Witches' Tea Party 2015

A Little Story : The Party of Good Fortune

Thank you so much for hosting such a wonderful and unique party! 

All the other participants can be found on her blog!

A Fanciful Twist

A Little Story: The Party of Good Fortune

The lilac witch teleported to the gypsy wagon in the forest with a quick tap of her wand. Once she had regained her bearings and adjusted her hat, she recalled what she was going to ask the seer. She was going to the seer to determine whether or not her party would be of good fortune before she sent out invitations. 

As the lilac witch approached the old, crackled gypsy wagon, she admired trails of sparkle that were sprinkled around the forest floor and bushes. As she was gazing about her surroundings, the small seer steeped out of her wagon through its back door. The lilac witch turned, noticing the seer, and said, " I would like a quick reading in your crystal ball please". The little seer turned to get her crystal ball, but turned back and said quietly, " I would need 50 cents first." The lilac witch sighed, took off her hat, shook out two quarters, and handed them to the seer. 

The seer scurried quickly into her wagon, pulled out two small chairs and the crystal ball, and placed them on a small table she had on her property. She gestured for the lilac witch to sit, and so she did. The seer focused intently on the crystal ball for a minute or two, sat up, and then determined, " There will be some slight obstacles, but over all, the party will be of good fortune." The lilac witch exclaimed, " How wonderful!" She thanked the seer for her reading, left a tip, and quickly teleported back to her home to address invitations to a couple friends that she wanted to invite. 

Once the lilac witch made it home, she quickly wrote the letters, and sent them to her friends with another swish of her wand. She sat thinking about what to do next. She suddenly had an idea, and bolted to her yard.

Once the lilac witch made it to her yard, she noticed the tiny pumpkin seeds that still lay in a packet by her little gardening table. She thought, maybe I could win the largest pumpkin contest. Of course she used magic, which was probably cheating, but the lilac witch didn't mean any harm. She waved her wand on the little pumpkin seeds, and she was almost trampled instantly by the huge, azure tinted pumpkin that had sprouted into the ground. She knew some individuals in the town would probably see it, so she just left it there, and decided to run off into the town square to gather supplies for her party.

She looked around the happy little town square, filled with various Halloween activities, contests, and festive decorations. The air was cold and fresh. As she skipped around, looking at fellow citizens' booths, she looked up briefly, and noticed the adorable Halloween banner that had been displayed in the town that had been handcrafted with scraps of burlap and old cloth, which was used in that year's harvest.

She glanced at the candy corn contest, and noticed that they were selling some of the winning candy corn as well. She picked up some of these, as they would be useful for her party. She dropped the money into a little jar that was located by the stand. 

The lilac witch kept walking, and suddenly saw a pumpkin patch, and realized that she would need some pumpkins for her party. She paid for two, and dashed off.

Little did she realize as she was running that at the pumpkin contest, someone had claimed her pumpkin to be their's and had won third place.

The lilac witch stopped when she made it to the apple bobbing area. She thought it would be fun to try, so she dropped 10 cents into a container next to the sign, and tried.

The witch was able to get three apples. Pleased with herself, she asked a random person nearby to take her picture of her with the apples. 

Meanwhile, while the lilac witch was getting her photo taken, one of her friends who had received her party invitation had just missed her, as she had been informed that the lilac witch had been there seconds ago. She sat, slightly annoyed, but then realized she would just wait by the lilac witch's gate until she came home. 

When the bat walked towards the front gate, she was surprised to see another guest had been invited to the party. She introduced herself, and it turned out that he had been looking for the lilac witch too. They sat and talked for a couple minutes, when they heard a voice from inside the gate. 

The lilac witch called, " Come enjoy the party, don't sit out there!" Her guests, the bat and the parrot, let themselves in through the gate and sat down at the table. The lilac witch jumped up, ran inside her home, and came out again with cupcakes and a candy skull. 

The bat and the parrot sat down, and as the evening went on, the party became very enjoyable. Everyone had a great time. Finally, when it was time for the bat and the parrot to leave, everyone hugged and promised they would have another party like this more often. After they left, the witch sat for a while, thinking about everything. " Well," she said aloud, " I suppose it was a good party."

The lilac witch picked up her wand and let it glide through the air, while she was chanting a spell. There was a poof of light as sparkle flew across the room, and her broom appeared. 

The witch stepped outside into her yard ; she looked around once more, before hopping on her broom and flying away. 

She enjoyed the darkness and the glow of the night. 

Happy Halloween!

Sara E.J. 

Take this magical staff for safe travels!

A Cat Endorsed Christmas

Today, Little Miss Anya and I have been decorating for Christmas!

We wanted you to see what we have done so far, and there will be more coming soon!

This is our Christmas tree. I purchased it from a home decorating store called At Home.

When I was looking for trees, I noticed that most white trees appeared gray.

This one wasn't gray, because there were some iridescent needles along with the white needles that reflected light.

Anya agreed with me, we both liked this tree. She wanted to sleep under it, and I wanted to decorate it. We compromised.

This is one of my favorite parts of the new decor. The aspects of the display bring out colors in my tree and other Christmas areas around the house.

Anya helped me make this display, and the rabbit clock is there so it is out of her reach. It is always crashing to the ground when she tries to play with its ears. 

Now, let's take a look at some of the ornaments on my Christmas Tree!

This is a glitter beaded pinecone ornament. It reflects all the lights and the colors of the other ornaments. 

Anya liked this ornament, it went with her fur. I agreed that it did look nice with her, so we got it.

This is a vintage striped indented ornament. It is turned the other way, so you cannot see the indented side of it, but I like showing the stripes.

Anya didn't like this ornament, even though I did. I told her, I'll hang it in a place where you won't see it, but I will. 

This bird almost appears to look like mercury glass. I like the old look, and I think it is very unique.

Anya certainly loves this ornament, she stares at it whenever she sits under the Christmas tree. 

This beautiful sequined pink ornament came in a set of four from Michael's.

It is a medium pink, so it isn't too bright.

Anya and I fought over these ornaments. We should have bought another package, but we worked it out. 

This is a vintage tinsel-filled ornament that I found at a local vintage store.

I believe that the tinsel did not come inside the ornament originally, but I believe both the tinsel and the ornament itself are old.

Anya always tells me that she wishes the tinsel could come out. I haven't told her yet that it is possible.

This ornament came in a set of six different colored churches. It is from the Martha Stewart line, and I purchased it at Home Depot.

Anya took three for herself, and I took three.

These ornaments I bought in a clear set from Michael's. 

I believe they are meant to be painted, but I decided to fill them with flaky pink and white glitter.

These are Anya's favorite. She loves batting at them and looking at the glitter. 

This is a reindeer ornament. I enjoy his gold color, and how he reflects the light of other ornaments.

This ornament isn't Anya's favorite. He's too boring, she told me. 

This snowflake ornament has glitter and has some clear crystal beads on it as well.

Anya likes this ornament, but she wishes it were smaller.

This cupcake ornament makes the tree a bit more unique; I think. It adds a bit more color. 

Anya likes the cupcake ornament, but she thinks it should be displayed in a better place on the tree.

And finally, my last featured ornament... I found this one at my local vintage store, and the colors are fading from it, but I like it anyways.

Anya agreed.

More Christmas decoration posts coming soon!

Thank you,

S.E. Johnson

Sharing with:

Creative Country Mom's Holiday Link Up

and

Jann Olson's a Daily Cup here

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Shabby Story White Christmas

Draw Your Own Fireplace

Since I don't have a fireplace, I decided to make one. 

What you will need :

Black Paint & Paintbrush

Chalk

Canvas of Your Choice

Fake Garland

So, you paint your canvas black and prop it up against a bureau or a drawer. 

Take your garland, and place it inside the drawer.

Then, take some chalk and chalk the whole canvas first, so the chalk sticks on the canvas.

Finally, draw your design of your fireplace on the canvas, enjoy! Maybe have a cup of my 

Gingerbread Snowman Tea!

Enjoy your fireplace! 

Have a nice day, S.E. Johnson

Sharing with: 

Thoughts From Alice

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cozylittlehouse's Tweak it Tuesday

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A Stroll Thru Life Inspire Me Tuesday

Gingerbread, Snowmen, and Butterflies

Hi! Today, Little Miss Anya the cat and I have been enjoying our afternoon tea. The days are getting chillier, so we are acquiring our warmth from the large front window.

I love and collect vintage teapots. They are all very unique even if their design is slightly cracked. Even though modern teapots and tea kettles are more functional and useful, I prefer the style of these vintage ones.

As we pawed through Albertus Seba's Book of Natural Curiosities, Little Miss Anya found a flutter of butterflies on a page that I never knew existed.

She pointed to Sample No. 9, a yellow and black butterfly, and tried to claim it for herself. To her disappointment, she could not peel the butterfly off the page. I personally preferred Butterfly No. 5.

Later on, we made some gingerbread tea for ourselves, because it was very windy.

We took our modern teapot and warmed up some water for our tea. I suggested that we make the tea  appear like a snowman, to celebrate the cooler days. She agreed. The following is what we used to make our gingerbread snowman tea.

Gingerbread Snowman Tea

1 tablespoon of the Teavana Gingerbread loose-leaf tea
2 teaspoons of raw sugar
1/2 cup of milk (frothed)
Optional: one scoop of vanilla ice cream to make the tea cold

I am sharing my own recipe (in case you were wondering). Enjoy!


Have a wonderful day!

SE Johnson 

Sharing with:

Cozy Little House Tweak it Tuesdays

A Stroll Thru Life Inspire Me Tuesdays

Finding Home

What is the meaning of collecting shells? Shells were once homes for creatures that were abandoned. We as humans have a connection to shells. Humans struggle to find the perfect home and the perfect job when really that person's life was something that was divinely created and planned, in this case, a shell for a specific crab. 

Also, shells are all unique. Every shell is different. Even though we are all unique, we share similarities. For example, there are many types of cone shells, but none of their markings match.  

I enjoy studying shells. This book is a reprint of Albertus Seba's Cabinet of Natural Curiosities from the 1700's. Along with information, it has many beautiful drawn images of shells, as well as reptiles, butterflies, plants, and sea life. 

This is an image from this book. I found this beautiful swirl of shells, and the design in which these shells were arranged is entrancing. 

 Sample No. 64 is my favorite shell. I love the shape and color of the shell, as well as its ridges. 

When I was younger, I loved this book. This is Kevin Henke's Junonia. It teaches children about persistence, and selfishness. It is also a book about growing up. 

Also, the book is illustrated beautifully. The images are designed to appear hand-drawn. The chapters are short, and the book is very entertaining. 

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More coming soon, enjoy!   

S.E. Johnson 

Sharing with:

Cozy Little House's Tweak it Tuesday