Valentine's Day 2015

Have a Great Day!

Best wishes!

Tea Review: Joseph Wesley

Joseph Wesley Tea

04 Dian Hong Congfu

AKA Yunnan Black

Haley, Kirsten, both

Cool! We're doing another tea review.
Yeah! I love when we get to check out a new tea before the others.
I think Kaya and Lanie are working on a review too.
Melody has been busy plotting upcoming posts. What kind or tea are we looking at today?

This one is from Joseph Wesley Tea. I love the tin.

And the label design and colors. This one is Dian Hong Congfu or Black Tea 04. Let's open it.
Oooo! Neat!

There is a card inside.
It tells you all about the tea. That's great!

The tea is sealed in here.

Oh! Look at the lovely leaves!

Beautiful. What are the steeping instructions?

Love that the instructions are so clear on the tin. We'll need two teaspoons of tea and set the timer for 3 minutes.

Okay, into the pot it goes...now the water...look at the tea dance. 
The leaves are unfolding nicely.

(timer beeping)
Look at the gorgeous red color of this tea.

It smells warm and inviting.
Wow! You're right.

So first taste without anything at all.

Wonderful! It has a malt flavor to it and a tiny bit of fruit or sweetness.
Mmmmm. Do we have to add stuff to it?

Sure. Who know, it could be even better with honey or milk and sugar.
Okay. This has the raw honey from Taste?

Yes. How is it?
Very nice.

You're right. The flavors shift a little bit. Still malty, but more sweet.
Now for milk (2%) and sugar in the raw. I like this. All the flavors mix nicely.

Yeah, takes the full flavor and makes it more velvety.

There is no wrong way to take this tea. Perfect plain, with honey, or with milk and sugar.
Um...
What?
Well, I don't think this would be good with too much sweetener or artificial sweetener.
True. Hey, did you see in the instructions that we can re-steep these leaves?
That's awesome! Let's make some more take Melody some.
Good idea! Set the timer!

Xyra Notes

• The Joseph Wesley 04 is a full-bodied, well-rounded, black tea.  Each sip made me breathe deeply, smile, and relax.
• The blend has just enough sweetness on its own that one need not add honey or sugar if you do not usually add a lot of sugar to your tea or are running out the door and forget.
• I re-steeped several times and opted for a tiny bit of honey with each. In my humble opinion, the flavor did not diminish greatly over time.

If you're in the Midwest and Northeast of the US today is a perfect day for a hot cup of tea like this one. So put the kettle on and enjoy!

Best wishes,


Review Note: Tea Time with Melody Q is not affiliated with Joseph Wesley Tea. We were introduced to the company at the Coffee and Tea Festival Philly. The 04 was purchased at that time. The above review is unsolicited and all opinions are our own. All links provided throughout the review are for educational and informative purposes; no purchase is required.

#JosephWesleyTea

How Do You Take Your Tea? 3

More Options To Take Your Tea to Go

We have two other styles of travel mugs to show you. This stainless-plastic combination and this double-wall ceramic.

Stainless-Plastic

This is a really nice travel mug. Melody and Xyra brought it home from the Philly Coffee and Tea Festival and the lovely people at the Kanlo tea exhibit. The outer sleeve is stainless steel.

The inner liner is plastic. The lid is the same - stainless ring around plastic.

It holds a lot of tea and keeps it warm for a long time. The lid has a piece that slides over the drinking hole so spills are minimal. [This item is not available on the Kanlo website, but their teas are and are yummy.]

Ceramic

Xyra found this mug on The Animal Rescue Site and had to have it. Aren't the kitties cute? 

This particular design is no longer available, but you can get a plain white one. It holds 10 ounces of tea and keeps it warm for a decent amount of time. Definitely longer than if you used the paper cup at most convenience stores. Even longer than a regular mug because of the lid.

The silicon lid fits snugly. However, if you are going to throw a tagged tea bag in, pour the water, and go...do NOT have the tag hang over the side. The string causes a gap and it will leak.

Which would you choose?

Best wishes,


#KanloTea
#TheAnimalRescueSite
#CoffeeandteaFestivalPhilly

Warm and Stylish

Still Christmas

We are so very blessed to have generous, loving, and skilled friends. You saw the fabulous quilts we received from Lady Grey at Christmas. Well, we're still celebrating Christmas. What?! So very true! Xyra had lunch with Lady Webby and Lady Vanyer on Sunday to celebrate Christmas and birthdays...and we benefited.

New Knitwear

Today I want to show you the new sweater and cap Lady Vanyer knitted for me. Yes, I'll share with my sisters. Just not yet.

I love the colors, don't you? Looks great with the Cabin Chic denim skirt, Coconut Fun outfit grey leggings, and Haley's boots.

Oh, in  case you're wondering about ease of use...Lady Vanyer used three snaps on the back for closure. No snagging with that system. :-)

If you happen to be on Facebook, a version of this picture is the new Tea Time with Melody Q profile picture...for now.

Check back for these future posts: tea review, Lady Webby's gift, more tea to go, book reviews, and much more.

Best wishes,

Fashion Review Plus

Our Generation Boho Beauty

The other day you saw sneak peek at this outfit hanging in our new wardrobe. Of course, we had to show it to you in more detail and do a Who Wears it Best.

Review

The Boho Beauty outfit includes a dress, sweater vest, double wrap belt, tan shoulder bag, cream lace hair bow/clip, and Mary Jane shoes.

The purse is great. It opens and holds things. I put a hankie in it.

The package shows the model wearing the clip on the left, but the clip doesn't work that way. If I put it on the left it would be upside down. Or I'd have to try and clip in in backward.

This belt is great. I can think of a lot of uses for it.

Dark purple shoes - awesome! (And they are the molded style so they help with balance.)

(In back the dress closes with Velcro. It is the snaggy kind.)

This is a great outfit. However, we don't think it is as boho as it could be; more like preppy. So...

Who Wears it Best

Each of us tried to make this outfit more boho.

Melody

I kept the dress and belt from the Boho Beauty outfit then added knee socks, boots, a purple and brown bag, and a denim jacket.

AG Sweet Socks and Tights, AG Josefina's Riding Boots, Kay Jay's Doll Shoppe in OC-NJ, AG Coconut's Best Friend Outfit.

Kaya

I went more simplistic and added my belt to the dress, a purple leather bag, and fringe boots.

Kaya's Meet Outfit, Kay Jay's Doll Shoppe, Springfield boots

Kirsten

This dress is really nice. I paired it with a pink quilted vest and black tights, flats, and bag.

OG Cabin Chic (vest and flats), AG Tights Set, gift with purchase from Victoria's Secret.

Lanie

What's more boho than a poncho? I grabbed this dusty pink poncho and the bow toed boots (can you tell these are my favorite boots?). Finished the look off with the lace bow and tan shoulder bag. I wasn't quite sure if the purse strap should go over or under the poncho. What do you think?

AG Sightseeing Outfit, OG everything else

Haley

I didn't really want to do this shoot. I was ever so happy in the blue sweater. Oh, well, at least I could leave my tights on. Then I grabbed the new cowgirl boots, a matching metallic lavender belt, and white vest. How do I look?

OG Knock Your Boots Off, Pier 1 find, Haley's Meet Outfit (Note: This belt does not work as a single for Melody, but did double wrap for Haley - she is a Madame Alexander and has a slimmer body.)

That's everyone. Who do you think wears it best? Who looks the most boho?

Best wishes,

Note: Tea Time with Melody Q is not associated with American Girl, Our Generation, or Madame Alexander. The above review is unsolicited. All thoughts and opinions are honestly our own. Links provided are for further information; no purchase is required or suggested. Items listed without a link no longer appear on the company's website. A few links will take you to past posts; another will take you directly to a shop's site.