Roosters for Tea Time Tuesday

Welcome Friends to another Tea Time Tuesday. Today I want to share a darling rooster teapot and mug set I found a few years ago while treasure hunting.
Since I like to decorate my Tuscan/French style cottage with roosters, this little set was perfect for a touch of that style.

Made by Bay Island and perfect for times shared by two with coffee, tea or hot chocolate.


To share this set I have displayed it for you with two favorite rooster prints, a collectible hand painted rooster and a darling glass Fitz and Floyd favorite.




Today's treat is a little bowl of raspberry vanilla creme cookies. Delicious with raspberry tea.



Thank you for stopping by for a visit and tea today. Please visit our wonderful hostess Sandi of Rose Chintz Cottage for a list of the many participants and their gorgeous tea sets and accessories. I hope you can stop by again soon as my summer giveaway is coming for August. Till then~~have a wonderful Summer's Day.



Blessings to you from Texas, Celestina Marie

Tea Time Tuesday~Afternoon Break

Welcome to Tea Time Tuesday, hosted by the dear Sandi at Rose Chintz Cottage.
Today I would like to invite you to tea in my kitchen as I take an afternoon break from a very busy creating day. Summertime gives way to lots of breaks when the temps are soaring and while it is 100 degrees outside, it is cool and cozy inside.

I have set my table with a gorgeous vintage set given to me from my mother, when I married. She enjoyed it first in the 50's and then passed in on to me when I married in 1973. Called Luster ware, the design is so pretty and hand painted on each piece including the teapot, cream and sugar, cups and saucers. The china is thin and nearly transparent. The colors still brilliant after all these years. I remember how proud I was to display this set in our first little apartment 38 years ago. And, I am still just as happy to include it in my decor today. It is a sweet reminder of the love my mother had for me when she took the pieces off her hutch and passed them on to me.

So let's enjoy tea with my pretty white rooster and my fresh picked flowers from my garden, just for you!

Recently, I added two little bowls I had for some time, with two of the cups and saucers making a trio which I love together. The tea set has 4 cups total, so now I will be on the look out for 2 more bowls to add.

Love the floral tea cup design.

Love, the pretty bowl pattern.

The markings on the tea set from Japan and the bowls Pegasus, made in the USA.


With our table set and a rooster pillow for your comfort, let's enjoy Earl Grey tea and my banana tea bread topped with strawberries.



In my treasure hunt recently I found a set of 4 very pale pink water glasses. They are in perfect condition and I wish they had more, for I would have snapped them up.

Here is my recipe for the banana tea bread. I have been baking this for over 30 years and it has always been a hit.

Tea Bread

2 1/2 cups flour
1 cup sugar
3 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
3 tablespoons veg. oil or canola oil.
1 1/4 cups milk~ (I use skin milk)
1 egg
1 cup finely chopped nuts optional (I have used pecans, walnuts and peanuts at different times and all give an individual flavor)
Ready to be baked this way or by adding the bananas it changes slightly~~

For Banana bread as I have made today, decrease milk to 3/4 cup and add 1 cup mashed bananas, about 2-3 med. I have learned using 3 average size bananas makes for a more moist bread.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees
Mix all ingredients and pour into a greased and floured tube pan or loaf pan.
Bake at 350 degrees for 55-65 minutes.
Makes approx. 16 slices.
Also freezes very well.

Thank you Sandi for hosting our Tea Time Tuesday. To visit more participants, travel HERE to Sandi's and view the list of more tea parties to attend.

I'll send you off with my bouquet of flowers and many thanks for coming to tea today and taking a break with me this beautiful afternoon. As I put away my tea set in my kitchen hutch till next time, I hope you enjoy a beautiful rest of the day and all good blessings be yours.


Smiles from Texas,
Celestina Marie

Vintage Alphabet Party

It's that time again when Etsy Cottage Style Blog celebrates vintage treasures and creations featuring three letters of the alphabet. This is the first time for me to participate and what fun it is. To view more participants and their treasures click HERE and visit Etsy Cottage Style

Today's party is brought to you by the letters I, J, and K.

(I) can be a challenge, but I thought I would share my Italian Tea Set from Italy. It belonged to my grandmother and was passed on to me as a gift in our first move away from our home state of Michigan. It remains in perfect condition and I love it. Grandma knew I would care for it always. The set is shown here with 2 cups but I have all 6 in the set. I have displayed it throughout my cottage home, but for now it shows beautifully on my vintage cedar chest at the foot of the bed in the master bedroom.




The next letter is J and Vintage Jewelry comes to mind. Through the years I have gathered a nice collection of vintage jewels collected and passed down from my mother and grandma. Here are a few pins and earrings with pin sets.








Lastly our letter is K another challenging letter, but I have a few things in the knick knack catagory to share.
Bird figurines have always been a favorite of mine since I was first married and these are a few from my collection.





This concludes my Vintage Alphabet Party and the sharing of a few treasures this time. I so look forward to the next set in about a month. In the meantime, I have a lot going on in the studio to keep very busy. Many new hand painted and designed pretties coming your way to my shoppes.

Speaking of studios and creatve spaces. This past weekend's Where Bloggers Create Party was fantastic and so inspiring to visit the many wonderful spaces around blogland. If you are still visiting parites, I would love for you to attend mine by clicking HERE and going to that post for my Creative Space. From that post you can also click to visit the many others that participated. This year's party had 450 participants, so we may be partying all Summer long! You will enjoy the fantastic spaces that Creative Bloggers call their own. Big or small they are all special!
Enjoy and till next time, remember Stephanie of Angelic Accents Wedding Blog Party coming this Friday the 25th. I will be there and I hope to see you too.

Hugs, Celestina Marie

HAPPY EASTER! and 100th POST GIVEAWAY!!!

High time I get here, right? Well I have been very MIA trying to finish orders and work home projects at the same time, I just don't know how all you wonderful blogging friends find time to post so much. What is your secret?

Being Easter week, this beautiful time finds me balancing holiday and home along with planning a trip to New Jersey and New York. It is a working vacation of sorts with DH speaking at a seminar and myself meeting a client, turned good friend, whom I have been working a year long custom order for. I am so excited to meet her, if all works out. This all takes place May 1st. We will also go into New York to see Phantom on Broadway and dinner. So excited about this as we really need a get away.

When I return, I am excited to have Sherry from Edie Marie's Attic visit along with her daughter in law Chris and Linda from Linda's Bluegate. What fun. Sherry has been planning this trip with her DIL for some time and they will Amtrak here from Ohio. What a great trip they have planned and I am so excited to be on their list of stops. If anyone of you are near my area and would like to join us, let me know. Just send me an email.

100~~~100~~~100~~~

AND, since this is my 100th post I will have the girls do the drawing for my Spring Surprise giveaway on May 9th. Yes, I said surprise. I will reveal the winner on Mother's Day. All you have to do is comment on this post and any others between now and then, be an active blogger and able to supply me your address for shipping your winning gift. Easy right? If you comment on all posts I will enter your name in as many times as you comment. Fun!!! I know that most of you have posted twice as much as I have in this length of time, but for me, this is a milestone.

In the mean time, I am finishing my large year long special custom and finishing up my garden redesign, which has about 3 more days till finished. There is something so wonderful for me to work in the earth and baby my flowers. All my interior design background goes into play in the garden as I seem to work it like the inside with decorative touches and layout. Can't help it, in the blood I guess! LOL! More pictures to follow when finished.

Recently I purchased a few new goodies that add personality to my shabby Tuscan villa cottage. Here is a gorgeous collage from Amy of Bunny Rose Cottage with sweet umbrella chicks she sent for my birthday. The details and colors are perfect.

Betzie from Time Enough makes these wonderful designer soaps and I just had to have more after the first set she sent. This group is pink with sparkles and looks amazing in our master bath displayed on a gorgeous rose platter purchased from Stephanie of Angelic Accents. Betzie, I added my 4 leaf clover pin to the shoe. Isn't it pretty?

Sharing some decorative touches~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~My cross collection.

Spring Tea Set.

Italian bunny couple! Sweet birdie and Egg tree meets Tuscan country!


Vintage hand painted egg set I painted many years ago. A bit of whimsy to make a home complete!

With Easter upon us, I want to take this time to wish each and everyone a special holiday season and wonderful Springtime with blessings and many joys with your family and friends. Don't forget to enter the giveaway for this 100th post. Time has flown by so fast since I have begun to blog my studio and art shoppe designs. My greatest joy has been to meet and make friends with so many special people around the country and abroad. Thank you for making my first 100 posts fun. Your comments are always welcome and I answer each and everyone the best I can.

Good Luck!!!




Happy Easter Everyone~~~~~~~~~~

Blessings Always, Celestina Marie