Friday Knows Tea

You read that correctly, friends. Our small tea shop has been growing and evolving steadily for six years now, and we have outgrown our manufacturing space! We will not be able to sustain our level of operation, nor expand enough to meet growing demand, without moving into a new space. Rather than sell the company, we are trying to raise funding to move into a brick-and-mortar shop in Seattle's Phinney Ridge neighborhood. Taste all 200+ Friday Afternoon teas in our store! With your help, Friday Afternoon Tea can continue to grow and spread our weird, nerdy tea love to the community. Our new space will host free tastings any time, local geeky art on our walls, craft nights for adults and regular art hours for children. We'll do custom blends on the spot and run weekly game nights. Our goal is to create the ultimate living room for you and your friends. How can you support us in making this happen? We recently launched a  Kickstarter campaign  to raise ...

Summer is such a good excuse for shaking, stirring, and otherwise mixing up tasty cocktails to cool you down. While I'm generally an "Irish whiskey, neat" kinda gal, the sunshine tends to make me super feisty. During the hot months I find myself craving salsa (both the food and the music), grilling with friends, hanging outside with my kiddo, and DEFINITELY a parade of fun cocktails. The lovely Beca, owner and creator behind The Shrubbery , was way into the idea of coming over for a cocktail tutorial afternoon. Mixed drinks are not my area of expertise, so I was really amped to get some education on the subject. I infused the booze, picked up some assorted citrus at the store and eagerly awaited the arrival of my dear friend. Ok, at this point I'm going to hit pause on the story of a delightful afternoon for those of you who don't know how to infuse spirits with tea. It's seriously easy, instantly makes cocktail hour more interesting and will absolutel...

As you probably know, I perceive the world with my taste buds. My dominant form of synesthesia is Lexical-Gustatory. This means I literally taste words, ideas, feelings, personalities, etc. The overwhelming majority of my blends are direct translations to leaf of the flavors my brain-mouth is experiencing. Today, I wanted to share with you the way I experience one particular flavor profile: Love. To be specific, I'm talking totally bonkers, swept-up, overwhelming, skin-tingling passion. The kind of Love you feel when you find yourself clicking over and over and over with someone. The kind of Love that makes all the garbage and difficulty of the dating world worth it. The love you feel for family, close friends and pets is a different (though still yummy) flavor. I'm particularly fixated on this tasty, tingly sensation because I'm right in the middle of it these days. For the last two months, I've been in the midst of a crazy whirlwind romance. It's bee...

Let's talk stress. I don't know how many times a day I think or say or just blind-panic over the seemingly inescapable reality that I don't have enough time to stay on top of my life. Especially as an adult, and ESPECIALLY in the city, where everything feels so pricey and so fast-paced. I often let myself think I need to keep moving to survive. This shark/hummingbird mentality prevents me from enjoying my life more than I would care to admit. I recognize the importance of slowing down and recharging my batteries. I am an intelligent, capable woman with a firm grasp on the concept of self-care. In theory, anyway. In actual practice, here is what happens: "Oh look, my to-do list is approaching Epic. Let's prioritize and go item-by-item until it is finished and I feel accomplished and totally in control of my life." "Ok, first task is taking longer than I anticipated. No big deal, it's still early." "Crap, I only have (insert time countdown her...

Well, we took a vote. You guys all really REALLY needed to know how to make delicious chai ice cream at home, so Allyn and I made you a video! It turns out homemade ice cream is totally NBD. We don't even own an ice cream maker, and it still came out great! Ready? Let's go! Ingredients 1/2 cup sugar 3/4 cup heavy whipping cream 2 3/4 cup whole milk 5 egg yolks 1 1/2 Tablespoons loose leaf Masala Chai 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract   Procedure Combine milk, cream, tea and vanilla extract and bring slowly to a boil over low heat (be sure to stir frequently to prevent the dairy from scorching! When your liquids are at a boil, remove from the heat and set aside. Mix sugar and egg yolks in a metal mixing bowl. Strain the warm milk/tea mixture directly into the bowl of sugar and egg, but just a bit at a time. Be sure to thoroughly whisk between additions! Rinse your saucepan, then return the custard to the saucepan over low heat again.  Heat until thick eno...

Here in the PNW, early Spring has most definitely arrived. I'm constantly craving high mountain (high caffeine) black teas and walks outside with the fragrant flowers, the sunshine and my maniac dog and child. Erik is craving steamed green teas, quiet afternoons in coffee shops and art museum exploration. Let's take a look at our favorites for the season! Friday wants... Darjeelings are known as "the champagne of tea" for a reason. These are floral and delicate, but with complex flavor profile. Be careful, though. Helluva caffeine kick on these! Personally, I can have only a couple demitasse cups of this Makaibari Estate First Flush before I start to see through space and time. Dangerous, but so. Worth. It. First Flush Darjeeling Serendipi-Tea is a silly little blend we stumbled upon accidentally a number of years ago. It's simple, light, and ideal for a long afternoon of conversation and/or art projects with loud children (in my case). Ceylon black...

2016 has barely gotten its sea legs, and already we find ourselves in seemingly perpetual mourning over great artists, inspirational figures and beautiful friends both personal and widely shared. I can barely look at social media this month without seeing people collectively weeping over the loss of those who have touched our lives and transformed us. Recently, a friend told me he lost three people close to him in one week. The depth to which it shook him shifted my day's outlook as well. I've never met these people, but I feel them through his grief. They left a mark on me by leaving a mark on him. A few days ago, we lost David Bowie. I don't know a single person who hasn't been  in some way or another struck by this man with an inspiration to create, to express, to embrace their own inner Weird. This morning I woke to news of Alan Rickman's passing. I cried like everyone else, stunned by the unexpected ache left in my nostalgia centers. My Professor...