Carlyle House parallels the early history of Alexandria, colonial Virginia, and America.
It was left to decay after the Civil War when it served as a hospital, but thankfully during the Bicentennial, the Carlyle House was restored by the Northern Virginia National Parks Authority. Now it serves to educate tourists about the
lifestyle of an 18th-century Virginia family and their servants and slaves.
During the tour of the house I happened upon the gift shop which of course I could not resist. It is a lovely gift shop with so many colonial inspired goodies. I also love tea sets. I saw this particular one on display and had to have it. The price was very reasonable and I was just drawn to the sunny yellow. The gift shop host explained this was a replica of what the common colonial would have used for tea time. Very practical and durable, yet not dull. I love it!
I had them wrap it up good and had a heck of time getting it on the plane in the overhead bin :-).
It's perfect for summer my summer display in my living room sitting on my coffee table.
The Brown Betty style teapot shows the practicality of the colonials.
The Beehive motif was popular because of the bee's industrious nature.
Mustard Yellow was also a popular colonial color.
If they would have had this set in red I would have brought that home too!
