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Sunday, March 31, 2013

Tuesday Cuppa Tea, Homer Laughlin, SS Governor Sinking Site

Hello and welcome to Tuesday Cuppa Tea! I hope you had a wonderful Easter or Passover and are enjoying the wonderful spring weather we are having here...too wonderful for me to go out...the blossoming trees has me  locked in at the moment. But...I am so blessed anyway, it doesn't matter!!!!



This is a bit unusual for a Tuesday Cuppa Tea...bear with me! It is connected....My choice of teacup today is related to what else I have to post. I am sharing a teacups and saucer by Homer Laughlin, USA in the Eggshell Nautilus Ferndale pattern.  I am out of them, so this picture is from an Etsy story called LBF Collections.



Homer Laughlin is a USA company founded in Ohio in 1871 and moved to West Virginia in 1903. The company is till in operation and open for tours. The company is most famous for it's Fiesta line, but in it's earlier days was famous for it's restaurant wares and made products for ships, trains, restaurants, clubs and other organizations...the more utilitarian wares in white ironstone in contrast to the pretty dinnerware patterns the one above is an example of. Here are 3 more patterns in items I have at the moment.




The pattern below is from the 1890s and is made of ironstone.


But the reason I am sharing about Homer Laughlin, is because April 2 is the anniversary of the sinking, in 1912 of the S. S. Governor right in our local water just off Port Townsend in the waters of the Puget Sound.



This period postcard shows the S. S. Governor. The ship had left San Francisco and was heading to Victoria BC with 417 passengers, when at night it confused the running lights on the freighter West Hartland heading out of Seattle with the Point Wilson lighthouse and rammed the West Hartland.  Luckily most of the passengers were saved, due to the captain of the west Hartland keeping the freighter positioned into the Governor until most passengers were saved except those trapped or killed by the collision itself. There was a loss of 8 lives, 2 of them children.




Enter the Maritime Documentation Society, a group of professional maritime archaeologists and researchers who track missing wrecks, document them and leave them intact. 2 weeks ago, members of the group gave a lecture and slideshow about their dives to locate and identify the wreck in 2008 at our Sequim Museum And Art Center.  Now here is where Homer Laughlin comes in.



In this photo from the Peninsula Daily News, one of our local papers, you see Society member Rob Wilson....one of the presenters at our program...with a water pitcher and tooth mug that were brought up from the wreck for identification purposes, and after 5 years with the state, the relics are on loan to the society for educational purposes. You can see a photo of them cleaned down below.  When the items were cleaned, they were identified by a stamp on the bottom as Homer Laughlin white ironstone restaurant ware, and came from a 1st class cabin. Here is a photo of the china they found (and left) and a photo Rob took of the original banding of all the dishes identifying them as the line that ran the S. S. Governor, the Pacific Coast Steamship Company.





One of the other Society members, Paul Hangartner, one of the divers who took part in the program is holding the jug seen in the first picture, encrusted with decades of sea accretions in the first photo, with the cleaned jug.  The next photos were taken with my phone...forgot my camera@!





The exhibits included their propulsion devices, charts of how the Governor sank and by blueprints of the ship. All fascinating. 





It was a wonderful program. As it is so close to the anniversary of the Titanic, it was so amazing to realize we have similar ships, sites and stories so close to home. Apparently there are hundreds of undocumented wrecks just off our shores. 
There are several wonderful websites for more info on this particular site and Society as well as the local news stories about the expedition, and the website of the film arm of the society which includes videos:

Maritime Documentation Society

DCS Films site for the S S Governor dives

Peninsula Daily News article: Diver Tells Of Visit To SS Governor

Sequim Gazette: Exploring History Beneath The Waves

USAToday: History Of Homer Laughlin

So thanks for visiting today. I hope you will link your tea related post with the linky below, and visit the blogs listed...just a few of the wonderful blogs I'll be visiting.  Have a wonderful week , and have a cuppa tea with someone you love!


Monday Marketplace
Terri~  http://artfulaffirmations.blogspot.com/ 
Teacup Tuesday
Trisha~  http://sweetology101.blogspot.com/ 
Tea Party Tuesday
Teatime Tuesday
Kathy~  http://blissfulrhythm.blogspot.com/
Victoria - A Return to Loveliness
Tea On Tuesday
Miss Kathy ~http://thewritersreverie.blogspot.com/
Tuesday Tea       
Tea On Tuesday
Tea Tuesday
Tea On Tuesday
Poetry In A Pot Of Tea
Friends Sharing Tea Wednesday
What’s It Wednesday                                           
Home On Wednesday







Saturday, March 30, 2013

A Very Happy Easter

I have been MIA since our kids visit with allergies and finishing taxes...and had to triple my meds to get it in control...the allergies I mean! LOL!  I guess it was too much outdoors time under the newly blossoming fruit trees in Victoria. But...no regrets. If the kids are here...I'm doing it with them!

But I wanted to wish you all a wonderful Easter with an antique postcard and I will be back with Tuesday Cuppa Tea!




Monday, March 25, 2013

Tuesday Cuppa Tea, Rosina Hand Colored Teacup

Hi there my friends and welcome to Tuesday Cuppa Tea



I am late for Tuesday Cuppa Tea because, as I mentioned last post, we had a surprise visit from our son and daughter in law who flew out to be with us for his 43rd birthday. Pretty nice...we got the present for HIS birthday!  So we dropped them off this afternoon at the Bainbridge Island to Seattle ferry and they flew out a couple of hours ago. 




Miss them already! They called us on Thursday evening and flew in at 1pm on Friday. This was taken on Friday on the ferry from Seattle to Bainbridge Island. The Big Wheel on the waterfront is in the background.  We spent Saturday and Sunday in Victoria, BC Canada but will talk about that in another post. 

So...for my teacup today, another of my favorite Rosina, England hand colored on transfer cup and saucer made somewhere between 1948 and 1952. I love the swirl molded shape and the pastel colored wild roses. So pretty!









The transfer on this teacup is blue, but Rosina used grey, brown, black and red transfer printed designs that were then individually hand painted by artists at the potteries. Then, the china was fired and lastly went to the gilders who applied the gold trim before a final firing. Each of these hand colored designs is a little work of art and I love them!  The teacups is available at Antiques And Teacups. For more info, click on the photos.

I don't have a lot to share today, as the fruit trees are really blossoming and my allergies have really kicked up. So with the fabulous time with our family and the allergies, I didn't have my usual plans for the Tuesday Cuppa Tea post. So please forgive the brevity...I heading for an early night!

Below please find a list of some of the blogs I am joining and the linky for your Tuesday tea related posts. Hope you had a wonderful weekend, and that your week will be as fabulous!

And Pesach Shalom to my Jewish friends!


Terri~  http://artfulaffirmations.blogspot.com/ 
Teacup Tuesday
Trisha~  http://sweetology101.blogspot.com/ 
Tea Party Tuesday
Teatime Tuesday
Kathy~  http://blissfulrhythm.blogspot.com/
Victoria - A Return to Loveliness
Tea On Tuesday
Miss Kathy ~http://thewritersreverie.blogspot.com/
Tuesday Tea       
Tea On Tuesday
Tea Tuesday
Tea On Tuesday
Poetry In A Pot Of Tea
Friends Sharing Tea Wednesday
What’s It Wednesday                                           
Home On Wednesday
 A Tea Lover     ~http://the-teaist.blogspot.com/
Tea Talk Wednesday

Wednesday, March 20, 2013

No Thursday Tea Things And Talk...Kids here for a visit!

Hi there my tea loving friends!!! I just wanted to say there is no Tea Things And Talk...our out-of-state kids just called a couple of hours ago and are flying in for a few days. Then I just remembered .....


And am so excited and busy getting ready I can't think what to post! So I will be MIA for Thursday, and as the kids want to go to Victoria, BC for the weekend, will be really late for Tuesday Cuppa Tea. They are flying home on Monday, so I will try to post when we get back from taking them to the ferry to go catch there return flight from Sea Tac. I hope you have a wonderful weekend...we will!!!! WooHoo!!!!! Haven't seen them since last May!!!!!

Sunday, March 17, 2013

Tuesday Cuppa Tea, Crocus Flowers, Saffron and a Spring Tea

Hello and welcome to Tuesday Cuppa Tea! I'm a bit late...watching the PBS program on the Diamond Queen, Queen Elizabeth II. Wonderful! But...I digress.  Hope you are all enjoying your corned beef and cabbage! We had ours yesterday with leftovers for tonight. Yummmy!



As I am joining Sandi at Rose Chintz Cottage for her Springtime Tea...




 (as well as the other blogs below) , I was thinking about where we are in the spring progression here in the Pacific Northwest. We are in the crocus stage...far behind most of the rest of the country. Here is what is growing in our yard...the rest are buds...






I love daffodils, but we are only budding. So I remembered I have 2 teacups with crocus blossoms on them. I have shared the Rosina before, but not the Shelley China teacup.





This 1950s Rosina, England has dark pink crocuses on it. I love the shape, and the handle is quite elegant!





This design by Shelley China, England is named for the designer and is called Butcher's Crocus or Butcher's Crocus, Rose And Bluebell because of the yellow and red crocus in the flower bouquet. The shape is called Gainsborough which was made throughout most of Shelley's history until 1965, a year before the pottery closed, although the pattern dates to 1940-1965.  This is one of my favorite shapes. I love the delicate elegance of the design. 
For more info on the teacups at Antiques And Teacups, click on the photos.



I wanted to talk about crocuses also, because their stamens are the source  of the spice saffron. This photo is courtesy of www.gourmetsleuth.com which explains why the spice is so expensive. The crocus flowers are grown particularly for their stamens, only 3 to a bloom in areas like Iran and India






And the stamens have to be removed by hand...so it's an expensive process. Here is my jar and the strands....



That's over $10 dollars of spice! Saffron is also used to give a distinctive yellow color to foods.  I use it in a risotto I make and in an Indian rice dish with cashews and peas which I am sharing below. I happened to find an identical recipe to mine online, although mine is from an old Small Planet cookbook from the 1970s...would have photographed that, but it doesn't have a cover any longer! We love Indian food and Indian spiced food. This is very nice!





Saffron Rice with Peas and Cashews


Rice is a staple of many diets across the world. It's endlessly flexible and variable; it can be a dessert, a side dish, a main dish. As good as plain white rice can be, we love to dress up our rice just a little. All it takes is a pinch of this and that...
This slightly sweet and nutty rice has the golden flavor of saffron that spreads throughout the dish as the rice cooks. It also has tender little peas and cashews that have been softened in cooking. This mix of colors and flavors is warming and refreshing. We serve it with good lamb curry or eat it on its own with a little yogurt for a light vegetarian dinner.
Saffron Rice with Peas and Cashews
serves 4-6
1 tablespoon oil
2 cups Basmati rice, well-rinsed and washed
1/2 teaspoon (2 pinches) saffron threads
1 cup unroasted, lightly salted cashew halves
1 cup frozen organic peas
3 1/2 cups water
1/2 teaspoon garam masala
1 teaspoon salt, or to taste
Wash and drain rice. Heat the oil over medium-high heat in a 4-quart pot. Add the rice and fry a couple minutes. Add the saffron threads and cashew halves and fry for another minute. Add the peas, fry for a few moments, then add the water, stir, and bring to a boil. Reduce to a simmer, cover, and cook for 18-20 minutes.
Take off the lid and turn the heat off. Stir in the garam masala and salt to taste. Let the rice sit to "dry" for a few minutes. Serve.
Taken from www.thekitchn.com
These are saffron buns, and if you have any Scandanavian ancestry, you probably have these around December and for St. Lucia's Day.  The distinctly yellow color and equally distinct flavor is the saffron form thos little crocuses! Amazing!

So thanks for joining me today for Tuesday Cuppa Tea and don't forget Sandi's Springtime Tea. Here is the linky for your wonderful tea related posts and a list of some of the blogs I am joining.

Monday Marketplace
Terri~  http://artfulaffirmations.blogspot.com/ 
Teacup Tuesday
Trisha~  http://sweetology101.blogspot.com/ 
Tea Party Tuesday
Teatime Tuesday
Kathy~  http://blissfulrhythm.blogspot.com/
Victoria - A Return to Loveliness
Tea On Tuesday
Miss Kathy ~http://thewritersreverie.blogspot.com/
Tuesday Tea       
Tea On Tuesday
Tea Tuesday
Tea On Tuesday
Poetry In A Pot Of Tea
Friends Sharing Tea Wednesday
What’s It Wednesday                                           
Home On Wednesday
 A Tea Lover     ~http://the-teaist.blogspot.com/
Tea Talk Wednesday