In the spring, Tasha looked so forward to the flowers.
Lady Ann is sitting on the garden wall. She has gathered yellow and pink violets, forget-me-nots, and lily-of-the-valley in her own English garden trug.
Alongside, she has a succulent that she has planted in a small clay pot.
A sweet little English lad with a garden trug and spade. He looks very much like my uncle, but that is not surprising as my family is mostly of English ancestry, with some ancestors coming from near the area where the photograph was taken.
On the back endpapers of "A Child's Garden of Verses" written by Robert Louis Stevenson and illustrated by Tasha Tudor, published in 1981 , Tasha illustrated a boy digging with a spade with a garden trug full of seed packets and a corgi alongside.
The pincushion doll carries a trug with rose geranium flowers and leaves that she gathered.
Robert Louis Stevenson had a sickly childhood and had to spend a lot of his time resting in bed.
His poetry in "A Child's Garden of Verses" was of his childhood remembrances of exploration, play and fantasy. This along with Tasha's illustrations of exploration, play and fantasy makes a delightful combination. I love "A Child's Garden of Verses" illustrated by Tasha Tudor!
His poetry in "A Child's Garden of Verses" was of his childhood remembrances of exploration, play and fantasy. This along with Tasha's illustrations of exploration, play and fantasy makes a delightful combination. I love "A Child's Garden of Verses" illustrated by Tasha Tudor!
My garden trug full of succulents nestled amongst the lady's mantle, lamb's-ear, violets, chives, heart's ease, and forget-me-nots. These succulents were planted in several garden troughs about Corgyncombe gardens which, unfortunately, now are being nibbled on by naughty Chippy Hackees!
Tasha's inscription in my "A Child's Garden of Verses":
"To Diane, With many thanks for your spinning inspiration!
from Tasha Tudor"
Tasha Tudor's Bay tree.
These are my own personal photographs of Tasha Tudor and her cottage.
Lady Ann was named after my 9th great grandmother Lady Ann Borodell wife of Capt. George Denison, who lived near Mystic, Connecticut. Their daughter Margaret married James Brown, grandson of John Howland and Elizabeth (Tilley) Howland who came on the Mayflower. James and Margaret were my 8th great grandparents. We also have many other Anns in our ancestral family.
Corgyncombe Garden of Herbs.
Lady Ann's garden trough and bee skep.
August 28th, 2019 would have been Tasha Tudor's 104th birthday.
My daughter Sarah and I were so blessed to have Tasha for a friend.
Tasha Tudor's Birthday Celebration is more than just a one day celebration. It is, to us, every day kindred old fashioned tasks and the seasonal celebrations all throughout the year.
Tasha Tudor delighted, as we do, in refined, simple elegance, in a country way, and the combining of the every day old fashioned tasks as our ancestors did, with artistic skill that could be seen by the beauty in their accomplished results... such as baskets, clothing, gardens, pottery, textiles, furniture, food preparation, architecture, and even their tools.
My daughter Sarah was the model for Tasha Tudor's illustrations of the little girl Kathy in "The Real Pretend".
We had many kindred interests in common with Tasha such as spinning, weaving, knitting, natural dyeing, dolls, corgyn, goats, birds, gardening (flowers, herbs, and vegetables), old fashioned clothing, boots and frocks, fireplace and woodstove cookery, canning, sewing, quilting, old books, and the old ways of living.
These daily things remind us of Tasha.
How grateful we are to have been her friend and kindred spirit!
Out Amongst the Garden and Lawn
A Little Bouquet of May
One day after milking, I gathered this small bouquet of bleeding heart, lily of the valley, violets, and forget-me-nots.
I wrote the sentence below originally in June 2007 in a letter to Julie:
"Bouquets about the cottage add such a cheer to the day and they are something special to look upon and a delight to smell every time you pass their way!"
A Little Bouquet of May
One day after milking, I gathered this small bouquet of bleeding heart, lily of the valley, violets, and forget-me-nots.
I wrote the sentence below originally in June 2007 in a letter to Julie:
"Bouquets about the cottage add such a cheer to the day and they are something special to look upon and a delight to smell every time you pass their way!"
My English tape loom made by Jonathan Seidel.
A Christmas surprise for Lady Ann!
Lady Ann loves to weave on her own loom also made by Jonathan Seidel.
Lady Ann loves to weave on her own loom also made by Jonathan Seidel.
One of my old barn frame looms.
One of Tasha Tudor's old barn frame looms.
Hollyhocks in the Corgyncombe Gardens.
Delphiniums
Like Tasha and Diane, Lady Ann enjoys spinning!
Lady Ann's foot at the treadle.
Tasha Tudor spinning on my wheel.
Lady Abigail was named after Abigail (Gibbs) Swift who was my 7th great grandmother and who was also Tasha Tudor's 5th great grandmother. Abigail (Gibbs) Swift was the great granddaughter of Richard Warren who came on the Mayflower in 1620.
The name Abigail was passed down from Abigail (Gibbs) Swift to each generation of my family, continuing on to my great great grandfather's sister Mary Abigail (Taylor) Bassett. My great great grandfather served in the Civil War. Mary and her brother's grandfather and two great grandfathers all served in the Revolutionary war. Mary Abigail's obituary said she was "always ready to stand for the right as she saw the right with all the fortitude of her puritan ancestry." Like Tasha and myself, Mary Abigail liked to pick and arrange bouquets of wild flowers. It was reported in the paper that Mary Abigail won a prize for her wild flower bouquet! Mary Abigail lived just around the corner from Susan Fenimore Cooper, the authoress of "Rural Hours". Susan Fenimore Cooper oft' times wrote about the wild flowers.
Wildflowers gathered in a bouquet for Tasha's Birthday Celebration!
The cake I made in celebration of Tasha Tudor's Birthday in 2008 using the Becky's Birthday Cake receipt in "The Tasha Tudor Cookbook".
The cake I made in celebration of Tasha Tudor's Birthday in 2008 using the Becky's Birthday Cake receipt in "The Tasha Tudor Cookbook".
Lady Ann crushing dried herbs.
She likes to gather and dry herbs to use for the winter months.
She likes to gather and dry herbs to use for the winter months.
The Corgyncombe Herbary.
Sunflowers floating in a basin in Tasha Tudor's bathroom.
Lady Ann knitting a shawl with handspun yarn dyed with the cochineal.
A bouquet of Joe-Pye Weed gathered from the acreage of Corgyncombe.
Under the cloche, Dr. Cupid Corgi wears the wings of a dove at the Herbary at Corgyncombe!
Lady Abigail knitting a shawl with handspun yarn dyed with the goldenrod.
The Golden Thimble Society commenced as Tillie Tinkham, the seamstress mouse at Coryncombe, wanted to assist the Queen Anne English Wooden dolls with their needlework.
The thumb cookies were made at the Corgyncombe Bakery. I've always loved spotty dots, as on the teacup, napkin and Golden Thimble Society banner.
The pincushion doll has brought a little doll who needs a frock and some hair.
Lady Abigail discusses sewing over tea with Tillie Tinkham, the seamstress mouse at Coryncombe. The sewing bird's beak holds your work whilst hemming and sewing. Lady Abigail wears a golden thimble for sewing.
Lady Abigail holds a pincushion box to be presented as a gift to a member of the Golden Thimble Society.
Cornstalks, pumpkins, and Old Glory in the mellow Autumnal sunlight.
In "First Graces" Tasha Tudor illustrated part of "My Country, 'Tis of Thee" with a Betsy Ross flag, an eagle, and little children dressed in colonial clothing surrounded by stars.
Phlox and echinacea in my late summer garden.
Lady Abigail holds a frock that she and Tillie Tinkham sewed for Pigeon Lindenwood.
Corgyncombe Dairy goat Carmella Lucille's milk in a hand-thrown salt-glazed milk jug made by a friend. The little yellowware jar with the lid was a delightful find I bought at an antique store for $10 and it was full of nutmeg.
When I worked at a museum most of the other farm ladies went south for the winter. I stayed and taught fireplace cookery and other old fashioned tasks to school groups. Because the kitchen would get so cold at night, I was the one who took home the Rose geranium to winter it over 'til spring.
One of the older ladies who I worked with told me about flavoring a cake with Rose geranium leaves in the bottom of the pan with the batter poured over.
One of the older ladies who I worked with told me about flavoring a cake with Rose geranium leaves in the bottom of the pan with the batter poured over.
Earlier in the summer, before Tasha Tudor's birthday, when my Rose Geranium was blooming, Lady Abigail and Lady Ann decided to make a Rose Geranium cake. Abigail went out and gathered some leaves from the Rose Geranium plant.
Creaming the butter and sugar, then adding the egg yokes for "Becky's Birthday Cake" from "The Tasha Tudor Cookbook". In the cake pan to the left are some scented Rose geranium leaves.
At the bottom of the cake tin Lady Abigail adds Rose Geranium leaves to flavour the cake.
At the bottom of each cake tin I distributed four leaves and then poured the batter atop the leaves.
Above, the baked cakes.
Above, the baked cakes.
Lady Ann made a tussie mussie from some of the flowers and leaves of the Rose Geranium.
Their cake is frosted and decorated with Rose Geranium flowers and leaves on top.
The inscription that Tasha wrote to me in the "A is for Annabelle" book:
"To clever Diane, how I envy your spinning abilities! Tasha Tudor".
"To clever Diane, how I envy your spinning abilities! Tasha Tudor".
Rose Geraniums and forget-me-nots are amongst the flowers illustrated in the border.
A couple of years ago Hannah made a Rose Geranium cake for her dear Edward.
Edward was delighted!
Edward was delighted!
Nestled amongst the thyme, a basket of herbs and flowers gathered for fashioning a fragrant tussie mussie.
A Tussie mussie I made with scented geranium, sage, heirloom sweet peas, lavenders, dill, forget-me-nots, and thyme.
Also in the basket is some of my handspun linen thread which has multiple uses at Corgyncombe.
Also in the basket is some of my handspun linen thread which has multiple uses at Corgyncombe.
The Rose geranium leaves have imparted their rose flavour into the cake. Delightfully delicious!!!
Lady Abigail and Lady Ann cut the cake and each had a piece with tea.
It was delicious!!!
Some of the photographs and some of the writings on this post are from previous Corgyncombe Courant posts that can be found here on the Corgyncombe Courant and from our web site and our previous postings elsewhere on the internet.
Please do not "Pin" our photographs.
Please do not post our photographs on facebook.
Please do not post our photographs on facebook.
Our email:
atthecottagegate@yahoo.com
If you receive an email you think is from me from this email, please make sure it is atthecottagegate@yahoo.com, and not just something that sounds similar.
atthecottagegate@yahoo.com
If you receive an email you think is from me from this email, please make sure it is atthecottagegate@yahoo.com, and not just something that sounds similar.
Photographs, images, and text copyright © 2000-2019 Diane Shepard Johnson and Sarah E. Johnson. All rights reserved. Photographs, images, and/or text may not be reproduced in any form without permission in writing from Diane Shepard Johnson and Sarah E. Johnson.
copyright © 2019 Diane Shepard Johnson and Sarah E. Johnson
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
