When the magical box arrived with my MVP award, I quickly found a place to unbox it.  A quick decision for a backdrop had to be made: The Laundry Pile with dirty gym clothes or the Tea Set on The Hutch.  I made the right call, and I got several comments on the Tea Set.  So much, it seemed like it was worth sharing the story behind it and what it sits on.  (I assure you, it is a good one!) 

It is also good to post on my blog.  Someone once told me that it is hard to keep your blog going when writing for others.  In time, your blog becomes a graveyard for articles you think are fantastic, but didn’t entirely pass the editorial review of others.  I am fortunate to have outstanding mentorship on topics, but it is clear that my blog needs some love.  More to come soon, but for now, back to the story.

Growing up, we had this Maple Setback Cupboard that we always called The Hutch.  My mother got it from her grandmother, but it had some major damage from being in storage.  It was a key part of our dining room and added character to the post and beam house I grew up in.  When my husband and I got married, my mother was downsizing from the family home.  She had it refinished and it became our wedding present.  (Amazing blog on that here: http://heirandspace.blogspot.com/2017/08/a-maple-stepback-cupboard-in-black.html) It is very special to us.  The refinished colors fit into the style that we both enjoy.  It also made the shipping container journey to London when we moved here from the US.

The Tea Set is another interesting story.  That is a complicated story to express fully, but in short, it comes from MAD Nick’s family. The set itself has a simple white background with gold trim and a traditional floral design. It resided in the china cabinet (hutch by another name) in his family’s dining room for many years as a reminder of earlier times and celebrations. Now it has come back nearly full circle to the UK where it was made initially. I love having it for our ex-pat adventure as we mark new celebrations and memories with it.

The Teapot is yet, another interesting story.  When we moved over to London, Nick’s mother gave us a Fortnum & Mason gift card as a housewarming gift.  The tea set from his family never had a Tea Pot.  One afternoon we packed up a saucer from the set, and off we went.  Together we wandered the very posh shop that we did not fit into well!  After wishing I hadn’t worn such a large coat and the fear of not knocking £15k worth of dishes over, we found this nearly perfect match.  The awkward exchange with the sales team when we only wanted the Tea Pot and had a gift card is perhaps the best description of how we shop. 

Together this all sits in our London flat.  Family objects together with newly acquired objects in harmony.  It sits over meals we have with friends and family, and has become a physical image of his/his/ours in our home.