinths for the Soul and my very first post!

Welcome to Metamorphosis Monday with our hostess, Susan @ Between Naps On The Porch, and a big "Thank you, Susan!" for all your help and encouragement. Today is my first post, so this in itself is a metamorphosis of sorts. I've been a follower of several blogs, and today I'm making the leap to write a post on my very own blog page, Hyacinths For The Soul. As a 30+ year veteran teacher of young children, I've witnessed many wonderful "metamorphosis moments" of first learning. I like the idea of sharing the transformations that weave in and out of one's life.

One person's trash is another's treasure... not many men would rescue boxes of fabric that were on their way to a dumpster, but fortunately for me I have a friend who knows of my appreciation of textiles and delivered these to my doorstep.

Swatches of the very finest Italian wool! My friend brought me boxes and boxes of sample books that a local men's custom clothing shop was discarding because they were the previous year's fabric collection. What a treasure trove!

Just look at these luscious textiles! They are as soft and smooth as butter on a warm day.

Wouldn't you adore a new outfit made of any of these? The choices are endless.

I need new winter slacks. I'll take three in these colors. What would be your choice?

I admit the boxes lingered among my fabric stash for some time before inspiration struck. I didn't have yards and yards of these luscious fabrics, and after all, patchwork garments hadn't been in vogue since the 1970s. You do remember the patchwork craze of the Hippie Era? And yes, I really did wear this skirt!

Eventually the swatches became the basis for a new collaborative project with my friend, Kay, who I met in the early 1980s when we were professional colleagues. We connected instantly and soon discovered that we shared an abundance of interests. We became soul mates! Today we live 2000 miles apart, but meet yearly either at her home, my home, or a vacation spot. Our yearly visits have spawned collaborations of numerous creative endeavors.

We'd earlier completed a pair of full size crazy quilts (topic for a future blog post), and wanted our next project to be a quilt for each of our husbands. The Italian wools would lend a masculine feel. To pay tribute to the original intent of the fabrics, we decided on the bow tie, a quilt block pattern from the late 1800s.

The metamorphosis didn't evolve quickly. The task to measure, cut, and piece a hundred of these 4" squares proved a daunting task. Then reality set in. Two hundred squares would only produce one lap quilt. We needed a pair! Ingenuity persevered. We would simply alternate solid squares with the bow ties.

After several cross country flights and hours of stitches made by two hearts and two pairs of loving hands . . .

A pair of "Friendship Bow Tie" quilts appeared! Friendship quilts because most of the work on the pair was completed by two friends working side by side during our annual visits.

Today, Kay (at right) and I each have one of these quilts in our homes. They keep our napping husbands warm and cozy on winter afternoons and reflect the creative spirit of two friends across the miles. This summer we will vacation together at the seashore, eager to plot our next shared endeavor.

Each "Friendship Bow Tie" is also a charm quilt, as no two identical fabrics are repeated within either quilt. . . and this one was made for my Prince Charming!

Thank you for stopping by. Please comment below, and please come back!