new cup – new habit

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black tea, Canadian artist Frank Johnston, cups, Frank Johnston, fruit tea, herbal tea, photo, photography, tea

Habits are hard to break, even harder when you’ve had years of building up the habit. For me it was cups and cups of black tea all day long. A while back I decided I had to try and and ween myself off this caffeine inducing habit and over the summer I was able to stick to my new herbal/fruit tea regime.

But once I settled back into my Dublin life again I fell back into my bad tea drinking habit. I found it hard to resit the call of yummy Irish tea – with a dash of milk the perfect hot source of comfort.  However, since my recent Canadian visitor left a beautiful bone china cup as a surprise gift behind I have been back to drinking herbals, fruit and licorice in the afternoon, and I feel better for it.

I’m not quite sure what made me switch again, maybe it’s the pretty forest scene (Sunset in the Bush c.1918) by Canadian artist Frank Johnston that makes me what herbal over black, maybe it’s because the tea tastes so much better when sipped from fine bone china, or maybe it’s the fact that the cup is square – not round.

Whatever the reason I have been enjoying my afternoons sitting at my desk, the flavours of herbs and fruit filling my nostrils looking at a beautiful cup and remembering a good friend.

my new fine bone china cup

cups and breaks

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breaks, cappucino, cups, herbal, photography, photos, tea

Sometimes I think my life is measured by cups – a large cup of tea in the morning, another (smaller) cup once I arrive in the office, maybe a third if the morning is tough, then I switch over to herbal, or if the kitchen only has lemon flavored green tea I’ll have that, as the afternoon creeps on I may allow myself a cup of cappuccino, a small pick-me-up to keep me going, and then of course those cups of tea at home in the evening – since I am trying to be good only herbal or fruit (or is I can source it liquorice, mmh), then of course there is the thermos of hot fruit tea I carry around with me in my portable office – my trusty satchel bag – the lid is the cup and I sip from while in college (both as a MfA student and as a lecturer).

So many cups punctuate my day, so many tiny breaks to just take a breath before I move on. Those moments of –pause – that it takes to lift, sip and swallow (sometimes with a brief closing of eyes) are vital to me, not only for reasons of hydration.

Maybe measuring my day, life, in cups isn’t so strange after all – the beverage of choice often reflexes my mood or my need and the breaks they give me help me navigate though my day.

afternoon break – a well deserved cup of cappuccino to keep me going

sunday finds

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antiques, antiques market, bottles, cups, dishes, fairs, fashion, markets, old things, photography, plates, scarves, shopping, silk scarves

Even though the Irish skies were still grey and drizzles of rain made my hair all frizzy I had a wonderful afternoon. I took myself down to an antiques market in Dun Laoghaire, a small sea-side town just outside of Dublin.

I love wandering around stalls filled with old treasures and that funny musty smell that seems to waft around antiques. I enjoy lingering, looking, lifting up the occasional piece and falling in love with a  few rare items.

And today was no different. I saw some beautiful things, some odd things and some very ugly things. Sadly I had forgotten to charge my camera (silly me) so no photos of the stalls. However I did manage to find  a few treasures, some for me and two for friends.

My first Sunday find was this lovely little dish, hand painted with poppies from the 1930s in England. I love the quirky shape and the colours, and since it is only about 20cm long and 10cm wide it is the perfect size for those cheeky afternoon cookies. And for only 4€ a perfect little steal!

pretty poppies on a perfect plate

The next goodies that wandered into my tote were three silk scarves. Since my curly hair likes to do whatever it pleases I sometimes like to tie a scarf to keep it in place. But I never seem to find the right sizes or shapes, so I am always on the look out for scarves for my collection. And these were only 3€ a piece, and I though well worth trying out and perfect for Berlin.

silky scarves for my curls

The next item that caught my eye was this odd bowl/plate/sieve. It needs a good clean but I adore the colours and prettily hand-painted flowers. I think it is called a drip-bowl or something like that. Whatever it is called I think it will be perfect for berries, cherries and even radishes. After washing them the water can drip away leaving them perfectly fresh and clean.

pretty posies promising pleasure

aren’t the legs cute?

The next two items are for friends. The first is a cup and saucer made out of delicate bone china and painted in the most unusual colours. It reminded me of peaches and cream, the perfect gift for a perfect friend when she comes to visit in August.

painted in peaches and cream

The next on my list is the weirdest thing I have seen in a long time. It is a large Armagnac bottle shaped like a babies bottle. It even still has it’s label on it. It is so quirky and I think its a wonderful birthday gift for an interesting friend.

I really wonder who came up with this marketing ploy

As you can see I came home with pretty, practical and peculiar things, overall wonderful Sunday finds to make it  a perfect day.