High Tea For Our Traveling Teacup ~ So Exciting!

Hi Everyone – so glad you could join us for our Traveling Teacup’s exciting official high tea!

This is her host, the talented Stacy Ling, Master Gardener and blogger at Bricks n Blooms. And tea enthusiast!

I’ve heard the term “High Tea” for years, but I was never exactly sure what it meant. I thought it was some variety of “Extra Fancy.” But after our Teacup’s visit with Stacy, I learned that it’s actually a more substantial meal.

As opposed to Afternoon Tea, which is light sandwiches and cakes, High Tea is more like a late lunch or early dinner. I found an interesting article in The Spruce, that explains it really well.

But Onward!

If this is your first Traveling Teacup post, you can get all the background in the original installment, The Exciting Beginnings of The Traveling Teacup.

Previous Stops

And here are all her previous stops, in case you want to catch up on some of the other great places and wonderful people who have hosted our Tessa Rose. (That’s the name she’s acquired from several of her hosts, and it really suits her!)

• A beautiful Oregon farm belonging to my dear friend Martha
• The Bay Area with crafter and HomeTalk personality Cynthia Nessel
• The lovely home of Kansas City stylist Suzanne Zingg
• Teatime in Texas with Lifestyle blogger Candace McCoy
• The gorgeous Lakebay WA cottage garden of IG star Kim Robinson
• A cool So Cal family tea with small-space decorator Julie Briones
• A day of tea, art, and music with Michele at The Nest at Finch Rest
• Meeting interesting new people with Linda Defazio at Somerset Lodge
• A fun and busy detour to my dear SIL in Walla Walla
• Some VERY hot weather with Instagrammer SavvyCheri in N. Tustin CA
• A pink pumpkin party with Alicia, the talented creator of IG’s 13Tables
• The historic Phoenix estate of renovator & home blogger Mary Crozier
• Back to the NW and my neighbors’ home to meet their new puppy
• A Vermont snowfall with photographer Ann, of Dabbling and Decorating
• The Northwoods to see the Queen of Plaid, Kristin at White Arrows Home
• The mountains of Colorado with DIY guru Chas of Chas’ Crazy Creations
• Dallas TX visiting weekend-decorator extraordinaire Andrea Hundley
• And her first international stop – a lovely blogger and doctor in Canada

Stop #19 ~ High Tea in New Jersey

A 3800 mile trip to TR’s next stop – Stacy’s gorgeous home and garden in Chester New Jersey!

Not only did Stacy write her own post about TR’s visit, I’m going to let her tell most of the story here too! As usual, I’ll give you the link to her post at the end.

And with that, here’s Stacy with some Traveling Teacup highlights!

Why I’m Thrilled to Have High Tea with the Traveling Teacup

My husband’s family is really into tea and enjoying tea time. Through my 27 years of joining the family, many afternoons were spent with my mother-in-law, her sisters, my husband’s sisters, and my husband at our favorite local tea room and restaurant, Sally Lunn’s.

It’s a lovely spot for some wonderful teas and fresh baked goods. And if you are ever in the area, their scones with clotted cream are OUT-OF-THIS-WORLD delicious!

The tea shop is so adorable and I think Tessa Rose would love to see it!

Since my mother-in-law, Pat, fancies tea, my visit with Tessa Rose the Traveling Teacup, and this post are dedicated to her.

Welcome Tessa Rose!

Since I live in New Jersey and we have a little bit of snow, there isn’t much to see in the gardens.

But she enjoyed walking the grounds to see how the gardens look during the winter.

While we were touring the backyard, we saw some hellebores in bloom.

Hellebores are one of the first blooms of the season.

Since Tessa Rose couldn’t tour my gardens in bloom, I showed her some of the photos from my recap and invited her to come back when everything is blooming.

Oh my! Isn’t that lovely? Maybe I’ll have to go with Tessa Rose when she takes Stacy up on her offer!

Decorating for Winter with the Traveling Teacup

And then we headed over to my living room mantel to transition it from Christmas to winter. You’ll see more of the mantel this week when I share my winter home tour.

For now, here’s a sneak peak.

After a long day getting the house back in order with some fresh winter decor, Tessa Rose and I enjoyed some Earl Grey Tea and a cozy fire while previewing the new Discovery+ network!

High Tea with The Traveling Teacup

The next day, Tessa Rose, my husband and I enjoyed high tea at my favorite local tea shop, Sally Lunn’s. He loves their pot pie because its very hearty and filling.

I love their tomato, pesto and mozzarella on a baguette with a caesar salad.

He gets the Lapsang Souchong Tea; and I usually order caramel or butterscotch tea.

And we ALWAYS always get their fresh baked strawberry scones with clotted cream too.

I think Tessa Rose enjoyed that part the most.

Sure we’ve enjoyed different dishes there, but our favorites are our favorites.

What can I say?

Watering My Houseplants with the Traveling Teacup

Now that the Christmas tree is down, I’m putting my houseplants back where they belong.

And it’s watering day!

After enjoying high tea with Tessa Rose, we gathered all the plants and gave them a quick shower. Since I have so many houseplants, I can’t fit them all in my bathroom.

So we had to bring a few to the kitchen.

I didn’t realize how many houseplants I have until I group them together. My husband thinks I have a problem.

It’s not THAT many though right? LOL!

Farewell to the Traveling Teacup

As much as I enjoyed my week with Tessa Rose, all good things must come to an end. We enjoyed high tea every day during her stay and it’s time for her to journey to her next visit.

Thank You to A Wonderful Host!

Thank you so much Stacy, for sharing your day, your plants, and your high tea with Tessa Rose and with us! It’s been wonderful following along!

Teacup Shopping

If you love teacups as much as I do and want to start or add to your collection, Click HERE for the Shopping Page. Then scroll down and click on the picture of the teacup.

And remember, a portion of everything you buy from MANTELandTABLE.com goes to Habitat for Humanity and Proud Ground. With our purchases, we get to help people build homes for their own mantels and tables!

Also, this post includes affiliate links to make shopping easy! If you click and buy an item from a link on my site, I get a small commission with no extra cost to you. It’s a Win-Win, and helps cover the cost of publishing Mantel and Table. (You can read the whole disclosure policy here.) Thanks so much for shopping with me!

Pin the High Tea Post for Later

And Now – The Link to the Post From the Host!

I know you’ll want to hop right over and read the rest of the story. Stacy’s post is ‘High Tea with the Traveling Teacup.’

As always, thanks so much for sharing The Traveling Teacup, and Happy Teacup Tuesday to all of you!

This Post Shared With

• Tuesday Turn About #82 – Hosted by My Wee Abode
• Charming Homes & Gardens #42 – Hosted by Bricks N Blooms
• Thursday Favorite Things 01.14.21 – Hosted by Katherine’s Corner
• Metamorphosis Monday #625 – Hosted by Between Naps on the Porch