Mad Hat

I was asked to post a picture of my MAD HAT for the Mad Hatter's Tea Party - well here it is. I took my hat seriously (tongue in cheek) and created a "tea" hat that is definitely MAD.

I used a Dollar Store base - it was a hat with pig ears, nose and eyes on it. The shape and colour were what I was after and it had an elastic chin strap. I pulled off the "features" and was left with a great shape - I modified it slightly for my head.

I then searched for anything that one might required at a tea party - pearls, gloves (I found some lacy children's gloves at the $ store), a "gold" bracelet, a ring, a broach, sugar cubes, I glued a child's teacup to the saucer and added a small teaspoon and glued that to the hat, added some tea bags and a tea ball, a veil and bits of frou frou.

And here it is.

Mad Hatter's Tea Party

I don't know whether I am just a kid at heart or "completely mad" but I finally had my Mad Hatter's Tea Party. I had wanted to do this last year but never got it together - could only manage a wonderful lunch on the patio. BUT this year - I just knew I had to do it.

To force myself to do it, I decided on a date and sent out the invitations - I had so much fun creating a poem and the invite that I knew this party was going to be fun.

RULES
(oh yes there ARE rules – there are always rules OR it’s off with your head)

You MUST BRING –a tea cup – after all it is a Tea

You MUST WEAR A HAT –it is a Mad Hatter’s Tea Party – Mad attire would be appreciated but if not, at least wear clothes

Bring a chair – there will be some but if you really want to sit, it would secure a spot

 

Beautiful Grandaughter - Queen of Hearts

And then to the decorations  - I started off with wild and crazy ideas but settle on only a few. We have a wonderful yard - so it did not take much to set the stage so to speak. I also enlisted the help of my wonderful sister and my step mom - my caterer extraordinaire and my beautiful granddaughter.




Sister - who came as the March Hare

Wonderful Step Mom,
Caterer who makes my parties amazing

 

Now what is more appropriate than croquet and what did Alice get to play with but a flamingo - had to have - had to have the card soldiers too - for the wickets. Such fun.

 

 

 

Card Soldiers were on duty to show the guests to the party. I had to stop at 3. Making them was just too much fun and I was becoming obsessed.

 
 
Here is my favourite soldier - he is painting the roses red. You see I really could go MAD.  

I setup two long tables on the road to the back field, layering on table clothes and adding chairs. I had my credenza setup for the food and an antique table setup with the plates and beverages. It was a perfect day - sun streaming through the trees really set the party stage.

Had to have a Drink Me sign on the Lemonade

And of course it is all about the time

Just happened to have a looking glass

Now all I need are the guests and here they are in their some beautiful and some funny hats.

 

 

 And of course we play croquet.

 

 

Drum Roll Please

I guess you might like to see the finished bathroom and hallway - but remember now three pieces are not put back yet. I have not moved the mirror, credenza and small wooden trunk back into the hallway. Not sure why but haven't. 

From the living room - looking down the hall to the spare room, I am glad now that we added the pot lights in the hall - regret - we should have put another in the middle of the hall. I love these old black and white photos - they were taken by the son of the people who owned the house before us and they left them. Lucky me.

Looking right the new front door. I previously posted it looking at it from the outside. I love the door. The window lets a quite a bit of light into the entry way. The door - I was so wanting a wooden door. The advice we were given was not to have one in this climate - heat loss, swelling etc. So this masonite door stained and finished to look like fit the bill. I stained it and did the faux finish but chickened out on the clear coat. I had it done professionally. They had a few problems with the finish and I was scared at one point that it was looking awful, the painter came through in the end and it is great.

 

 

Our travel wall of pictures went back up. You know when you travel you just have to bring back something to remember your wonderful vacation. I used to collect charms for a charm bracelet, then I collected spoons, then knick knacks. Now it is one very small picture - a painting, etching, print, photo, postcard - something that reminds me of that place. I have it framed and here they hang. At first it was just me searching but Mike has gotten into the hunt now.












Alright then - here it is - the new and improved main bathroom.  Can a person say they love a bathroom, can they say they love the toilet - now if I could demo this for you I would but I can't I can just tell you that the lid shuts itself slowly and quietly. Amazing - probably not to all the worldly people but to me in my small corner of the world it is amazing. We haven't turned on the heated floor yet except to make sure it works. Have enjoyed the tile in the heat of the summer - nice and cool on the feet.

 

 

 

Yup done, finished - WEEELLLL I may make some kind of window treatment but still enjoying all the light bouncing around the room.  Regret - Mike thinks he wants a light over the toilet.

Catching UP!

Busy, busy - Mike never sits still. He can get more done in a day than anyone I know - I am sure he frowns on my lack there of. He spent a good portion of his holiday - before and after the water fix building a new bridge to the island. Mike and Digger. The bridge was wiped out December 23, 2010.

In a matter of minutes we went from this.                           To this.

To THIS!!!!! OH MY! for two years we had a bit of a hike to get to the island.

Digger and Mike on the move.

We now have a bridge and lawn planted.

WHERE HAS THE TIME GONE!!!!!

I cannot believe that the summer is just about over and I have not made one single post. Life here at Willow Creek has been flying by. Our renovation is of course completed - but not without a few gasps of agony. Shortly after all the trim was up and the last touch up was completed and paint brushes cleaned and put away, we had problems BIG problems. We have had an "issue" with water draining from our small bathroom/laundry area for years and always set this aside to be fixed when we did that renovation - slated for early 2013, but circumstances pushed this into NOW. The gory details are a distance memory but let us just say - it was raining under our house AND the saying of the day was "no water is leaving this house". Mike, thankfully had just started his holiday - what a holiday this was going to be. We quickly went from a very lush front garden to this.  

All the small plants were quickly dug up and potted up and put into a holding bed. The larger ones, a rhodo, a kalmia and some other variegated one were move out to the meadow into permanent homes. The beautiful very large Japanese maple was cut down and gone.


Thank goodness for "Digger" as Dyllon calls Mike's excavator - in a few hours, Uncle Bob and Mike had dug up and exposed all the pipe and they were setup for the plumber to come and fix the pipes under and leaving the house.



By the end of the week and most of Mike's holiday and we were back in "business".