Home Sweet Home # 38

Hello and welcome to Home Sweet Home!  I posted a tablescape from last year earlier this week and I always get the same response when people see it.   They remark that they never realized blue and white looks so good with orange.  Blue and orange were made for each other.  So pull out your blue and white for fall.  Paired with a white back ground it looks fresh. 

Fall can be blue and orange!  

 Now, I would like to feature some wonderful post from Home Sweet Home from the last two weeks.  Due to my technical difficulties last week I am combining the features from the two parties.

 First, Kelly at The Essence of Home showed off some changes.  Isn't this rustic crate cute with this arrangement?  Click the link to view.

Elizabeth, at Pinecones and Acorns has a friend that painted this table free hand!  Isn't she talented!  Click the link to view.

 Kathy, at A Tiny Cottage On Grand created this Frankenstein inspired cloche display.  I thought it had all the right Gothic touches.  Click the link to view.

Debbie, at Confessions of A Plate Addict created this Eiffel Tower Book Bundle that was really cute!  Click the link to view. 

Thank you to all who join me at Home Sweet Home!  It is awesome to have you here! 

I will join these ladies today:

 Inspiration Friday At The Picket Fence

Vintage Inspiration Friday at Common Ground

Feathered Nest Friday at French Country Cottage

Fridays Unfolded  at Stuff and Nonsense

Potpourri Friday at 2805
Farmhouse Friday  at LaurieAnna's Vintage Home
Show and Tell Friday at My Romantic Home
Open House Party at No Minimalist Here

Guidelines for Home Sweet Home Party:

Attention: To link up with inlinkz you must have a permalink back to this party in your post or they will not allow you to link. 

My button is on my sidebar for the party, if you want to use it.   If you are new here I hope you will become a follower.  No Etsy link ups or direct advertising, please.  Please visit some of the other blogs and get some great inspiration.  Thanks.:)

Now let's see your beautiful homes!

Mulled Cider

 Mulled cider smells wonderful in your kitchen.  It also tastes as good as it smells.  Here are the spices you will need.

20 whole cloves

5 apples (I have used 4)

2 cinnamon sticks

zest of 1 orange, removed with a veggie peeler

6 star anise

Also 1 gallon of apple cider

Press 4 cloves into each apple (I forgot to do this, I just tossed the cloves in the pot.)

Place cider, cinnamon, and orange zest, and studded apples into a large pot and warm over medium heat. Let steep one and a half hour without boiling.  

Garnish with the star anise.  You can serve this all through fall and till Christmas.  I love all of the great smells in the fall like wood burning, pumpkin pie, and this cider on the stove. 

Recipe source: Martha Stewart 

This is a re-post from 2010.  

Enjoy!

Sherry

I will join:

Michael Lee for  Foodie Friday at her site Designs by Gollum.

Wow Us Wednesday at Savvy Southern Style

This Chick Cooked at This Chick Cooks
Friday Food at Mom Trends

A Cottage Tea

I have a new little teapot that I used today for a cottage tea.  This teapot has no marks.  Any body have a guess as to who made it?  I loved how it looked. 

I also have waited out two little teacups at the thrift store and I got them for half price, $2.50 each.   They are Wedgwood.

I found this vintage hanky too.  Love the crocheted edge on it. 

So, altogether I have a little cottage tea.  I am using my new white backdrops.  I will be using these a lot for Christmas.  Do you like the look?  I don't have a white house.  My husband and I did all white and cottage back in the early 90's and then we had three boys.  LOL  So, we both have decided not to go back to white.  Although, I still love it!  This lets me blog in both worlds.  

Sherry

I will link to these lovely blogs, go and visit:

Table Top Tuesday  at A Stroll Thru Life

Tea Time Tuesday at Lady Katherine Tea Parlor

Tea Time Tuesday at Rose Chintz Cottage

Tea Cup Tuesday at Martha's Favorites

Tuesday Tea for Two at The Plumed Pen

Tea Pot and Tea Things Tuesday  at The Silken Purse

Tea Pot and Tea Things Tuesday at Breath of Fresh Air

Tea Cup Tuesday at Artful Affirmations

Tea Party Tuesday  at Sweetology 

A Return to Loveliness  at A Delightsome Life

Nifty Thirfty Tuesday  at Coastal Charm

White Wednesday  at Faded Charm

My Favorite Thing About Fall

My favorite thing about fall are the colors in the trees.  Some of our trees have peaked and then others are still green.

Sherry

I will join:

Mary at Little Red House for Mosaic Monday

Bacon Cheddar Chive Scones

I normally think of scones as a sweet treat to go with tea, but this week I tried this savory recipe and it was a winner.  I have made these scones three times this week and had no complaints.  

Recipe source: 

http://www.kingarthurflour.com

2 cups unbleached all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon baking powder
2 teaspoons sugar
4 tablespoons (1/2 stick, 2 ounces) cold  butter
1 cup (4 ounces) very coarsely grated or  diced cheddar cheese
1/3 cup (about 1/2 ounce) snipped fresh chives, or finely diced scallion tops (the  green part, 3/4 ounce)
1/2 pound bacon, cooked, cooled, and crumbled (about 1 cup)
3/4 cup + 2 tablespoons (7 ounces) heavy cream or whipping cream, or enough to make the dough cohesive

Preheat the oven to 425°F. Lightly grease a baking sheet, or line it with parchment.

1) Whisk together the flour, salt, baking powder, and sugar.

2) Work the butter into the flour until the mixture is unevenly crumbly.

3) Mix in the cheese, chives, and bacon till evenly distributed.

4) Add ¾ cup of the cream, stirring to combine. Try squeezing the dough together; if it’s crumbly and won’t hang together, or if there are crumbs remaining in the bottom of the bowl, add cream until the dough comes together. Transfer the shaggy dough to a well-floured work surface.

5) Pat the dough into a smooth 7" disk about ¾" thick. Transfer the disk to the prepared baking sheet.

6) Use a knife or bench knife to cut the disk into 8 wedges, spreading the wedges apart a bit on the pan.

7) Brush the scones with a bit of cream; this will help their crust brown.

8) Bake the scones for 22 to 24 minutes, until they’re golden brown. Remove them from the oven, and cool right on the pan. Serve warm, or at room temperature.
Yield: 8 large scones

Enjoy!

Sherry

I will link this to: 

Wow Us Wednesday at Savvy Southern Style

This Chick Cooked at This Chick Cooks
Friday Food at Mom Trends

Foodie Friday at Designs by Gollum

Check these great blogs out!

Tea Towel Review

I have two beautiful linen tea towels I received from www.all-tea-towels.co.uk  for review.   The first thing I noticed is how pretty the towels are.  They each have a striking design printed on one side.   

The two towels I picked out were 100% linen.  The fabric really was fantastic.  I washed the towels, at first by hand, to remove the natural starches as instructed by the care instructions.

I then washed them two more times and air dried them.  I also ironed them as per instructed in the care instructions and they ironed up really nice too.

I did a little research on the internet as to exactly what a tea towel is used for.  It is a dish towel.  It is used to dry your best dishes or any dishes.  So, I tried them out on some of my nicest things to see how they did.   I dried this plate and teacup with this tea towel and it did a wonderful job.  The fibers in this linen is extremely absorbent.  I have worked in a fabric store in the past and had some experience with linen and linen blends and this linen is of a very high quality.  The fibers of this linen even had a sheen after washing.  The towels also worked very well on Tupperware as well as stainless steel pots and pans.

So, how did they do on the finest of crystal and silver?  They did a great job with that too.  I dried my Waterford crystal goblet with this towel and not a bit of lint is left behind.   

I also dried my sterling silver.  The towel took all of the moisture away, left the silver dry, and no lint or water spots.  

So, in conclusion I would highly recommend these tea towels.  They were a joy to use and a great asset to equip your kitchen with. 

A big thank you to www.all-tea-towels.co.uk  for the opportunity to review these tea towels.  

Based in Northern Ireland, All Tea Towels has many fun and lovely designs of tea towels and will ship world wide.  Go and check them out.

Sherry

I will link to these blogs:

Table Top Tuesday  at A Stroll Thru Life

Tea Time Tuesday at Lady Katherine Tea Parlor

Tea Time Tuesday at Rose Chintz Cottage

Tea Cup Tuesday at Martha's Favorites

Tuesday Tea for Two at The Plumed Pen

Tea Pot and Tea Things Tuesday  at The Silken Purse

Tea Pot and Tea Things Tuesday at Breath of Fresh Air

Tea Cup Tuesday at Artful Affirmations

Tea Party Tuesday  at Sweetology