High Tea for a Bear!

 Hullo! Today we are going for High Tea at a local tea room!!! I am beary excited... as the only place we have come even close to this is at Laduree in Covent Gardens and the Royal Academy of Arts near Harrods...

Ooohhhh... fancy tea cups and everything!

I do have to say this tea was beary nice and smooth... very drinkable...

It's nice to see that all this old porcelain has found a home...

One of the humans had a tea leaf reading done... so there were tea thingies in the bottom of the cup...

But I guess you need to know what you are doing to read this stuff... all it says to this little bear is "More Tea Please!".

And then... then we got our nibbles!!! On a three platter tower thingie!

There was fruit on top... kiwis and grapes and a few other things...

And the second level had little sandwich things... croisants with creamcheese and tomato...

And crustless cucumber sandwiches...

But best of all was the bottom layer which had butter tarts, cookies, brownies (yum) and scones... warm from the oven!!

We had jam and cream too... except... it was whipping cream not clotted cream or Devonshire cream and... Sandy wants to ask Beanie... "Does one serve whipping cream with scones and jam??"

It was in an old house (old for us)....

And there was outdoor seating too...

All in all, we had a fun time!!! Even if it was whipping cream... hmph.

What do with Extra Crab (Such a Problem...)

Oh, hullo... yes... so... we came home with a tonne of extra crab... and so now we wonder... what to do? We made some crab cakes (very yum)... and still had crab so...

We are going to try Crab Caronbara!

Never made any carbonara before... so wish us luck... Chef Sandy has done his research sooo...

We have some chives... fresh from the garden...

And some garlic (from the garden).

And some capers (not from the garden)...

And... we made the sauce (so stressful) and...

It actually worked!! Go figure...

And the crab carbonara was SCRUMPTIOUS!!!

Art Deco Contest Entries and Winners!

Hullo!! We received some excellent entries from some of our stuffie pals. It's amazing how many pop out of the woodwork when there's a contest on the go. Alright... without much ado... let's meet our entrants!

Baxter's entry

First up, we have Baxter's entry from Seaside, Oregon, where he took some pics of the Funland entertainment centre. It was built in 1929-1931 and has housed a number of arcades over the years.

It's definitely a pretty cool art deco entry!

Jelly Beanie's Entry

Next up, we have Jelly Beanie's entry!! He found a cool art deco building in Putney, London. It's definitely beary nice!!

Little Fox's Entry

Then, of course, we have Little Fox with a dark horse entry from Miami of all places!!

He found the Tony Hotel which was originally designed and built in 1939 by L. Murray Dixon, a master architect responsible for many of the Art Deco buildings that line Collins Avenue and Ocean Drive. Dixon’s signature style, embodied in this hotel, included streamlined curves, jutting towers, window “eyebrows,” and neon. 

Originally named The Tiffany (and subsequently renamed The Hotel of South Beach), the hotel’s rooftop “Tiffany” spire is an historic landmark, towering majestically over Collins Avenue for more than 80 years. In 1985, legendary placemaker Tony Goldman visited South Beach for the first time and fell in love. He saw past the blight and dilapidated buildings that plagued South Beach at the time and envisioned the American Riviera. He spent the next 27 years of his life leading the renaissance of South Beach, fighting to preserve its history while also envisioning its future as a pedestrian destination where people from all walks of life could enjoy its natural beauty in an inclusive community. 

Tony Goldman bought and methodically restored the hotel, among other properties, and in 1998 enlisted fashion designer Todd Oldham to infuse the hotel with the rich colors, shapes, and textures emblematic of the Art Deco era. 

The renaming of the hotel as The Tony Hotel South Beach in 2022, on the tenth anniversary of his passing, was a fitting tribute to Tony Goldman by his family, who still own and operate the hotel to this day.

An excellent entry!

Kidney Beanie's Entry

Kidney Beanie submitted an entry which is technically Art Nourveau but has nods to Art Deco - the Blackfriar's Pub! Extra points for finding a pub! The pub is a Grade 2 listed building built on the site of a medieval Dominican friary and then remodelled in 1905 by architect Herbert Fuller-Clark

It's an odd-shaped building because all of it's neighbours have long since been demolished!

It was almost demolished the in the 1960s but public outcry saved it!

Excellent entry!

Choya's Entry

Next up... we have Choya's entry from Seattle! This is the Federal Office Building, completed in 1931-1933. It was designed by James A. Wetmore.

A beary striking entry!! Good choice, Choya!

Beanie Mouse's Entry

Next up... we have Beanie Mouse's entry from London, the world famous Ibex House at the Minories in London. That's "Min - as in Minnie - Ories" and NOT "Mine - ories" and it's not far from the Tower of London.

It is really quite nice! It's a Grade 2 listed Art Deco building, with eleven storeys, designed by Fuller, Hall and Foulsham in the Streamline Moderne style with bands of faience cladding and black framed windows. It was built 1935-1937 and received the Grade 2 listing in 1982

Sandy says Beanie gets extra points for getting a Starbucks logo in the picture... although a hot chocolate would have garnered even more points!

It's a Grade 2 listed Art Deco building, with eleven storeys, designed by Fuller, Hall and Foulsham in the Streamline Moderne style with bands of faience cladding and black framed windows.

Building started in 1935 and completed in 1937 - receiving the Grade 2 listing in 1982

Purple Rabbit's Entry

Finally, we have Purple Rabbit's entry, the Edmonds Theatre in... Edmond WA, just north of Seattle. It was built in 1923 and was a vaudeville theatre! It's muted and subdued but those clean early Art Deco lines are unmistakable...

String Beanie's Entry

Anndddd.... a last minute, dark horse, under-the-wire entry from String Beanie!! But with a beary strong entry! The Victoria Coach Station! This is an excellent choice! Such a classic building, designed by the famous  Wallis, Gilbert and Partners. The same company was also responsible for a series of extraordinary Art Deco factory buildings in West London, most of them on the A4 Great West Road. Nice job String Beanie!

And the Winners Are...!!

1st Place

Is a tie between Choya and String Beanie!!! The Victoria Coach Station is a classic and the Federal Building in Seattle has amazing details!

2nd Place

Another tie between Baxter, Little Fox, Jelly Beanie and Beanie Mouse! Judges loved something about each of them and after much debate... couldn't decide... so a tie it is!

3rd Place

Another tie between Kidney Beanie and Purple Rabbit! The early Art Deco and Art Nouveau each have some excellent qualities!

Prizes will be mailed out in mid-December... once we are sure the new agreement between Canada Post and its union is firmly in place. Contestants can squabble amongst themselves as to which prize is First, Second or Third!

Thanks for all the entries! And keep taking those pics! You never know when another Randomly Scheduled Art Deco Contest might pop-up!

Mail and Trading Cards

 Hullo!! I got some mail!!

In case you didn't now... we had a postal strike (again) at the end of September, for several weeks, so the mail has been all messed up...

The first postcards is from... Iceland!!!

Jerry and Ben went to Iceland!! And had a great time from the sounds of it.

Iceland is definitely on the LBBL... Little Bear Bucket List...

Next up... a postcard from Yosemite!!

It's from Little Fox! Sigh... hiking, great food and great local beers.... yes, that would be fun too!

I mean, really though... I can't complain (too much). I've had a tonne of adventures this year (so back-logged that we are still posting summer adventures!).

Oooh... and we found these at a local grocery store!! They are Vancouver Island Trading Cards!!!

They are brand new and there are 102 cards to be collected... 10 trading cards in a packet. Huh...

So, obviously we bought a packet... let's look inside...

Yep... definitely Canadian!!

Oooh... the Marmot!!! We heard on the news that the Vancouver Island marmot colony has increased from around 30 or so a while ago, to over 300!! Making a comeback... Go Marmots!! The card says it is one of the rarest mammals on earth.

Oh and you see that gold banner at the bottom... that's a "First Print" banner... excellent!!

These are cool! What else do we have?

Earthquake... yep... we can get those.

Haunted Room? Also true though...

Nanaimo Bar!!!

Robin... hmph... I think they are everywhere!

Tree Frog??

We have tree frogs?? I did NOT know that!!

Sea Glass!!

I know a certain Mouse who would be all over sea glass...

Ummm... Friendly Dog? I suppose this is true... but Sequoia is a friendly dog and doesn't live here!

Fisherman... yep, we get those too...

And a ferry!! Life blood of the coast!!

And there's a QR code that takes you to the website, where you can see ALL the cards in the series... apparently this was all designed by a local guy. Cool.

Of course they keep getting sold-out online. Hmph...