Tuesday 6 March 2018

A Postcard A Day - Tuesday 6 March 2018 - T for dolls, royalty, and naughty wine


Hello peeps,
How are you all? Here I am with another blog post from the cave. It's cold and stormy outside and snow is predicted during the coming night. But we have a log fire burning and feel very safe and cosy in our cave house.

Lets start with showing you some postcards. I received this one from the Ukraine:

                                                     

They are traditional folk dolls called 'motanka'. 
This is the info I found on these dolls:
The motanka doll is one of the most ancient handmade items in Ukrainian household. Initially fashioned as a domestic symbol of fertility and household guardians, these dolls played an important role in the everyday life of Ukrainians in the old days. While still in use today, the tradition has become more concerned with style and décor than anything ritualistic.
The main peculiarity of the doll is that it should be faceless, often with cross on head. It used to be made of any pieces of fabric that could be found at home. Craftsmen draw no faces (no eyes, nose, mouth) to let small children develop their imagination and think of the doll`s emotions while playing with the doll. According to the ancient popular beliefs, the face inspired a soul in a doll. The soul can be good or bad, so it was safer not to give a soul to the doll at all than to risk giving a bad one. Ukrainians used to believe that the doll would take away the illness from children. It was also believed that motanka protects the house from evil spirits and ghosts.

Here are a few close-up photos I found online:


I can see these becoming collectors items. They are very pretty, don't you think?

And this is the Ukrainian stamp. The image is of an olive leaf plus a few olives.


My next card is royalty, (looking very bored). It comes from Russia and is in fact the future emperor Nicholas II with  his bride Alice of Hesse in 1894.


Just look at her waist. That must have been a very tight corset! 


The stamps are lovely. The one on the right is a 'Happy New Year' wish from the Kremlin in Moscow.  And the left one is about the World Exhibition of Postal Stamps in St Petersburg in 2007. As for me, I think it looks like a Blue Peter Badge (the Brits among us will know what I mean).

Last week I told you I was on a diet. So you will be expecting a glass of water. Well, I must confess I have been naughty last week. We went out for lunch and I had a glass of white wine.
The soup is a cold soup called salmorejo. The little bits you can see are Serrano ham, with shredded boiled egg in the middle. Hubby is having chicken soup. 
Needless to say I didn't lose any weight this week....

Now, I have been scrapboking again. This is what I made:

This was my mum's 92nd birthday. And below is a photo of me and my mum having tea.
Both my naughty glas of wine and the above photo will qualify me to join the T-party organised by Elizabeth and Bluebeard at Alteredbooklover.
I hope to see you all there!

Bye for now,

Have a good week,

Lisca

16 comments:

  1. Hi Lisca, I think it is just fine to drink wine-they say a glass of dry red is good for us.
    I love those dolls and thank you for their story. You always share the coolest postcards and stamps.
    stay warm-sounds cozy there
    Happy T Day

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  2. Those Ukrainian dolls really are pretty. Oh my- and that poor woman with that teeny waist-no wonder she wasn't looking so happy...
    hey, it's OK to cheat a bit off the diet- I bet you're back on it, and a glass of wine isn't so bad :) Stay warm and happy T day!

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  3. Lisca what lovely postcards you shared. My they do look bored don't they.. Perhaps they weren't pleased about the marriage?? Shredded egg .. never thought of that! Chin up on the diet Lisca.. a little slip up does not end it all... Happy happy T day! Hugs! deb

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  4. I enjoyed reading about the postcards you shared. I don't think Alice was bored. I don't think she could breathe (grin)!!!

    Your soup looks good, but I would prefer your husband's I think. White wine seems to be your downfall, doesn't it? But sometimes you have to give in to temptation. At least you didn't gain any weight and that is a blessing.

    Thanks for sharing your postcards, your scrapbook pages, and your food and wine with us for T this Tuesday.

    BTW, the entire CITY of Webb City is called Cardinal City. It's not just the sports teams, but the entire city embraces cardinals.

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  5. Those postcards are gorgeous, as are the dolls you found on the net. I couldn't imagine having to be strapped in with a corset, perhaps that's why she looks so unhappy? Your food looks good, and glad you enjoyed the wine. Happy T Day, hugs, Valerie

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  6. you get inspirations in various directions with your postcard Hobby... i love the postal stamp with the olive and right, These montaka dolls are wonderful. thanks for the info about them, really interesting!
    hope you have a good week in your cave and happy t-day!

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  7. Beautiful postcards, I love the dolls and the photos you shared of them. I feel for those women who had small waists, how they must have felt relief when the corsets were undone.
    The soups looked delicious and a glass of wine now and again on your diet cannot have done much harm.
    Happy T day wishes.
    Yvonne xx

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  8. Lovely postcards and the dolls are a delight, thanks for finding and sharing the photos of them 😁. That's such a stunning dress with all the beadwork but I wouldn't want to wear that corset ...lol 😉. Such happy photos on your beautiful scrapbook pages too! Cheers and wishing you a very Happy T Day! J 😊

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  9. Spring has arrived in our area. Temps are in the 70s and 80s already. The days are mostly sunny and the sky is brilliant blue. I love our springs. I hope yours comes soon too, Lisca.

    The motanka dolls are charming and I enjoyed reading about the trditional beliefs. The cosses where a face should be look very odd to my western eye but the costumes are gorgeous!

    I don't think I've seen any scrapbooking pages by you at T. They're lovely. You should do more ;-) I love that picture of you with your mom at tea.

    Happy T-day! Hugs, Eileen

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  10. Diets without occasional treats always fail, so I think your meal looks like just the thing :) Those scrapbook pages are lovely -such fond memories. Happy T Tuesday

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  11. I love those dolls - I have never heard of them! The photo of Princess Alice made me think how difficult it must have been to breathe - poor woman -all she wanted to do was get home and take off her corset!!! Your meal looks great .. you can lose more weight next week! Happy T day! Chrisx

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  12. That's interesting about those dolls. They are actually quite pretty and I can see how people collect them. I also found the postcard of the last czar and his wife quite interesting. I've seen photos of them older but not as a young married couple. :) And your soup looks good. One thing about diets, you can restart them any day. Happy belated T day. Hope it was a good one. Hugs-Erika

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  13. I always enjoy your postcards. I often consider doing postcrossing or swapbot again to get back in with postcards. Maybe this summer.
    Happy T day!

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  14. What an interesting post! Love all the information on the Ukrainian postcard and dolls. And the look on bride Alice of Hesse
    is not boredom, it is "I am dying in this corset" look! LOL
    The scrapbook page of your Mom and you having tea is fabulous! I love to scrapbook and your page is inspiring. Happy T Day!

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  15. Hi Lisca. Sorry i didn't get around to visiting any sooner. Your Ukrainian dolls are very interesting. The first close up is quite charming, but I must admit I don't like them being faceless. I understand the thinking behind it, but it doesn't look right. Even when I use stamps of cute little people in card-making, if they only have eyes, or no face at all, I always have to add one.
    Good luck with the diet. I shall have to try again, but I'll wait until the weather improves. I 'comfort eat' when it is cold. we can only get salmorejo here during the summer months. Kate x

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  16. Wow - such a super post - very informative! Thank you - dont' mind abbout the NOT weight loss - this soups look delicious!
    Your Layouts are beautiful Lisca!
    Happy very belated T-Day --- I am a bit busy this week - sorry!
    oxo Susi
    Good luck with the diet!

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