two for tea

I have a calculated and deliberate strategy for determining which project I will take on next. It goes something like this: A friend will say to me, "I decided that you should make tea cozies because I can't find any cute ones," and then I reply,

"Okay. Would you like one lump or two with that?"



And now I'm kind of obsessed with them. Patchwork and quilting on a small(er) scale is so much fun.

And it's way less commitment than making an entire quilt. Plus, I got to dig into my new Hope Valley stash, which is, um, gorgeous.

I never drank hot tea as a youngster. My mom is from the South and so I spent my youth drinking sweet tea. Which is, for those of you who may be unfamiliar with it, iced tea, with plenty of sugar. I didn't discover hot tea until I lived in New York and we'd go to a local grocer to pick up lovely hot teas, which we would leisurely sip on Sunday mornings, accompanied by fresh pastries and followed by a peaceful walk through Central Park. Sigh.





Which reminds me, that was the year we brought Humphrey home. When he was super tiny, before he had all his vaccinations, I would carry him around in a backpack so I could socialize him (hint: the best way to meet people in New York, or anywhere, probably, is to have a cute puppy).

Once an older gentleman approached me and asked if I was carrying a monkey. I still laugh when I think about it.

Humphrey was an adolescent in this photo, still growing into those ginormous paws and ears. He's about 60 pounds now, a gentle giant who doesn't realize that he's a big dog. He still tries to climb into the luggage if we're packing for a trip.

We would impress the crowds at the park because we would pack a carton of fruit and Humphrey would eat it right off the fork. We don't spoil our dogs, nope.

All this reminiscing and tea talk makes me want to brew some tea and watch some of my favorite Britcoms. Yes, I could really go for a waterside supper and riparian entertainment right about now...



And to make more tea cozies, of course.

UPDATE: you can now find these tea cozies in my shop!