Welcome to our brand new blog! This is the new home of Sisters Tea Company; the place where you find your happy. It is our hope that you find the same sense of thrill here on our virtual shop that you felt at our physical store. We are here to uplift you, help you find something that adds joy to your life and, as always, bring a bit of sparkle to your every day.
Mom Connie, and I have loved serving you over the last 18 years and look forward to serving you in this brand new way virtual way. Life is always interesting and can take radically different turns than we expect. Whoever said life is like a roller-coaster hit the nail on the head! Closing our brick-and-mortar certainly was not on our radar, yet here we are, and I can say with great sincerity, I am truly excited about this next part of our Sisters’ journey. The world is definitely a different place than it was a year ago –even just six months ago—and in keeping with our tradition of offering the exceptional, Sisters will continue to provide a retreat from the pressures of life as well as ways to add peace and beauty to your days.
I have to admit creating this blog has been on my to-do list for at least eight years, long before this season of social distancing and mandated closures. I create an annual goal list around the beginning of every new year. Guess what was near the top for almost a decade? Hmmm…are you guessing a blog? Yep. Either I’m a terrible (or fantastic) procrastinator or I was subconsciously waiting for such a time as this. Or, it could be I was waiting for that marvelous time in life when you can say “I have time, I can do that now.” Can I tell you something? I don’t believe that time ever actually comes unless something drastic changes. For me, every time a piece of my schedule opened up and I expected to have more time in my week, two more obligations popped into that spot. It was like having a gray hair—pull one out and two more grow in! So, if there is something that you’ve been wanting to do, but waiting for the “perfect time”, stop waiting and just do it!
For me, something drastic happened and time appeared. With the bittersweet closing of our brick-and-mortar, came that coveted time to blog. I tease that I could not find the time to write, but the struggle was actually real. Owning a brick and mortar can be a constant, relentless demand of your time. It is not a 9-5. I worked at the business during the day and on the business in the evening. Plus, I was raising a family with my husband, babysitting the grandies (whom I adore!) and taking time to grow as a woman with purpose. I have often said that having the tea parlor was a lot like being a mom—it was 24/7 and the most fun hard work I’ve ever done. I loved every minute of it…well almost every minute. Yes, there were tears, but so much joy—just like being a mom. Now, that Sisters is more like a teenager with a driver’s license and less like a toddler that needs constant supervision, I can pour my energy into all these tea and life inspired ideas I have held in my heart and finally get them out to you.
I am thrilled about this blog and looking forward to seeing it grow. As promised, I will be sharing all my Sisters’ recipes with tips and a few hacks. My goal is for every recipe to have an instructional video. Each month, just as in the tea parlor, I will introduce a new afternoon tea menu and will include all the correlating recipes (with video instruction). I’ll be teaching you how to prepare an afternoon tea service to enjoy at home and how to host a tea-themed celebration for a birthday or shower. And our special events? I will be sharing those menus and recipes as well. Mom Connie and I will share decorating ideas for each event theme, too. Creating menus and recipes was one of my favorite parts of running the tea parlor. I have hundreds of them. It’s going to take some time to post them all, but I have a great vision for how I see our new blog.
Please don’t think, though, that this blog is only going to be recipes and party ideas. One aspect of our new Sisters blog that I’m especially excited about is that it is going to be an interactive experience. I’m calling it a three dimensional blog! We will be using live video as much as possible allowing you the opportunity to ask real-time questions. Mom Connie and I will continue to teach you about all things tea through live tea-torials that will include how to make the perfect cup of tea and how to make amazing iced tea. We’ll provide instruction about the types of tea and how each type can benefit you. We’ll also continue to taste our way through our current menu of teas and help you find a wonderful new flavor that suits your tastes. We are looking into ways to let you sample new teas with us virtually on live video. How fun would that be?
Because we will miss our Sisters Tea Parlor, too, we will be researching and visiting other tea rooms. Fieldtrip, anyone? Through video, we plan to take you along with us making it like a virtual tea party. We are not restaurant critics, so we won’t be dissecting menus or service, we’ll be enjoying ourselves and letting you in on the fun. Our purpose in this aspect of the blog is to showcase other tea rooms and support them during this challenging time. In the time that we operated Sisters Tea Parlor, many, many tea rooms across the nation opened and closed. That’s so unfortunate. Enjoying an afternoon tea service is a special occasion. It’s not something everyone understands or seeks out, but it is always appreciated once it is experienced. I will post a running list of the tea rooms we enjoy and think you will, too. (We are taking suggestions if you know of any excellent tea rooms.) Mom Connie and I will also let you know which tea rooms can accommodate private parties.
Just as when we were operating Sisters Tea Parlor & Boutique, you are the heart of all we do. Through Sisters Tea Company, we want to continue to bring beauty and joy to your world. You don’t have to be a tea zealot to enjoy our new blog just like you didn’t have to be to enjoy our tea parlor. Just as with the old Sisters, the new Sisters is a virtual place to feel welcomed and loved and go away knowing just a little bit more about who you are and the things that make you happy. We hope you join us on this new journey! Subscribe to our new blog, follow us on Facebook and sign up for our newsletter and never miss any of the excitement. We look forward to every opportunity to serve you in a new way.
Happy Sipping and Many Blessings,
Lori and Connie
