Wednesday, March 15, 2017

Women's Day Tea in the Village


Hello everyone, as you all know, last Wednesday was International Women's Day, and as a member of the Ladies' Philanthropic Society of our village, I suggested that we host a tea party to celebrate women all over the world. Firstly, I wanted the ladies of the village to feel special, so I proposed that invitations be created and hand delivered. Two of our artistic members, Kristy, and her mother, Sonia, created the pretty design, above. Isn't it adorable? 

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Next, we needed a venue. The obvious choice was the village schoolhouse. It has not been in operation as an educational facility for a while, but instead, is used for the various cultural activities that take place throughout the year, as well as being available to the children to play table tennis, a variety of board games or visit its little library.

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Expecting about 60 guests, we closed off  part of the space to make for a cozier atmosphere. The floor is grey pebble mosaic, the walls are white stucco, the ceiling a brown wood panel and there is no heating. Obviously, it is not your  typical, ornate tearoom,


but I  knew the heavy, folding doors, covered in a beautiful, olive green patina would make the room feel warm and inviting. I asked our members to bring as many of their teacups and saucers from home to add personal charm to compensate for the paper tablecloths and plastic garden chairs. A gorgeous bouquet of anemones was purchased and then divided into  posies that were placed on the tables. 

 

Magnets in flower and heart motifs - a gift for each guest, decorated each place setting. Handmade, clay candles dotted by cute ladybugs gave the room a fresh, spring-like feel and a soft, shimmery glow. A very heartfelt thank you to our talented and generous member, Eleni, who provided the magnets and crafted the candles!



When I asked our members to each make something sweet or savoury for the occasion, I had no idea that our guests would do the same! But, Cretans are known for their hospitality and I should have realized that our guests would also have wanted to contribute to our assortment of scrumptious treats! Don't they look delicious?



From a wide variety of traditional, sweet and savoury Cretan pites (pies) and koulourakia (biscotti), to loukoumades (pastries made of deep fried dough soaked in a syrup of honey and cinnamon and sprinkled with sesame seeds), and rich, decadent cakes (my chocolate/orange gateau, for example), there was something for everyone, including much Lenten fare for those who were fasting.


While the ladies sipped their tea and nibbled their goodies, it was time for our president to give a short speech about the goals and efforts of the Ladies' Philanthropic Society, and its dedication to helping the sick, the poor, and those less fortunate. She pointed out that we meet at a different member's home once a month, which gives us a chance to socialize over coffee and discuss our agenda, ultimately deciding on where our donations will go to for that month. In closing, she thanked each lady for attending and reminded us that, as women, we share the spirit of sisterhood and hoped that we could work together to make the world a better place.


I, for one, have so enjoyed working closely and cooperatively with my fellow members, who have since become wonderful friends, upon my return to the island. After a little convincing, (re: shopping, baking, crafting, setting up and cleaning!), I am very grateful that my suggestion to have this Women's Day Tea in our beautiful village was accepted with such enthusiasm by everyone in our group, who all worked very hard to make it such a sweet gathering of female fun; I will savour the memory forever!


 How did you celebrate Women's Day? 

Thanks for visiting!
xoxo
Poppy

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34 comments:

  1. Oh Poppy, what a wonderful way to celebrate Women's Day. I didn't do anything or go anywhere.

    Every thing looks so good and yummy, wish I could have been there to sample all that wonderful fare.

    So glad that everything is going well for you and that your back home. So glad that you are posting more, I missed them.

    Have a wonderful week my friend.

    Hugs,
    Mary

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  2. I knew it!! I knew it would be a success with you as such an integral part of this wonderful group of ladies, and I bet your cake was the most delicious delicacy there.

    You need to open a bakery. Can't you see it now...Greek cookies, lemon cakes and chocolate walnut biscotti. Ok, that last one is mine, but maybe I'll join you :). You could come up with a great name with awesome iliteration like 'poppies proferous pickles'. (I totally made up that word, and pickles wouldn't really cut it in a bakery, but I get A for effort, yes?)

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  3. You and your fellow members did a beautiful job! The donations of personal teacups was a sweet touch and I think you really made the grade with your decorations. Oh my, the food and sweets. Everything sounded so delicious and unlike anything I've had...please invite me next year!!!

    Thank you for sharing, Poppy.

    Jane x

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  4. Poppy it is wonderful that you were able to do this for the ladies on such a special day. And all those pastries and yummy desserts are bound to make everyone happy. The decorations are very pretty with those pops of color on the table too. It is really great that you are part of this wonderful group.

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  5. poppy!
    you already know how much I love this!
    the sheer fresh air simplicity and beauty of it all. it's just delightful in every way.
    and your colorful hand is in it everywhere.
    i agree with doreen!
    can you see a little bakery~deli ... very small... oh my!
    do you have many tourists? if you ever need a second career... there you have it! i can hear poppy singing and smell the heavenly delicious smells... see the little tables in the sunlight...
    yup! i'm off and running! LOLOL
    well nothing runs with me but my imagination these days. :D XOXOXO♥

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    1. There you are Miss Tammy! I came back from my blogging break and you were GONE. No forwarding email, no way to post a comment... zilch, nada, nothing. I've missed you my friend. I hope you see this.

      love you!

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  6. Love those green doors! The food looks so good and for a good cause. I have sweet cravings now! Jackie

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  7. My goodness, that looks like it was a wonderful celebration - All the flowers and pretty teacups with so much white background and sunshine made a beautiful setting. I can guess that it wasn't a terribly warm spring day, as many of the ladies are wearing their coats, but perhaps after enjoying the feast and fellowship you were able to shed some layers :-)

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  8. What a great meeting!What a pity the school is not a school any more but I am glad it is used in other ways at least!AriadnefromGreece!

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  9. The hand delivered invitation is charming, Poppy. This mother-daughter artistic design set just the right tone for the tea. Everything the women put into this gathering, from the hostesses to the guests, shows the caring atmosphere of your village.

    I love the crisp white tables with the punctuation marks of colorful anemones on them. And your friend Eleni's candles are beautiful! I'm sure that bringing personal tea cups and china from the homes of your members added that special touch that made your guests know you cared enough to share your best with them, which certainly fostered the spirit of sisterhood that you all wanted everyone to feel. With so many behind the purpose of the Philanthropic Society to help those with needs I feel sure it will be successful.

    Can't end without saying--that food!! Wow! A sumptuous tea indeed! Bravo to everyone!

    This post just confirms the generosity of village life in Crete, my dear friend. No wonder you feel right at home there,
    Dewena

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  10. The invitations were beautiful- how fun! The tables looked pretty- love the colorful flowers. I like that each person brought a tea cup which added charm to the event. There certainly was an amazing amount of food there! The place chosen for the venue was quite perfect- very charming. Thank you for sharing!

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  11. I just love events like this and used to be a part of planning them on or Ladies' ministry team at my church. All the pastries look wonderful and unlike anything I have eaten. I want a bite of all of them!! Great job Poppy!

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  12. This is such a lovely idea and the room looks delightful with the colourful flowers and decor. Well done!

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  13. What a beautiful celebration and meeting! How wonderful that you are part of this women's group that does such good deeds. I love how you transformed a plain room into a lovely one with your decor, especially all those gorgeous teacups. I can't believe all the desserts...a "sweet feast", for sure!

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  14. What a festive event you all turned out. The pastries for your tea look incredible and being all homemade, well it just is so wonderful when like minded friends gather and enjoy such scrumptious treats. My mouth is truly watering, for I am trying to lose weight and this all makes me very hungry. I did absolutely nothing for the occasion as we went into deep freeze weather here and I had things to plan for the days that we have had below freezing. I am so happy that your special day turned out so wonderfully. You did well my friend. Sending warmest of hugs~

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  15. What a wonderful way to share time with your fellow ladies!

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  16. What a wonderful idea you had, Poppy! It's great that you had so many guests and the party was such a big success. All the treats look very deliciious.
    Have a lovely weekend!
    xo Julia

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  17. What a fun idea!! Great way to share.

    Judy

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  18. All I can say is ... look at that beautiful food! I'm starving right now, obviously lol

    I'm glad it was a successful event :)

    xo,
    rue

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    1. ...the food caught my eye too.wow! scrumptious. what a great idea!

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  19. What a great way to celebrate this day! Lovely pictures too! Nice to read this post...
    Best wishes for a happy friday, take care.
    Titti

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  20. What a great idea this was! And my, all those goodies made my mouth water!

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  21. Simply absolutely amazingly scrumptious delightful time of fellowship and tea with your fellow ladies! You did wonders with the little place you had, and how amazing the generosity of all the ladies who came. I loved looking at all the different dishes too! Perhaps that is a thought you could share on your blog, some different traditional Greek recipes? I am intrigued. Truly a lovely time for all :)

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  22. Oh, how lovely! What a wonderful idea. The invitations were gorgeous and that food looks incredible. Sounds like it was quite a success!

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  23. Poppy, what a fun get together and what a great group you belong to! I remember making a mosaic of women I've met on our travels and posting it on FB for Women's Day but beyond that, my day was spent as all others -- doing rather unremarkable things! So I thoroughly enjoyed seeing how you celebrated with other women!

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  24. Lovely handmade invitation , and superb treats!

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  25. Your wonderful tea party is the perfect way to celebrate International Women's Day!

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  26. This looks like such a fantastic occasion, Poppy, and well worth all your hard work. The table looks amazing, homemade treats are the best.
    Amalia
    xo

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  27. What a wonderful way to celebrate women, Poppy! Your idea seems to have been a great success. Women all over the world enjoy getting together for tea and goodies, and to chat about the things closest to our hearts. The table of goodies looks utterly amazing.

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  28. Oh, Poppy! How wonderful! A great way to celebrate International Womens Day. "We" should do things like this more often. Happy Monday!

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  29. Great way to celebrate women! Thanks for sharing at Home Sweet Home!

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  30. It looks like this was a wonderful way to celebrate International Womens Day Poppy. And all that food! my goodness! Our morning tea was much more modest. :) I hope that the morning was able to spread the message of our society, which will bring more members, and which in turn will generate lots more opportunity for helping others.

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  31. What a lovely event! You did yourself proud -- and what a nice roup of women friends you have there --- it sounds like your group does great work. Woman power and friendship at its finest! Thanks for sharing. And thank you for your thoughtful comment on my post.

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  32. A beautiful way to celebrate! The room looks so festive, but I think I gasped when I saw the food table! Greek food is one of my favorites, especially loukoumades! I've got a feeling you've created an annual event!

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Thanks for stopping by and taking the time to comment. I really appreciate hearing from all of you! Have a great day!