A Tyme for Tea

Early March on a fine sunny day in Northern California...

Sounds like an opportune time for a tea outing! I got to spend the morning with a long lost friend of mine from high school, Julianne! What a perfect way to catch up, take a break, and spend a good, relaxing time with an old friend.

Things were a little hoppin' at Tyme for Tea in the Niles district of Fremont the morning we were there... but really when is it ever not? Hustle and bustle were going on amidst our little sanctuary of our tea table. Still, I couldn't have asked for a more enjoyable morning. Good time, spent with a good friend, with a hot pot of tea and plenty of savories and sweets to munch on!

And boy was there a lot of tea going on today!

My most trusted go-to tea place, Tyme for Tea, Niles, Fremont, CA

Like a blank canvas, our place setting waiting for us

 

Warm pot of White Chocolate Mousse Tea

First course, scone!!

Savories course

Desserts

At Tyme for Tea with Julianne!

Cuppa

It was a lovely tea today. For the tea selection I picked a White Chocolate Mousse Black Tea while Julianne picked a Cinnamon Rose Tea. I knew my black tea was going to give me the jitters but I could not resist the sweet yummy flavor of a chocolate tea calling to me! Our first course for tea was blueberry scones with cream, lemon curd, and raspberry preserves. For the savories course (my favorite!) we were presented with chicken walnut tea sandwiches, cucumber and cream cheese tea sandwiches, mini mushroom turnovers, jalapeno and cheese crostinis, and a savory puffed pastry pinwheel. For the desserts course we had maple sugar cookies, petite fours, and white chocolate covered flaky peanut butter honeycomb balls.

After our tea we sauntered through the store a little, dilly-dallying. I became enamoured with some color saturated tea cups and saucers by Grace Tea Ware. Maybe next time I come in I will pick myself one of two of these lovely cups to take home (if they still have them) though it will take some considering which color or colors to chose. They are all so beautiful! I did pick up a lovely tea for one set in a teal blue with tiny red and yellow flowers on it. For as many teapots and tea sets I have this is only my second tea for one set... and only my first tea for one set if you don't include a one cup tea for one Alice in Wonderland set I got from ebay which was listed as a sugar and creamer to go along with a larger 4 cup Alice in Wonderland teapot...

Anyhow, aren't the colors on these cups and saucers gorgeous! 

Color saturated cups and saucers by Grace Tea Ware

More color saturated cups and saucers by Grace Tea Ware

Maybe the loveliest... Julianne's favorite of the color saturated tea cups and saucers

After our morning and afternoon at Tyme for Tea I went for a stroll down Niles Blvd. to take a peak in my favorite stores, My Friends and I a few stores down, and at the end of the boulevard, Suda Mae Antiques. At My Friends and I, I adopted an orange cat (statue).

At home I enjoyed another cup of tea (decaf) with my leftover sweets in my new Grace Tea Ware tea for one.

Tea for one by Grace Tea Ware

Tea For One by Grace Tea Ware, Floral Cat Plate- Urban Outfitters

Outfit of the Day:

And as I like to, let us end the post with the outfit of the day!

Today I wore my Steady Anna dress which I got a while back from DaddyO's, and a cropped navy knit cardigan from Modcloth. To finish off this look I had a vintage navy purse from Etsy, Blowfish navy flats, and a cat brooch from ebay.

Steady Anna dress- Front View, Wolfgang View!

Steady Anna dress- Front View

Steady Anna dress- Side View, CC Back View

Steady Anna dress- Front View, Wolfgang Back View

Steady Anna dress- Side View

Cat Brooch Close Up

I don't know what was going on this morning with my cats. They were being active this morning! :)

Tim did it again!

Tim did it again! 

We celebrated our second year wedding anniversary all through the weekend and on our actual anniversary on Monday and Tim surprised me by getting me the Stop Staring Charlotte dress I have been eying. This story actually happened like this....

My New Year's resolution this year has been to pay off my credit card. I have a bad shopping habit as some of you readers might have guessed, but despite my love of shopping for retro dresses I am determined to have the credit card paid off by the end of the year. This may seem impossible for a shopping addict at first glance but I have a plan! My plan has been to only buy dresses when they go on sale or *if* I see that there is only one or two left in my size and it seems imminent that the dress will sell out (something that my favorite shops Cats Like Us and Modcloth are good at letting their customers know). Also, something which I figured should go hand in hand with this restriction is that I would end up paying more on my credit card then charging up. I've been doing alright so far. You might not be able to tell but I have slowed way down in my dress purchases. ;) Though, to kick things up a notch, I decided that I will not buy any dresses in the month of March and maybe possibly for the month of April... now before you think there won't be any dress reviews coming for the next two months I have you covered readers... there are some back log of dresses I want to review for you in the next coming weeks. Anyhow, I digress...

I decided I will not buy any dresses until at least April. I told myself this sometime in the last week of February. But what do you know, the Stop Staring dress I've been wishing for since the end of last Spring when Stop Staring came up with their sneak preview of the their Fall Winter 2013 line went on sale on ebay from Pin-Up Darling (they also have a regular online store here)! And this was not just a 10% or 15% off sale... the sale price on this dress brought the dress down to 36% off, not to mention that this ebay seller was offering free shipping and there would be no sales tax, saving not only an additional 9% from CA sales tax but also saving up to $10 extra dollars from shipping which if you add up all those factors makes this deal more like 46% off the dress! So I could not pass this up. I made the purchase while I still could before they sold out or the sale ended. I felt bad for not sticking to my "buy no dresses until at least April" plan but not that bad seeing as this was a steal of a sale price I was getting. I told my husband Tim thinking he would say "Oh dis wan...." (he calls me dis wan). But instead he really surprised me and said instead, "Tell you what, I'll pay you back for the dress and give it to you for an anniversary present." And this was on top of the second year anniversary present he was already getting me; he got me a new set of towels for the house and I got him a duvet with a kaleidoscope of cats all over it. So sweet, so surprising, of him. It makes me so happy!

Anyhow... I will get to what you're waiting for... pictures of the Stop Staring Charlotte dress!!

Stop Staring Charlotte Dress- Front View

Stop Staring Charlotte Dress- Side View

Stop Staring Charlotte Dress- Back View

Stop Staring Charlotte Dress- Close up of drape and fabric with Murkurie in the background!

Stop Staring Charlotte Dress- backside of fabric and close up of front

The Stop Staring Charlotte dress is a tan and black 1950's style pencil skirted dress. It features a rounded collar, cuffed cap sleeves, and a skinny self belt. I love the well thought-out design of this dress. The covered buttons in the front of the dress mirror the curved edges of the rounded collar beautifully while the Glen Plaid/Prince of Wales Check pattern works well to contrast the overall curved motifs in this dress. The Glen Plaid/Prince of Wales Check furthermore fits perfectly with the dress' 1950's feel, adding an air of sophistication. This dress is made of a poly, rayon, spandex blend. It is a soft material with plenty of stretch. It is reminiscence to the Stop Staring Jackie dress in feel though much smoother and lighter in weight (see Black Friday Sales Dress Reviews). The dress has a back zip and while the front buttons look functional, they actually are not which helps in ensuring there is no front gaping in this tighter fitting dress. This dress fits a little larger than many other Stop Staring dresses I have tried on so if you like a very fitted feel you might want to size down. For me, I prefer dresses to have a little more room in them rather than being super tight and found my usual size large to feel like a great fit for my 38-30-38 5'3" frame.



Also, did you spot the cat earlier? Murkurie was hungry in her earlier shot trying to get my attention. Here she is again full belly on her heat pad being a good kitty :)

Outfit of the days- Feeling Dotty

Hello Kittens!

It had been a busy non-stop weekend this past weekend for me and my husband Tim. Not only was it our two year wedding anniversary weekend but it was also Mardi Gras weekend as well.

We kick started the annivesary weekend by going to the Tech Museum in San Jose to see the Star Wars exhibit with a group of friends. It was cool to get to see the actual models that were in the movies as well as the actual costumes and props. I was expecting there to be lots of hands-on exhibits seeing that it was the Tech Museum after all but all the hands on stuff seemed to either be broken or they took too much concentration and patience to do. We were kind of pressed for time so I just didn't have it in me to read the instructions for the hands on stuff ;p

With Jawa!

 

Han and Boba

Tim with the hands on interactive stuff

R2D2

Destroyer Droid

C3PO

The fun did not stop at the Museum. Later that evening we went to our first ever Mardi Gras party! I can now say I'm a big fan of Mardi Gras! ;) This party consisted of lots of good food, good company, good drinks and more good food: hurricanes, jambalaya, fried chicken, red beans and rice, stuffed bell peppers, dirty rice, king cake, all finished off with freshly made beignets. All I have to say is I ate to my heart's content and also that my friend Valencia's mom is the best for putting together this party and Valencia and her mom are awesome for making all this good food! Mardi Gras? Yes please!


Outfit of the day (Saturday):

For this fun filled day I picked a dress that is both stylish and comfortable, my Stop Staring Samantha dress which I got from JBR Clothing a while back. I love this dress because it is a retro style circle dress with 3/4 sleeves, polka dots, and is made of super warm, soft, sweater-type material, making it the perfect warm weather dress! I wore this with a peacock feather in my hair (from Beverly's modified by me) for Mardi Gras, turquoise tights, and Blowfish ankle strap flats.

Stop Staring Samantha Dress- Front View

Stop Staring Samantha Dress- Side View

On Sunday Tim and I had a nice sleep in after all the fun and eating from the Mardi Gras party the night before then went out to dinner at my favorite restaurant, Le Papillon in Fremont.  The food is always delicious there and the staff always treat you right! We had escargot, I had asparagus cream soup and the chicken cordon bleu, Tim had a salad and their pistachio crusted scallops, then even though we didn't order dessert, they came out with a plate full of samplings of their desserts with happy anniversary written on the plate in raspberry sauce and with a candle on the plate! So we got to end the night on a high note with vanilla ice cream, java chip ice cream, cherry ice cream, cheesecake, and fresh berries. Is there any wonder why this is my favorite restaurant?

Anniversary Soup at Le Papillon

Celebrating our 2nd year anniversary- Le Papillon

Outfit of the day (Sunday):

For this evening I picked a pencil skirted dress (Tim's favorite style) and wore my Hell Bunny Sandy dress which I got from Angry Young and Poor a while back. This polka dot dress buttons in the top front and has a cut out at the top of the bust. It also buttons in the back and has a cut out at the lower back. But because it is the beginning of March and still chilly I wore a black tank top under the dress which covered up the back cut out making it not so drafty and not so risque. I wore this dress with a red flower with red red feather in my hair from Vintage Alley, black back-seamed tights, and T.U.K. Kitty Heels from Journeys which also has polka dots along with a cute kitty face and cute little velvet red bows which the cats wear on their ear.

Hell Bunny Sandy Dress- Front View

Hell Bunny Sandy Dress- Side View

T.U.K. Kitty Heels

It was a weekend full of fun and food and good company and though this wasn't planned this way... full of polka dots!

A Peacock for All Occasions

""So beauti-ful," the priest said. "A tail full of suns," 

...and he crept forward on tiptoe and looked down on the bird's back where the polished gold and green design began. The peacock stood still as if he had just come down from some sun-drenched height to be a vision for them all." Flannery O'Conner, The Displaced Person

I love peacocks. They are so majestic. The way they prance, the way they lift their tails and show off their plumage, their call... “To the melancholy this sound is melancholy and to the hysterical it is hysterical. To me it has always sounded like a cheer for an invisible parade." Flannery O'Conner from her essay The King of the Birds.

With this being Mardi Gras weekend I figured it was a perfect time to blog about my new find, the Peacock Teapot from Edie Rose by Rachel Bilson... yes that Rachel Bilson from the show Hart of Dixie! Who knew that she also designed teaware, dinnerware, and other kitchenware?!

The Peacock Teapot from Edie Rose is in the shape of a peacock. The peacock's head, looking behind him, forms the lid of the teapot. His plumage, first curving up then cascading down, forms the handle as well as the backside of the teapot. Sculptured roses, one in full bloom and another still in its bud, encircle the spout. The spout itself is one of the roses' leaves. A raised relief design is seen throughout the teapot as well as the peacock's colors of turquoise, purple, and green. 

Isn't he lovely?

Peacock Teapot by Edie Rose

Notice how the peacock's expression seems to change depending on the view? Compare the first picture with the last picture...

And so I leave you with one more quote from Miss Flannery O'Conner on the beauty of the peacock..

"The peacock stopped just behind her, his tail--glittering green-gold and blue in the sunlight--lifted just enough so that it would not touch the ground. It flowed out on either side like a floating train and his head on the long blue reed-like neck was drawn back as if his attention were fixed in the distance on something no one else could see...." Flannery O'Conner, The Displaced Person

Happy Mardi Gras everyone!

The loveliest coats in the world

I recently purchased two of Trashy Diva's coats. 

These are the most loveliest coats I've ever owned! Though they are different in style, they both have their beautiful retro charm. When I wear these coats I feel like a movie star. These coats could have come straight out of an old Hollywood movie! In fact, one of these coats have been featured in the modern day TV show, True Blood.

The Courtney dress coat by Trashy Diva is a double breasted, luxurious, full skirted dress which features 3/4" sleeves, a wide portrait collar and two covered buttons in the front at the waist. I bought mine in black cotton sateen which has a slight sheen to the fabric and a smooth feel. It is made with wonderful attention to detail and unsurpassed quality I have come to expect from Trashy Diva. It is fully lined in black acetate taffeta which helps adds to the poof of the skirt and features razor sharp piping which farther helps hold the shape and gives the skirt of the dress coat a great flair. It also has a total of six hidden snap closures, three on the inner closure and three on the outer part of the inner closure to ensure the dress coat keeps it tailored look. I may have purchased this coat a size too small because I had a hard time keeping these snap closures snapped but a quick swap for two hook and eyes where the snap closures were and this dress fits like a dream.

I snatched this dress up from Blue Velvet Vintage when I saw they were selling out and when Trashy Diva sold out of my size but never fear, Trashy Diva has since restocked the Courtney dress coat in black ribbed rayon as well as has it in smoked leopard. Blue Velvet Vintage still has one size left in this dress coat as well as this dress coat in white. This dress coat is the same one as was worn by the vampire queen Sophie Anne in True Blood though this one has a black lining instead of her red lining.

This coat is amazing. Because of the luxuriousness of this dress coat with its tailored shape and beautiful style I would not be surprised to have seen Grace Kelly wearing it. It's something I would expect her character the beautiful, wealthy, sophisticated Lisa Fremont from Rear Window to step out in.

I ordered this dress coat in size 12 and other than the problems with the six small snap closures it seems to fit my 38-30-38, 5'3" frame just right.

Trashy Diva Courtney Dress Coat Front View

Trashy Diva Courtney Dress Coat Side View

Trashy Diva Courtney Dress Coat Side View

Trashy Diva Courtney Dress Coat Back View

Detail of Small Snap Closures Inner Closure

Detail of Small Snap Closures Outer Closure

Substituted one snap closure for hook and eye on inner closure

Also substituted one snap closure for hook and eye on outer closure and removed one side of the two remaining small snaps, left the other side of the two snaps because they were unnoticeable when the dress coat is worn.

The Trashy Diva Velvet Ginger jacket is pure 1950's starlet evening glamor! This jacket was modeled from a jacket handmade for Ginger Wallace but has an updated design to give it "more sex appeal" while remaining true to its vintage charm. It features 3/4" dolman sleeves, a cropped length, and a fitted waist giving it an authentic 1950s silhouette. This jacket has one covered button which closes at the cropped waist. Despite it's glamorous look and velvet fabric, the dolman sleeves ensures it is very comfortable to wear.

I absolutely adore this jacket. I was lucky enough to come across it during Trashy Diva's 50% off sale items sale which made it a steal! This jacket was made for ballrooms and black tie dinners. I imagine it being the perfect jacket to take with you to one of the fancy night clubs where Xavier Cugat and his Orchestra played in Esther Williams' movies.

I ordered this jacket in medium which I was really hesitant about but following the size chart proved to be correct and this jacket fit me just right.

Trashy Diva Ginger Jacket Front View

Trashy Diva Ginger Jacket Front View- dolman sleeves

Trashy Diva Ginger Jacket Side View

Trashy Diva Ginger Jacket Back View

With both the Trashy Diva Courtney Dress Coat and the Trashy Diva Ginger Jacket I wore my Lucky 13 City Gal dress, a perfect dress for both jackets, with my Naturalizer Collna heels.