A passage from Anne of Avonlea by Lucy Maud Montgomery:
"But oh, won't you stay and have tea with me? Please, do." said Miss Lavendar. Anne replied promptly, "We'd like to stay...if it won't inconvenience you. But you are expecting other guests, aren't you?"
Miss Lavendar looked at her tea table again, and blushed. "I know you'll think me dreadfully foolish," she said. "I AM foolish...and I'm ashamed of it when I'm found out, but never unless I AM found out. I'm not expecting anybody...I was just pretending I was. You see, I was so lonely. I love company...that is, the right kind of company...but so few people ever come here because it is so far out of the way. So, I just pretended I was going to have a tea party. I cooked for it...and decorated the table for it...and set it with my mother's wedding china...and I dressed up for it."
Diana secretly thought Miss Lavendar quite as peculiar as report had pictured her. The idea of a woman of forty-five playing at having a tea party, just as if she were a little girl! But Anne of the shining eyes exclaimed joyfully, "Oh, do YOU imagine things too?"
That "too" revealed a kindred spirit to Miss Lavendar.
"Yes, I do," she confessed, boldly. "Of course it's silly in anybody as adult as I am. But what is the use of being an independent old soul if you can't be silly when you want to..."
And so here we have...three friends playing pretend...they had a tea party. They cooked for it...and decorated the table for it...and set it with Lamoge...and they dressed up for it.
Penelope: I had no idea there was anything approaching good taste in these remote areas. It is quite a surprise to me.
Makena: I am afraid you judge of the country too harshly. Personally, I believe there's nothing half so nice as living in the country.
Salemina: I could and would do without a set bath-tub. I wouldn't mind living in a cabin one day. May I pour you more tea?
Penelope (with elaborate politeness): Please, thank you.
Salemina (sweetly): Sugar?
Penelope: No, thank you. Sugar is not so fashionable any more, is it?
Makena: Sugar for me, please. And lots of cream. I love milk with my tea.
Salemina: Homemade macarons, lemon cookies or an English shortbread?
Makena: One of each, if you don't mind.
Penelope: Macarons, please. Lemon and shortbread cookies are rarely seen at the best houses nowadays.
Makena: Mandazi and samosas are my favorites for teatime when I lived back home in Kenya. They are nothing more than flour and sugar cooked in a lot of grease.
Penelope: In Japan they eat rice cake for tea.
Salemina: And in Moscow...it is Prianiki, a sweet gingerbread cake.
Makena: How about Fiji? What do they have for tea there?
Penelope: I'm not sure. Good question?...breadfruit?
Salemina: Is that a kind of bread?
Penelope: It's a fruit. I hear it tastes like potato or freshly baked bread. And when it's very ripe it becomes sweet.
Makena: Delectable!
And so, these three enjoyed a lovely afternoon in each other's company, under the shade of a tree, drinking tea and musing about the global tea traditions.
They are the best of friends, these three. Yet, they are as different as different gets.
Makena is a joyful soul. She loves just about any type of food and she'll eat just about anything. She used to live in Kenya in a large compound with lots of family and extended family. So, she is used to being around a lot of people all the time. She doesn't mind being crowded out of her space. And she flows with just about anything. That's Makena...easy going, always open to new things. Makena also loves nice things. She thinks that one must always look her best. And so Makena likes to dress nice a lot of the time...always in her best, most respectable self.
Makena is a 14" doll, made with natural materials and one-of-a-kind. She is made with premium quality cotton interlock imported from Europe and firmly stuffed with bio-wool. Her seams are sewn twice for reinforcement. Her hair is made of Malabrigo Gruesa, a super bulky hand painted 100% wool yarn and Cast Away Knit Collage, a super thick hand carded handspun 100% wool yarn. She has an embroidered and simple facial expression. Her cheeks and nose are blushed with red beeswax. She is a sitting doll with sewn joints that are made flexible for easy movement and changing of clothes. She has a sweet belly button and an oh so soft bummie.
She comes wearing a neutral colored linen dress that opens and closes fully on the back with pearl snap-on buttons. The dress has a peter pan collar and decorated with velvet flowers. Makena has on a pair of hand knit shoes. The shoes are made from Heritage Cascade Yarns, a sock yarn made of 75% merino wool and 25% nylon. The shoe straps are made of velvet ribbon. Makena comes bearing some goodies to go with tea time...three needle-felted macaron pieces (these were a lot of fun for me to make...made me want to try recipes for the real thing) and a tin can of Nia's Tea.
Makena is recommended for ages 3+. If you are interested in bringing Makena home and giving her a warm and nurturing environment, she is now available for purchase through the Etsy shop.
Next is Penelope. Penelope is a very mannerly young lady. She was born in the big city. She is used to city playgrounds, access to interesting eateries, libraries and museums. She loves the noise that a city has to offer. In the country, when things get too quiet, it spooks her a little. She's just not used to it. Penelope is good with her "pleases" and "thank yous" and is a little girl who crosses her t's and dots her i's you might say. She loves reading and you might also say she's very well read for someone her age. In fact, she learned to read at a much younger age than most children.
Penelope is a 14" doll, made with natural materials and one-of-a-kind. She is made with premium quality cotton interlock imported from Europe and firmly stuffed with bio-wool. Her seams are sewn twice for reinforcement. Her lovely locks are made of mohair boucle (otherwise known as loop) yarn. She has an embroidered and simple facial expression. Her cheeks and nose are blushed with red beeswax. She is a sitting doll with sewn joints that are made flexible for easy movement and changing of clothes. She has a sweet belly button and an oh so soft bummie.
She comes wearing a sweet cotton dress made from a modified Fig&Me dress tutorial. It opens fully on the back with one pearl snap on button. Penelope has on a pair of hand knit shoes. The shoes are made from a Madeleine Tosh merino wool yarn and embellished with a flower. Penelope comes bearing some goodies to go with tea time...three needle-felted macaron pieces (these were a lot of fun for me to make...made me want to try recipes for the real thing) and a tin can of Nia's Tea.
Penelope is recommended for ages 3+. If you are interested in giving Penelope a home, she is now available for purchase through the Etsy shop.
Then, there is Salemina. Salemina is an old soul. She is a bit introverted, very curious, always open to learning new things and new ideas. She's the one who loves living close to nature's heart. She loves her friends and her family. She stays close to home, finding enjoyment in the little things surrounding her daily life. She likes being comfortable in her clothes for she's always running and jumping and climbing. Therefore, you're less likely to find Salemina is fancy dresses or shoes. She's a practical one, this Salemina.
Salemina is a 14" doll, made with natural materials and one-of-a-kind. She is made with premium quality cotton interlock imported from Europe and firmly stuffed with bio-wool. Her seams are sewn twice for reinforcement. Her wonderful maine is made of mohair yarn...lots of it for combing and styling as you wish. She has such thick hair that she asked for a headband to keep it out of her face. So, I made her a headband to match her dress. She has an embroidered and simple facial expression. Her cheeks and nose are blushed with red beeswax. She is a sitting doll with sewn joints that are made flexible for easy movement and changing of clothes. She has a sweet belly button and an oh so soft bummie.
She comes wearing an adorable cotton outfit composed of a simple top and knit pants with lace trim. Salemina has on a pair of hand knit shoes. The shoes are made from Heritage Cascade Yarns, a sock yarn made of 75% merino wool and 25% nylon. The shoe straps have a functional wooden button, but the shoes can also slip on and off just as easily without opening the buttons. Salemina comes bearing some goodies to go with tea time...three needle-felted macaron pieces (these were a lot of fun for me to make...made me want to try recipes for the real thing) and a tin can of Nia's Tea.
Salemina is recommended for ages 3+. If you are interested in bringing Salemina home, she is now available for purchase through the Etsy shop.
