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It's winter, time for cold fingers, hot drinks, and cozy nights on the couch under a blanket. Winter is a perfect time to reconnect with domestic crafts, or learn a new one while enjoying a hot cup of tea.
I learned to crochet during a snowstorm. My older sister was visiting and my entertainment value plummeted when we got stuck inside while 8 inches of snow piled up outside. I made a pot of hibiscus tea and fretted about the plow schedule for the neighborhood. My sister, undaunted, pulled out her hooks, a skein of yarn and set me to work creating a single chain. When I had made one hundred chains, she directed me to rip it out and do it again until my fingers memorized how to make the stitch. In one night, we finished off two pots of tea and I had nothing to show for my work but sore fingers and wrinkly yarn. In two days, I made a scarf.
Even if you live in a temperate climate, it can do wonders for the soul to turn off the phone, and snuggle up alone with a movie, a pot of tea, and knitting needles. A quiet night is valuable whether you live in North Dakota or Florida. If you don't know how to knit or crochet, you can teach yourself from a book. The internet is full of tutorial videos for when you get stuck. If yarn crafts aren't to your taste, you can make magnets from glass marbles and pictures, flowers for your hair from material and rhinestones, or even get your aggressions out making mosaics.
If you have a friend or family member who can teach you a craft, or do it with you, make a night of crafting together. The conversation that flows from creating with others can be insightful and genuine - and nothing compares to the special feeling of learning something new from someone you love. If you learn on your own, you have that spectacular feeling of accomplishment of independent learning.
Since that winter snowstorm with my sister, I've made hats, amigurumi dolls, shawls, and fingerless gloves. Whenever I pull out the hibiscus tea, I think of that snowstorm and how much I learned and I'm inspired to learn more. I need my sister to come back out during inclement weather for another crochet boot camp.
If you'd like my recommendations for crochet or knitting instructions or websites, please feel free to contact me.
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... then tea and scones are absolutely delightful!
Raise your cups to an act of winter whimsy: the tea party. In attendance were two children (at heart) and two teddy bears. In the oven, a batch of maple-cinnamon scones. In our cups, well, tea of course - in fact, thee kinds were consumed over the
course of the afternoon. I don't recall being one of those tea-party-loving little girls, but here I am, a tea-party-loving woman.
After a cold-but-pleasant January walk, we whipped up some super-tasty scones (the mix had been a holiday gift) and boiled a pot of hot water. To make it even more of an event, we put cream in my grandmother's creamer (usually we pour milk straight from the carton) and drank our tea from fancy-schmancy mugs that look like little elephants. After ensuring that we had photographic evidence, we chowed down. The scones melted in our mouths as the tea warmed us from the inside out. Now that's what I call a relaxing weekend afternoon.
If your tea parties need a jump-start, here are a few ideas that will please kids and adults alike:
- Base your menu (whether it's extensive or not) around a colorful theme. A Valentine's tea could feature rooibos tea, scones with strawberry jam, and raspberry thumbprint cookies. Green tea, cucumber sandwiches, and shamrock cookies work for St. Patrick's day. You can even ask guests to wear the appropriate color. (If you're throwing an impromptu at-home "party," go ahead and change - it'll put a smile on your face.)
- Try a "T" party - think toast, tomatoes, or tiramisu.
- Or go for a "no T" party, where you'll rack your brain to avoid using words with the letter 't' in conversation. ("Could you please pass some more warm beverage?")
- Get fancied up. Everything will taste better while you're wearing your pearls and holding a silver spoon.
- Relive the royal wedding with elaborate hats (homemade or not) and across-the-pond accents.
- Stage a blind taste-test of different types of tea, or play guess-the-tea.
- Have each attendee adopt a funny character of his or her own creation. Give yourself an unusual name (Lucinda Catterbottom, Mr. Sledright, Oddball Jones, etc.) and act as outlandishly as your character would. If you have the time, this one just screams out for costumes!
Remember: a tea party is a tea party simply because you say it is. Plan one weeks in advance, or throw one together last-minute. Commemorate a special event or counter rainy-day boredom. Above all, be creative, and enjoy!
 How is it that you enjoy your night time tea? Do you enjoy a cup of herbal in the quiet after the kids go to bed? Do you sip a cup during the nightly news? I take mine out to the front porch and sip my tea while I drink in the night. Listening to the night sounds of suburbia, Killdeers winging through the dark... Sometimes watching a bat fly in and out of the streetlight catchng insects.
 Other times I sit quietly with prayer beads in hand and ask the Universe to help plot my course to contentment, pray for the end of suffering and war... or pray for things closer to home and my heart... or I simply give thanks for the blessings I have.
These are prayer beads I made for a friend fighting breat cancer.
Do you have a night time ritual invovling tea?
Tags: Honeybush, Tisane, Tea Culture, Japanese Tea, Chinese Tea, Chai, Pu-erh Tea, Rooibos Tea, Blooming Tea, Green Tea, White Tea, Black Tea, Oolong Tea, Darjeeling Tea
I've tried different tea cups, but they all seem too delicate for me. I like tea that I can breathe in as I drink it. I want to feel the steam rising off the hot liquid and accost my senses even before I take my first sip. I want to look over the rim of my cup and watch the world stop and wait while I have my tea.
That's a lot to ask for in a cup.
At a Cracker Barrel somewhere off I-95, I discovered it. My perfect cup. An extra-large, fat-handled mug emblazoned with a classic Corn Flakes box image. A mug I can happily stick my nose into and breathe in all the aromas and steam as I drink.
And so I come to my latest suggestion for a gift idea
An afternoon tea break in a box:
Get a mug or teacup you think matches your "giftee's" personality. Fill it with a sealed bag of tea you think they'd like. Add a few honey sticks and an orphan silver spoon from an old flatware set. Pick up some shortbread cookies or biscotti to compliment the tea. Lay it in a box. Tie it up with a ribbon and you have a personalized gift! Near or far, they'll think of you every time they have tea.
Do you have a favorite tea cup? Does tea taste different depending on the cup you use?
Weigh in with your comments below. I'd love to hear what you think!
Coffee's for mornings. Wine's for after 5pm. But any time can be tea time.
The variety of teas -- their origins, aromas and effects on the body and sense -- make tea the most versatile beverage on the planet. As I've mentioned in my previous post, I'm a promiscuous tea drinker -- I try everything once; twice if I like it. So to set each tea apart, I've discovered each tea has its corresponding time of day:
- For a morning caffeine jolt, I experiment with a variety of black teas for a solid wake-up call.
- For a non-caffeinated morning reboot, a spicy Rooibos tea does the trick.
- Chai, especially in latte form, is a great mid-afternoon break type tea. The caffeine and spices jump start my brain cells and the milk and sugar keep me going.
- White tea is nice for an afternoon tea, especially when blended with peach or aromatic herbs. It goes well with jam and scones.
- With dinner, a blooming tea or strong herbal tea can compliment a meal more specifically than wine.
Do you match your tea to the time of day? Mood? Do you always drink the same type, day in and day out? Maybe it's time for a change! Try something new and tell me about it here!
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