A Friendship Tea

At 6 pm Friday night, I received a phone call, a personal invitation to attend a Friendship Tea at the Mitchell Methodist Church, a short drive from my house.  "If you don't have any plans for tomorrow afternoon, would you like to go to a tea?"  Yes, I had plans, but not the kind of plans that would keep me from enjoying a relaxing afternoon of tea.  I could sit outdoors, take a walk, do some paper crafting earlier or another day. "Yes, thank you. I would love to go to tea."

What will I wear?  Usually on the 12th of March, the ground is covered with snow and the temperatures are consistent with winter: 25 - 30 degrees.  But not this year.  This has been an El Niño winter.  And so we were blessed with abundant sunshine on a cloudless day, and temperature way beyond normal - 63 degrees!   This will dictate our fashions.  I chose a long skirt with a lace sweater, and a hat like a spring garden.  Were other ladies wearing hats?  I didn't know, but I knew that's what I would wear to a tea.


"How did you hear about the tea?"  I was asked by a member of the United Methodist Women's organization.  "I was invited just yesterday," I replied, "and my friend who invited me, was invited by a lady from your women's organization."  She replied, "We sent invitations to area churches.  We have flyers and posters all over town."  Another lady noted that she thought there would be more than 35 in attendance, looking around the room that was set for 50.  "I never thought to personally invite someone.  I guess we could have invited our neighbors and friends, who don't come to this church."

That is the message that the new "president by default," Ethel Dobson expressed. She is the new president because the former president of the women's organization passed away.  "This afternoon's event is an ecumenical event.  It's where women of many faiths come together to enjoy the afternoon," and celebrate our faith in Jesus.  Having never attended their Friendship Tea in the past, I never once felt that the event was lacking in anything.  Yes, there were several empty chairs, but there were many ladies in attendance as well.

Ethel introduced a talented guitar player and vocalist, who freely shared a message of love in her three songs.  We were encouraged to clap and sing, something many of us have not grown up with in a church setting. Linda's voice and guitar playing made me want to do more than clap and sing - it made me want to get up and move with the Spirit of Christ that I felt coming through her music.

Pastor Doug welcomed us and read about International Women's Day, followed by reading Proverbs 31, and specifically, Verse 10, " Who can find a virtuous woman? for her price is far above rubies."  He declared that this text related to every woman sitting in this room. 

 Following a prayer of blessings on all in attendance, thankfulness for the hands preparing the food, and requesting that God used each of us in our lives, by orderly fashion, we filled our plates with delectable savory sandwiches and delicious sweet treats. 

The women of the Mitchell United Methodist Church used St. Patrick's Day as their theme, which many ladies in attendance did as well with their choice of clothing.  It was such an honor to be in attendance at this annual event, a Friendship Tea.  Whether I was meeting someone who knew my parents, or saying hello to Eliza who will be 103 years old this year, sharing memories and making plans to meet again, this afternoon was full of God's blessings.

Thank you for hosting a Friendship Tea.  Thank you for blessing us with your music, beautiful decorations, delicious food, company and fellowship.  I'm planning to attend the Friendship Tea at the Mitchell United Methodist Church again next year.  Let's celebrate Women together!

From Wear to Where?

I've kept a box of old blue jeans, worn jeans, didn't fit jeans for a long time (15 years?) in my closet, always with the hopes of reusing them somehow.

My father was a creative inventor, and always used one thing to make another. So that must be where I've gotten the need to remake, repurpose, recycle, upcycle - everything I no long can use or want.

In this day and age, it seems our society is much more open to wearing or using things that have come from something else.  So because it is a common, popular thing, maybe not a fad, I am pleased that I have kept this box of blue jeans so long.

I have four stacks of possibilities from these jeans:  Stack 1 is skirts for myself.  Stack 2 is just back pockets.  Stack 3 is a quilt. Stack 4 is a wreath.  It is stack 4 that this post is about today.

I am not one to follow a pattern, so I just put this wreath together by trial and error and crafting and sewing experience. Here are the photos from the process.

Time to make the wreath - approximately 4-5 hours.  I cut a lot of pieces in advance, and used my personal reflection time in the morning to work on it.  Plum Deluxe tea accompanied me while reviewing my prayer requests and during this quiet, reflectful time.

Amount of blue jeans - very hard to say.  I started with the double side seam and then cut 8-10 inch strips of the jeans I wasn't using for Stack 1, 2, or 3 as noted above.

Wreath shape - I used a green wired wreath with four rows that I purchased at Dollar General for less than $2.00. Here you can see the wire wreath and the rows.

My original goal was to use the thick side seam pieces, which were waste product  of the blue jeans I was taking apart. As I started to tie each piece around the wire on all four rows, I really liked the way the knot looked so I focused on tying and knotting, then pushing the strands of the knot down in between the rows so only the knot was visible.  Here you can see the knots, but keep in mind that last outside row and the last inside row will show the strands.  You'll be able to see this more in the pictures that follow.

As I added more ties and knotted them tight, I pushed them up against each other so the green wire didn't show.  Some edge seam pieces were so thick that I removed them, and at that point, I realized how nice it looked with other pieces of denim as well.

The picture on the left is my completed wreath on the "knotty" side.  The picture on the right is the reverse side with the "shaggy" side.  I trimmed some of the ties once it was complete, and you can use your own judgment on how long you want them to be.   I absolutely love the idea of it being reversible - one pattern on one side, and another on the reverse!  Also, if you hang this on a window or door where people can see both sides, there won't be an "unsightly" back to it.

Next, I'll have to make some flowers out of shirts I plan to remake from my stash, wear to where.  During spring, summer, and fall, I'll be hanging this on my rustic barn door in my yard.  Now that I have gotten this curious project out of the way, maybe I can focus on Stack 1, Stack 2 and Stack 3.  And maybe, just maybe, I'll post some pictures of those wear to where projects too.

What are you doing with your previously worn jeans?

Thanks for stopping by.  I hope you find a blessing in your day!