Sapphires of September

In autumn the riotous colors sway

a dance of crimson, amber, and bronze

jewels set amidst golden light

contrasting against the sapphire sky

Nature's yearly adornment

made beautiful in its time.

Hello everyone!  I have a different job temporarily (and have all summer actually) and it is taking up a lot of my time, but I have big plans to post more regularly through the end of the year, so here's hoping!  At least I managed to cheat and get this post up before the end of September! 

Unfortunately, its been rainy and icky all week, so this is just a quick post for September's gemstone of the month--the sapphire.  I was hoping to take pictures outside, especially since the sapphires don't look very blue, but these pictures came out surprisingly well--considering! 

Updated:  Here is a closer picture in daylight of the sapphires--they really are blue!

Hawaiian Ti luau

Aloha!  As summer is coming to a close (and boy did it fly by), I thought it was the perfect time to host a Hawaiian luau!  And, since I love tea parties, I had a Hawaiian ti luau, or a Hawaiian tea feast! 

I decorated my basement "party room" with palm trees and colorful paper lanterns hanging from the ceiling.

And here is a closer look at the table:

I found a lot of the Hawaiian decorations at the Dollar Tree, including the colorful tiki water glasses in the picture, the hula dancer napkins, and the hibiscus "placemats" at each place, which also served as the menu.

First, we have the savories

(pineapple rounds and cucumber pua (flowers))

(kalua pig on Hawaiian rolls)

(fried rice in dollar store bowls)

I served tea in my clear crystal shell teacups (in addition, every place setting had clear etched glass plates I found in a local thrift store)

For some added tropical flair, I served a guava flavored blooming green tea.  Slightly sweet, but very good, plus it is always fun to serve a blooming tea!

Next I served the scone course, tropical melody (dried tropical fruits with bananas and coconut milk) and white chocolate macadamia nut, with pineapple jam and clotted cream of course!

Taking a step back (as we get ready for dessert) here is the "centerpiece" of my Hawaiian decorations, a vintage 1970s Hawaiian travel poster from American Airlines (I borrowed it from my mother) set on top of my basement "server," which was also decked out with a hula skirt!  

And now for my personal favorite, dessert!

(Blue Hawaii cupcakes, mini pineapple upside down cakes, and hua'ai (fruit)).

While we were waiting for guests to arrive (and for me to finish my party prep work--one day I will finish on schedule), I served Blue Hawaiians in tiki glasses.

And one last view of the room before I say goodnight:

Aloha ʻoe, aloha ʻoe	Farewell to thee, farewell to thee
E ke onaona noho i ka lipo	The charming one who dwells in the shaded bowers
One fond embrace,	One fond embrace,
A hoʻi aʻe au	'Ere I depart
Until we meet again	Until we meet again
ʻO ka haliʻa aloha i hiki mai	Sweet memories come back to me
Ke hone aʻe nei i	Bringing fresh remembrances
Kuʻu manawa	Of the past
ʻO ʻoe nō kuʻu ipo aloha	Dearest one, yes, you are mine own
A loko e hana nei	From you, true love shall never depart

~Chorus, Aloha 'Oe, by Queen Liliuokalani

This week I'm linking to Home Sweet Home at The Charm of Home.