Beautiful Books...

I just love the beginning of the school year when the boxes of new books have been opened. I love the smell of and the crispness of the pages and feel like a kid again going through each and every treasure. We have only just begun our academic season but I already have favorites from among the new arrivals.

I am particularly taken with Alice Cantrell's newest book Tea and Cake With the Saints . I had intended to use it as a curriculum supplement but it is special enough to reserve as a Christmas or birthday gift for Cookie.

The text, illustrations and projects are so beautiful and perfectly delightful for "little" girls of all ages. After I removed the shrink wrap and looked through a few pages, I promptly ran off to the bathroom (the one room with the highest possibility of privacy) to pour over every page. What a treat!

I'll be giving the book as part of a package. Tea and Cake will be the central gift with supplies that coordinate to the various projects filling in the rest of the package. Some examples of these goodies might include:

• A bundle of fabric and ribbon for use with gardening apron instructions and various other projects.
• Seed packets for a Mary garden.
• Pretty cardstock for recipe cards, invitations and spiritual bouquet projects.
• Dry ingredients for recipes.
• A variety of teas for a tea party.
• A special tea cup and saucer or tea set.
• A blank journal or scrapbook for collecting recipes, crafts and other hospitality ideas.

If you have not had the pleasure of seeing Alice Cantrell's first book, Sewing with Saint Anne , I highly recommend purchasing the set for any female in your life who has a love of the feminine arts. 

And to all blog lovers, you will definitely profit from a visit to Cantrell's beautiful blog, A Number of Things. A truly lovely and profitable way to spend some spare time. The first time I visited I knew very quickly that I was "visiting" with a friend. A little Tea and Cake would make the visit complete!