I've taken a meandering path in my life, but a cup of tea has always been a grounding source of happiness and comfort through all the twists and turns.

I received my BFA in illustration, but after graduating in 2009 I found the market for creative types less than hospitable. I spent half a decade working a series of odd jobs before I fell into, and fell in love with, professional baking. After a lifetime of baking for my own enjoyment, I realized being a pastry chef was my true calling. It let me clear my head, unlock my creativity and passion, take pride in my work and bring joy to other people. I couldn't have asked for much more!

In 2015, however, my health took a turn, and the long hours and physical labor became more than I could manage. I cut back to just a few hours a week at work, only able to do the bare minimum, and mourned the creative baking process I couldn't really enjoy anymore.

I was looking for an outlet for my culinary passions that I could manage from home, and kept coming back to the chai masala blend I'd been making for myself and friends for years. In all problems in life, after all, tea is usually the solution! And so that brings me here, setting to work my artistic instinct and culinary know-how to create bold, beautiful and unique loose leaf blends for the tea lovers of Etsy.

My greatest love and the inspiration for all aspects of my life is Mother Earth, and my tea blends reflect the colors and flavors and the magick of the changing seasons. Whenever possible ingredients are fair trade and organic, and all the recipes are dreamed up and hand-blended by me and packaged with eco-friendly supplies.

I hope you will enjoy them!

WHY LOOSE LEAF?

Loose leaf tea is a way of life. There's a reason making tea is a sacred ceremony in Japan. It's a meditative process; it's a connection to the essence of the leaf; it's distilling something magical from the gifts of Nature. And the depth and vibrance of flavor is worth every minute of preparation.

Sometimes bag-tea drinkers get a bit of sticker shock when they are introduced to loose leaf tea. "But I could get 5 boxes of bags for that price!" Perhaps... but did you ever think about how much tea is in one of those bags? About 3 grams, or 0.105822 ounces. And take a look at what's really in there. In most cases, there won't be any whole or even partial leaves, but a lot of ground, powdered leaves and sediment.

This yields a quick, strong brew in a hurry, but you're really getting the lowest quality portion of the tea. And when it comes to flavored teas? It's pretty rare you'll be seeing any chunks of real dried fruits or nuts or fresh whole spices in one of those bags. The cheapest and easiest flavors to put in a powdered form are often used, and that includes (depending on the company) a lot of artificial flavorings.

When you get loose tea, what you see is what you get. The package isn't full of bags and tags; it's all high quality, beautifully fragrant, fresh leaves. And as for cost-effectiveness, you may be surprised. A teaspoon of tea generally yields one 8-ounce cup. But whereas tea bags are usually spent after a single use (they are, after all, mostly in powder form)- loose tea is made for the all-day drinker.

The same leaves that you made a pot from this morning can certainly create an equally delicious second steeping this afternoon. Some teas are even good for a third and a fourth; green tea especially can be brewed many times, and the second brew is generally considered to be the best. And if you started with a caffeinated black tea in the morning but don't want to be all wired by the end of the day, about 80% of the caffeine in the leaves will have steeped into the first brew, and will continue to decrease with each subsequent use of the leaves.

But don't take my word for any of the benefits of loose leaf tea, you have to try it for yourself!

LOOSE LEAF VIRGIN?

Don't be scared! It's easy to ditch the bags! Read on below, and watch the slideshow for visual aids. And don't hesitate to contact me with any questions you may have!

The Gear:

1. Something to heat your water. I use a tea kettle on the stove, but you could also use an electric water heater, or even just a regular cooking pot.

Pro tip: Most teas like water that reaches a full rolling boil (and makes your tea kettle whistle,) but more delicate teas, like green and white, prefer a cooler temp of 160-180 degrees. We'll talk more about this later, don't worry!

2. Something to steep your tea in. Anywhere you can pour water over your leaves, pop a lid on, and let them mingle in a steamy brew. I use a teapot, but again, if you want to give loose tea a shot without investing in any new gear, you can use a regular old cooking pot with a lid. Just make sure it's not the one you heated your water in, because pouring the water over the leaves yields a much better brew than throwing them on top.

Pro tip: Most teas are ideal when made with a ratio of one teaspoon of loose tea to each cup of water, but it's up to personal taste. You may like it stronger or weaker! Likewise, the steeping time varies from tea to tea and by personal tastes, but steeping time recommendations for each tea will be listed on the package. :)

Oh and remember how we were talking about those delicate teas that like to steep at a lower temperature? For a no-fuss shortcut, let your water completely boil, then throw a handful of icecubes on top of your leaves before you pour the water over. This will bring down the water temperature before it hits the leaves and prevent them from having a scorched, bitter flavor. It doesn't have to be an exact science!

3. Something to strain out your tea leaves. The teapot I use has a steeping basket built in, so when I load up my tea in step 2, it goes directly into the basket that sits in the pot, and then I can pour it directly from teapot spout into my cup. If you have a teapot but no steeping basket, or if you brewed your tea in a cooking pot, don't worry! Any fine mesh kitchen strainer placed over your cup will do the trick.

4. That's it! Add honey or sugar or milk or whatever your heart desires, or simply sip your tea straight.

BUT WHAT ABOUT MASALA CHAI? WHAT DO I DO WITH THOSE?

Masala chai (which means spice mix tea) was the first tea blend I ever made. I made it because I was deeply dissatisfied with other loose leaf so-called chais on the market. They were always so one-note: all cinnamon or all ginger or all clove. There was no happy medley of spices. There was no creamy richness. So I started to experiment with it myself, and make it the original way: by boiling the whole spices.

And yes, that did the trick. Coaxing the flavor out of whole spices, rather than flavors infused into leaves through some arcane process of the big tea manufacturers that I don't understand (an alcohol-based mist, a friend has theorized? I have no clue.) takes a little more patience, but the process is as worthwhile as the result.

First of all, these whole ingredients are BEAUTIFUL, and secondly, they smell amazing. Friends often describe the blend as smelling like Christmas. It's nice enough straight from the jar or bag, but the slow process of brewing the masala on the stove will transform your home. Imagine a magical fairy has just danced through your house and left a glittering trail of pixie dust in the air, with the warm aroma of joyful, sweet spice. Imagine like a party at Hogwarts. It's that good.

So after boiling your spices for a while in a cooking pot (I like to boil some fresh ginger root with it too because I like it extra spicy,) you add some milk, and continue to simmer until the milk is nice and steamy and infused with all that spicy goodness. Be veeeery careful not to boil it over! Then you switch off the heat, and add tea leaves: Assam is my favorite, but you can experiment with any kind of loose tea. Masala Matcha is actually incredible, but pricey!! Stir the tea in so it doesn't just sit on top, and put a lid on the pot. After 3-4 minutes, remove the lid, and pour your tea through a strainer into a pitcher or cup.

Now you just need to sweeten! And no, it's not optional. The spices will be bitter if unsweetened, so don't lose heart if you take a sip and it's not what you expected! I'm a fan of honey, but of course, any kind of sugar will do. Keep adding and tasting, and once you hit that perfect ratio of sweet to spicy it instantly transforms into something that tastes exactly as good as it smells and that you won't be able to get enough of. And if the spice is a bit much for your tongue, you can always add more milk.

I like to make a pitcher's worth of chai at a time and drink it every morning. It's good cold, too! (and don't worry, all chai masalas come with printed instructions!)

Friends, it's a crazy world out there, but with tea, you can be rejuvenated by treating yourself and your nearest and dearest to a transcendent experience any time. And we all need a little peace and comfort!