Monday, April 13, 2009

Tea towels: To use or not to use?


Last week while reading the comments on Linda's blog, I learned that she and Steph deal with one of the same questions I do: Do you use those pretty tea towels or not? I've ruined a few by mopping up spaghetti sauce and kitchen spills, so I began storing my "good" tea towels and using only the ones I don't mind soiling. Then I read "The Kitchen Linens Book" by EllynAnne Geisel last week, and she had a solution to this problem which I have already put into use. "Any towel that's embellished -- embroidered, or edged, or painted -- I'll put out in the powder room, where I can be fairly certain they'll be spared of hands greasy from food prep or dirty from tinkering with the mower," she says. So these two tea towels don't necessarily match this corner of my yellow bathroom next to the linen closet, but I like the idea of displaying them on this dear lady, a towel butler(ette) that was a Christmas gift from my mom.

The cross-stitch tea towel was actually a gift from my friend Ann, who had recently acquired one of those fancy embroidery sewing machines which does about 5,000 stitches and even cooks supper for you. Since not all of us were blessed with husbands who know how to cross-stitch, like ParTea Lady, I was quite happy to receive this tea towel!


This pink towel was a recent find at an online boutique called Grandma G's. She has gorgeous vintage linens, impeccable customer service, and I was floored at all the "gifts with purchase" that arrived with my dinky little order of a single tea towel. She sent ...

... the carefully packaged tea towel tied with pink ribbon I have tucked away for a future craft ...


... an egg-shaped goodie bag containing Hershey's kisses and a bookmark and some TEA ...

... and finally, she included a little quilted coaster/mug mat made out of beautiful floral fabric! I'm not sure she made anything off my purchase, but I certainly enjoyed shopping with her!

10 comments:

  1. So adorable! Your towel butler looks wonderful with the tea towels hanging like an apron in front of her.

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  2. I also concluded the powder room is the best place to use my embroidered tea towels. Your towel butler(ette) is cute. The everyday ones (dish towels)I buy at WalMart or wherever I can find them are used in the kitchen.

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  3. I have some hooks made from bent silverware on a strip of wall in my kitchen. There I display tea towels from my travels and change them out each season-sometimes adding inexpensive holiday ones to make it more seasonal.
    Yours are lovely-definitely display worthy

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  4. I love your towel "lady"! My mother has a sunroom and my sister and I got her an old narrow ladder and painted it white. She hangs her towels on it.
    Also... I wanted to comment on the peeps link that someone posted yesterday (I hope everyone had a blessed Easter!).
    I think you could win this next year Angela! I looked at many of the entries and I believe you should consider entering! Put tea on the peeps map!

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  5. Hey, what a great solution!!! Thank you!

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  6. What a pretty way to display your towels. I love the butler(ette) that your Mom gave you - she is a super shopper. Ann's cross-stitch towel is lovely. Now this is something hubby hasn't stitched for me yet - hmmmm - he'll thank you later. ;=)

    Great ideas and links, thanks.

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  7. Angela,
    I adore your towel butler! What a fun way to display your special treasures.

    I am delighted that you are happy with your pink tea towel and thank you so much for posting about it and my website here on your blog! It was so nice of you!

    Please come shop with me again sometime!

    Hugs!
    Georgia
    Grandma G's
    http://www.grandmagscottage.com
    http://grandmags.blogspot.com

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  8. I had some special tea towels hanging in my kitchen just to look pretty and someone used one and I also shrieked. Then I realized that was ridiculus and that they were only towels.

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  9. I know Georgia and am so happy to hear how pleased you were with your purchase from her. She is one amazing woman!!!

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  10. I love your tea towels. I always have the same dilema. I end uponly using them on special occasion. Pleas join me for Tea on Tuesdays over on my blog and link your tea post.

    http://teaandthee.blogspot.com/2009/04/time-for-tea-tuesday.html

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