Welcome!
Welcome and thank you for coming to our Summer Tea. It’s our 10th year and we are celebrating the wonder of nature. When we chose the theme, we had no idea how complex it might be! It was very overwhelming and the designs of the decorated tables speaks to that. We have birds, wild animals, forest, Walden’s pond, beaches, orchard, garden party, sunflowers, apples and tornadoes… each one completely different from the others! So, please take time to look at each one when you enter the Fellowship Hall.
We have a fun menu for you today. Some of the things we are using are actually from our own gardens and local growers. We have a couple of recipes from Shakertown at Pleasant Hill, Kentucky. The Shakers are so incredibly resourceful. Our ancestors have passed on so much to us. Have you ever thought about corn and its many uses…corn syrup, corn oil, masa, hominy, corn husk dolls, wrappers for tamales decorations…on and on. Nothing went to waste!
So, today we honor the beauty and wonder of nature around us. It really is totally overwhelming what God created.
Prizes
WHERE WOULD NATURE BE WITHOUT THE GREATEST STORY EVER TOLD
This 14 piece porcelain set depicts the Lord’s Supper
Donated from the estate of Eva W. Smith
GARDEN GROUP
Plant, table top fountain and solar Peacock
Donated by Changing of the Garden in Corsicana, Tx
HAVE A SEAT
Butterfly settee, Butterfly Tray and Beverage Set
WIND SPINNERS
Two solar wind spinners and solar bird bath
COUNT YOUR LUCKY STARS
Telescope for young and old
Donated by Tim Brady (Navarro Planetarium Gift Shop)
TRAY OF GOODIES
The Amish and Collin Street Bakery Donated Goodies
LAZY SUSAN
Handmade Lazy Susan, two accent duck lamps, and wooden coasters
Donated by Wood Pro
BIRD PRINTS
Four beautiful numbered bird prints by Marian Otaw
Donated by Jane Taylor
HOSTESS SET
Ceramic Beverage Pitcher, Large serving tray, and serving pieces with fish motif
Donated by Uniquely Yours Corsicana, Texas
WINE SET
A bottle of Monrosso Tuscan Red Blend, a Tuscan Estate Wine, with wine glass holder and ice bucket Wine donated by Twisted Sisters Wine Bar in Mabank
ONE OF GOD’S GREATEST MIRACLES
THE HONEY BEE
Gourmet Honey, serving dishes, tray, and bee motif towels
Donated by Sur La Table, Dallas, Texas
GIFT BASKET
Elegant Gift basket from W Haus
TEN COMPARTMENT MARTIN HOUSE
Donated by Wood Pro
LOVELY GEOMETRIC PATTERNED CASHMERE PASHMINA WRAP
with a contemporary necklace and matching earrings
Menu
FRUIT PUNCH
A refreshing blend of apple, grape, pineapple and pear juice…. Perfect for a hot July day!
SALAD IN A JAR
Fresh greens, local blueberries, toasted pecans and Feta cheese topped with a poppy seed dressing…..oops! It’s at the bottom….so take your jar and shake it up!
HONEY BAKED HAM WITH JEZEBEL GLAZE
Using special curing and cooking procedures, we are serving this high quality bone-in smoked ham with a sweet and spicy glaze.
POPCORN SOUP
This recipe comes from a Shaker village in Kentucky. It has a wonderful creamy taste and is topped by popcorn!
CAPRESE SALAD ON A SKEWER
Summertime brings us “just picked” basil, homegrown tomatoes with fresh mozzarella…all on a rosemary skewer drizzled with a balsamic vinegar glazé…imported from Italy!
TORTILLA ROLLUPS
Remember these from the 1990’s? We have updated them with crisp red and green pepper.
HONEY BREAD WITH HONEY BUTTER
Another Shaker recipe, these little loaves of bread are sweetened with local honey…and the honey butter makes it even better!
DIRT DESSERT
Why not? It only seems logical that we have dirt dessert…considering our “nature” theme. Our version has an added surprise.
LEMON, SPEARMINT, LEMONGRASS TEA
MANGO TEA
FRESHLY BREWED COFFEE
Our coffee is Community Café. It is select 100% Arabia beans.
Orchard Kitchen
There are several things that affected the kitchen in the 30’s. One was the introduction of Fiesta ware with its bright colors and the newest feature in the 30’s home was the “breakfast nook”. This was a corner or a side of the kitchen with a small square table and four chairs or a small table with a built in bench. Most of the brightly painted tablecloths of the time were sized to fit the kitchen’s breakfast nook where the family ate informal meals.
It was during the Depression and women were sewing and cooking more. Home yard goods in colorful designs were readily available in department stores. Design had entered the kitchen! The most popular were nature themes with flowers and fruit leading the way. Previously dull kitchens began to explode with colorful wallpaper, borders, tablecloths, curtains, tea towels, plaques and hand painted dishes…anything to keep their spirits up.
So, welcome to my 30’s Orchard Kitchen table! I have focused on fruit, daisies and polka dots utilizing many of the items I have in my own Kitchen. Imagine my excitement when I found the material for the tablecloth! It is from a design company in Japan. The table is set with Jadeite restaurant ware, my everyday dishes. The centerpiece, tiered wire baskets is filled with daisies, berries, cherries and apples. I hope you enjoy my breakfast nook! The coffee pot is always on!
Hostess/Table Designer: Mary Ann Odom
SUNFLOWERS
The sunflower is one of the most brilliant and recognizable flowers. It represents strength and flourishes in almost any environment. It is giving, providing many life benefits, including seeds that provide food, butter and oil, not mentioning the joy of its’ beauty. Healing attributes offered by this flower include their roots which can extract poisons from the soil and also provide medicinal ointments. No flower can lift someone’s spirts quite like sunflowers. They are bright and cheery and as warm and inviting as the sweet summer’s sun. Sunflowers symbolize adoration, loyalty and longevity, and their name stems from the sun itself.
Organized in 1931, The Halcyon Club of Mabank, enjoys the notoriety of being the second oldest club in Kaufman County. The founding principles of the club focus on social and intellectual improvement along with creating friendly and sympathetic relations in the community. The history of the club very closely parallels the history and growth of Mabank, including charter members with names of Allison, Anderson, Broker, Covey, Eubank, Flanagan, Nesmith and Young. These founding women symbolized the epitome of the sunflower. Under their vision, the club has enjoyed longevity, joy and fellowship. Lifelong friendships that have been forged in the Halcyon Club have proven to endure the test of time. Today’s members are represented by mothers, daughters, sisters, and friends, who enjoy the sunflower like values of strength and joy. And, our members always relish the wise advice of one of our loved matriarchs, Mrs. Jean Harrup, who reminds us, “that Halcyon ladies never leave the house without their lipstick.”
Hostess/Table Designer: Kathie Hyde, Halcyon Club
THE Garden PARTY
You have a Special Invitation to attend an intimate and elegant luncheon “al fresco” in my “garden”.
Sur la table you will rediscover nature through the many “ingredients” used for this unique tablescape. Lovely flowers and plants to be sure, tucked around a gathering of garden statuary, wildlife and mosses. Hues of pinks and greens, along with a rustic elegance, are thoughtfully planted to delight the senses. Fabrics, colors and textures are woven into a memorable tapestry to celebrate this special event.
As in my actual garden you will find delightful surprises around each corner. A pair of quail nesting in a butterfly adorned cage. Lanterns used to enhance ambience day and night. Fish lazily swim circles in their aquatic bowl. A cupid statuary gazes toward Heaven, praying for love and peace.
Special to me is the use of my Canadian French Mother’s china place settings. Pretty, pale pink floral bouquets and a silver lining adorn each piece. Seldom used as this was reserved for very festive occasions such as the Wedding Garden Party she always dreamed of having for her daughters in her lovely garden. Perhaps this tablescape, created in her memory, will fill your hearts with happiness too.
So, let us feast and celebrate this wonderful life together!
Bon appetite!
Hostess/Table Designer: Debbie Kelly
OCEANS AND BEACHES
Close your eyes and think of your “Happy Place.” Mine is the ocean including beaches, snorkeling, sunrises, sunsets, building sandcastles, collecting seashells, listening to the waves, walking along the seashore, and cruising on an ocean liner. My parents took me to the Gulf, the Washington, Oregon, and California beaches of the Pacific Ocean. We camped in Maine along the cliffs of the Atlantic Ocean. I still remember being picked up and tossed about by the waves at Myrtle Beach.
When Guy and I married we spent our honeymoon in Galveston, but later the US Army took us to Georgia, and I discovered Panama City Beach, Florida. Then we met up in Hawaii on our second wedding anniversary when he was stationed in Viet Nam. Much later we took a road trip through Biloxi Mississippi, Destin Florida, and Key West. Our travels have taken us to the Bahamas, Grand Cayman, Jamaica, Belize, Cozumel, Puerto Vallarta, and most often to Port Aransas, Texas, where our kids and grandkids joined us also.
The conch shells were picked up by the guys diving from our boat in Grand Cayman where they removed the meat and fried it on the beach for our lunch. The white coral piece has made every move with us since that trip to Hawaii 48 years ago when it was on our table at breakfast. The Pelican came from Port A many years ago to have a little bit of my Happy Place right here at home.
Hostess/Table Designer: Bev Gorden
BIRDS
When I heard the theme for this year’s summer tea, I immediately knew what my table would be. For you see, I am an avid backyard bird watcher. Over the 16 years we’ve lived at the lake, I’ve identified at least 30 different birds who have dined at my feeders, sipped at the birdbath, nested in shrubs/trees/nestboxes/hanging baskets/wreaths /shirt sleeves, and peered in our windows. Our grandchildren have learned to identify our bird visitors, and I hope they will continue to demonstrate their love for these marvelous creatures of God by positive environmental consciousness.
The table design incorporates birdhouses I’ve collected, bird figurines both collected and borrowed, a real bird nest found in my yard, artificial eggs, a charming bird pattern fabric, and gold metallic plates featuring gorgeous birds. Red is woven throughout the design representing the brilliant color of the cardinals who grace our yard with their yearlong presence.
I just couldn’t resist naming the birds who have entertained us all these years: cardinal, blue jay, Eastern bluebird, house finch, Carolina wren, chickadee, tufted titmouse, downy woodpecker, red bellied woodpecker, mourning dove, nuthatch, owl, hawk, ruby crowned kinglet, Baltimore oriole, ducks, thrasher, hummingbird, robin, flicker, mockingbird, yellow warbler, vireo, rose breasted grosbeak, swallow, crow, grackle, goldfinch, and painted bunting (which I saw in the neighborhood but not in our yard).
Hostess/Table Designer: Celene Terry
TORNADO
A Tornado is a scary violent rotating column of air which is tunneled by a funnel shape cloud. Whenever we receive a tornado warning alert, we prepare for the storm. We prepare for the worse but no matter how we prepare the funnel cloud has its own plan of decent and destruction.
My table is designed to illustrate the tornado affect as in the Wizard of Oz in which the funnel cloud causes Dorothy and her dog to experience a magical journey from the gray land of Kansas and dropped down to earth in the middle of the land of Oz. Along the way she meets three companions, a cowardly lion who wants a badge of courage, a brainless scarecrow who wants a brain and a heartless tin man who wants a heart. They meet the good witch of the east and in order to get back to Kansas Dorothy needs to get the red slippers from the witch of the west. The table is decorated with all the items from the result of the tornado and representing the girl from Kansas with her dog.
Hostess/Table Designer: Arlene Johnson & Susan Johnson
Visit to the woods
The forest is a wonderful place and can be magical. It is home to many animals. Season after season they find food and shelter from their families.
It has also provided a lot of fun and entertainment for campers, hikers, bird watching, tree lovers and huggers. The woods and forests provide many resources for building, thus creating jobs for many people all around the world.
Forrest Fenn is a millionaire who thought he was dying of cancer. When he was 80 years old, he hid a chest full of gold, gems and artifacts worth 1 million dollars in the woods of America. He wrote a poem giving clues as to the location of the chest. To this day it is still out there waiting to be found. Forrest hid the chest to entice families to get out of the house and experience all of the wonderful adventures that wait in the woods, and forests of America.
Oh yeah, Forrest Fenn is still alive, he didn’t have terminal cancer after all. So get off the couch, shut off the tv, leave the cell phone behind and go visit the woods. Perhaps you may find a treasure, even if you don’t find a treasure chest. Or maybe just plant a tree.
Hostess/Table Designer: Lesia Townley, Lesia & Friends
Nature at its best
When I think of nature I think of animals and plants, so I believe my table features nature at its best.
The center piece on the table is a large old copper pot that my husband bought in an open air market in Libya, North Africa where he was serving in the U. S. Air Force. I have filled the pot with green plants and flowers, some from my yard and others purchased for this occasion. My china is Spode’s Woodland pattern which features birds, fish and other animals. I have been collecting this pattern for many years and it remains one of my family’s favorites. The round straw placemats continue the natural theme. The green goblets add some color and the flatware is my wedding silver, Reed & Barton’s Francis the First.
I hope you enjoy my table, nature at its best.
Hostess/Table Designer: Anne Burnett
Walden WOOD pond
Back to a Simpler Time
We would like to invite you to come sit with us and Thoreau around the Walden Wood Pond. Enjoy the small sights, and wonders that only nature can provide. As you sit here peacefully around our pond and reflect, you are actually able to see God’s hand in everything. Step back and embrace Nature.
Notice the cattails in the center of our table and the animals that surround it. Each one is depicting its own place in nature. We’re going back to a more simple time. The table arrangement is something you might have seen in earlier days. Our plaid placemats and napkins remind us of days when we were closer to each other and nature. Do you think that is what Thoreau intended you to feel when he wrote Walden? We believe so.
Enjoy your lunch in this tranquil setting, Relax with friends, good food, and conversation.
Your gift is to be a remembrance of God’s gift of life and nature…Because sometimes it just takes a quiet moment that is full of peace and love.
Hostess/Table Designer: Celia Smith, Carline Ferguson
and Jane Taylor
THE WONDER OF APPLES
A is for apple, as every kindergartner learns.
It started, they say, with temptation in a garden. A woman shared the fruit with her husband. Then maybe a zillion years later, they say, a man shared the fruit with America by planting seeds across the land, and apples began to blossom and produce in an astonishing array of colors and levels of sweetness and tartness. And to this day, who is likely to resist the temptation of a fresh apple? We have tasted and seen that it is good.
And so, our table is loaded with apples of a wondrous variety: glass, resin, plastic, wood, ceramic, metal, cast iron, wire, fabric, paper, and painting. An-apple-for-the-teacher came to be an abundance of apples in Lavonne’s home over the years. Apples have inspired all manner of artist: food critics, poets, visual artists and artisans, writers of children’s books. Some of these are in evidence on and around our table—Dylan Thomas, Robert Frost, Writers of the Scriptures.
You see that we love the color combinations offered by a variety of apples, mainly pinks and greens with touches of reds. Pale pink napkins and tablecloth overlaid with sheer apple green organza. Striking pink apple blossoms for the chair backs and table. Apples as centerpiece surrounded by greenery. Applewood napkin rings, distressed-wood-look chargers. Pink swirl goblets.
Indeed, here, A is for apple, one of the wonders of Mother Nature.
Hostess/Table Designer: Lavonne Dennis, Shirley Derden,
Jo Anderson
Thank You…THANK YOU…THANK YOU!!!
…to each and every one of you who have been so willing to help! Every year those who plan, organize, arrange, create, decorate, gather, shop, set up, welcome, cook, serve, support and encourage are numerous and we are so very grateful. Really, words seem inadequate. So, again….. THANK YOU
We Support
· Presbyterian Children’s Homes and Services
· Forever Families
· Mabank Area Good Samaritans
· Presbyterian Disaster Assistance
· Special Olympics
Looking Ahead
FALL FESTIVAL
· Sunday November 4
· Monday November 5
· Tuesday November 6
Announcing the theme for the
Summer Tea 2019
THAT’S WHAT I LIKE ABOUT THE SOUTH!
This will be a fun journey for all of us!...the traditions, food, holidays, states, cities...oh my….Anyone is welcome to sign up….but don’t wait too long…they go fast!
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