Design a Tea Custom Blends

While the world grips their tea cups in anticipation of the release of the custom Oprah Chai in April, I'm sipping my own custom blend.

As stated last week, Design a Tea is an artisan tea company that allows you to become your own self-proclaimed teaologist. Offering both loose tea and tea bag forms, I prefer the loose teas, simply for the ceremony of tea time.

By choosing from a base tea (black, oolong, green, or rooibos), then choosing from over 30 flavors and herbs, a custom blend is as endless as your imagination.  Not to mention you can name your custom blend, just like Oprah did.

This week, I brewed a pot of my custom blend of Earl Grey Tea with vanilla and caramel.  Caramel was the dominant note at first sip, which is a welcoming way to begin the day with breakfast.  The vanilla and bergamot were more of an aftertaste, yet still married well with the black tea base.  Mild, yet memorable to my palate, I sweetened with agave nectar (tea snob that I am, I am not one to add milk to my tea).

My custom blends are reflective of my temperament (can you say mood teas?). Which is why I chose to sip from my tea cup that reminds me of sunshine.   My Earl Grey with vanilla and caramel blend is fitting for this week's calendar arrival of Spring, while we still wrap up under the grip of Old Man Winter.

TWHS Reviews Design a Tea Artisan Blends

I love how life gives you the chance to speak your mind, rise to the occasion in heels-

And design your own tea blend. And in case you weren't aware of the latter, allow me to introduce you to Design a Tea, an artisan tea company that allows you to create custom blends, whether you're cuckoo for chocolate or raving for roses. Why should fragrance have all the fun?

And speaking of fragrance, when I received my sample packs for review, the aroma that exuded from the loose teas were enough to make me whip out my prettiest teapot. Created literally from a dream owner  Brian Pfeiffer had, the process of creating your tea is as individual as designing a pair of bespoke shoes: start with a base (black, green, rooibos, or oolong tea)and pick from over 30 flavors or herbs to suit your taste. All teas are 100% organic and packaged with recycled paper products, labels and environmentally friendly inks.

The blends I created are all too fantastic to clump into one review, so I will feature one Design a Tea flavor weekly. This week, I will begin with not a blend but Honeybush herbal tea. Not only a personal favorite because of its health benefits, but like Rooibos (red bush)is a South African tea proving to have just as many benefits of green tea. Let's first rejoice that Honeybush is caffeine-free, as well as being rich in antioxidants, packed with Vitamin C, copper, magnesium, zinc and potassium, yet low in tannins. Did I mention it is naturally DElicious? And steeps into a brilliant hue of red.

I suggest Honeybush for anyone who has a little girl wishing to do a tea party, as the flavor is loved by children. For the holistic-conscious, just one of many benefits the fact that it is ideal for people suffering from insomnia (caffeine-free and mineral component).

Make sure to add Honeybush to your list of teas for a Spring Brunch!

TWHS Reviews Koziol Babell Cake Stand

Koziol Babell Cake Stand from Design 55

Just because the Royal Wedding is history doesn't mean you have to put away your tea sets...

As soon as this rain spell subsides, I look forward to having a Well-Heeled SocieTEA, garden-style. And you know me; I'm dressing it in basic black. When the gracious folks at Design 55 shipped me the Koziol Babell cake stand for review, it turned out to be the modern way to display tea sandwiches, cakes and treats.


The polypropylene, three-tiered stand is dishwasher safe, and comes apart for easy storage. Available in a rainbow of colors, it makes for quite the presentation amongst your china cups. I chose the black to accent my fashion-forward tea collection.

So while I wait for sunnier weather to place it amongst the presence of songbirds, I baked up batches of Sparkling Cocoa Drops and Peanut Butter cookies to give it a test run:



Be sure to check out the rest of the stylish home designs at Design 55!

TWHS Reviews Little Black Dress Citrus Tea

Springtime in a cup.

That was my first impression when I opened the tin of Little Black Dress Citrus loose tea, sent compliments of the gracious folks at Teaquilibrium. I also chuckled at the irony of the oolong tea being a slimming tea, just as I am instructed by my doctor to bulk up on calories. Geez...

Nonetheless, I was intrigued to see how the combination of oolong tea, green tea, green rooibos, lemongrass, lemon myrtle, citrus flavor and jasmine blossoms would entice my palate, so I brewed a teaspoon to test.


Right away, it didn't have the oomph I was looking for. So I tried again, this time increasing the amount to two teaspoons and brewing it for three minutes (the company suggests you brew 1 1/2 teaspoons).

Bergamot definitely stands out in this tea, as opposed to the taste of citrus. The blend is light and not overpowering, perfect to serve as a welcoming beverage for guests.

And seeing that I am increasing my fat intake, I know that fat-burning Little Black Dress Citrus Tea won't be a daily treat for me. But it's good to know that semi-oxidized oolong tea also boosts the immune system, aids in insomnia and helps with headaches.

The Result: Little Black Dress Citrus Tea has a taste of fabulousness, and gives well-dressed inspiration for an LBD-themed Spring Tea Party.