Tiger Tea

Dear Friends,
Thank you so much for your patience with me in my absence. Luckily, I have found my way back to my imaginary world and hope to be able to keep Real Life away for a while. I have missed you all so much.

Please join me for tea today.
Here is an equation for you . . .






. . .inspired by the playful, fruit-and-flower-forward flavor of Opus Oil's Tiger Tea.:


The fruits and flowers collide in one cup to remind of summer days quickly slipping past us...

For my friends who have had their first frost (like we have), I invite you to try this tea hot. For my friends who are lucky enough to still have some warm weather in their world, it is equally delicious iced! Just a squooge of lime juice and sweetener of your choice (blue agave would be lovely!) will make it complete!



I am a bit sad to tell you that this is my final tea review for Opus Oils' Jitterbug Tea Parlour. Thank you again to Lili and Kedra for providing me with the inspiration and opportunity to share my thoughts about their wonderful, fragrant teas!

Please continue to follow Kedra's fascinating blog Scents of Imagination!

And please come back later tonight for a very important announcement of an upcoming event!

Burlesque Tea Review + Real Paris Adventure

Found backstage at Paris' famous Moulin Rouge:


next to one of the dressing room doors...


...a heart-shaped box of chocolates filled with luscious rose cream,


roses of a very rare chocolate and cream variety,
grown in only one greenhouse
by one especially eccentric count,


and a note:
When you are on stage, you belong to everyone.
When you are not, please say you will belong to me.....



(Inspired by the luxurious, decadent and romantic combination of roses and chocolate in Opus Oils' luxurious Burlesque Tea from their Jitterbug Perfume Parlour Tea Collection! With its combination of Congou Tea, Rose Oolong Tea, Rose Absolute Infused Premium Grade Organic Edible Rose Petals and Cocoa Nibs, it is a singularly sensuous experience. I could not have imagined that the flavors of two of the most highly recognized symbols of love and sensuality could combine in such a perfect way! This really is a brilliant combination!)



And for all Friends of The Tearoom who reside in Paris (and those who might be visiting), I have a treat for you! I have an invitation for you all from Adam of Paris Patisseries. Adam has organized an event at the patisserie Jacques Genin, in the 3rd Arrondissment. You will get to meet him and other people who will gather to buy treats and then walk to the parc de la rue Perrée to enjoy them! You can learn all about it here! We so wish we were going to be there with you, but I promised Adam I would let you all know so you could join him instead!

A Gothic Victorian Tea Party and Poetry Reading

You...
of the heart tattoos in places unmentionable,
lipstick and matching nail polish
in nightshade or abyss
...enter here...
and indulge in the celebration of crimson and ebon..
join our sacred salon of sisterhood

the samovar steeps a tea of
exceptional fragrance and flavor tonight
please share a cup with us as we ask for silence
the poetry reading is about to begin...


depth of red, barely visible through the dark
a firefly in crimson descends to the edge of the teacup
in the aether
a plume of red,
brighter,
rises
first the deeper essence of tea
the black tulle veil through which the other flavors are visible
the dark, sweet notes of black cherry
velvet so dark, it is nearly black
bleeding into the red purple of plum
intense dark and light, all at once
followed by the flash of grenadine organza
bright red in flavor, scent, essence
and meanwhile...
a fantasy rock performance slithers from a radio,
lit from within
a cover of a Runaways classic,
Meg White’s primative drums,
Chrissie Hynde’s searing guitar
And from the voice of Siouxie Sioux: “Ch-ch-ch-ch-cherry bomb”!
black and white notes
in a depth of red, barely visible through the dark




(This post was inspired by the fabulous Roller Girl Tea from Opus Oil's Jitterbug Perfume Parlour. Deviously delicious. And iced, with a bit of lime? Sinfully sublime.)


My thanks to all the wonderful artists whose collage sheets, clip art sites and blogs that I use in my work:
Jerry (Shadowhouse Creations),
Josie (Charmed Memory Collage),
Kirsi (Itkupilli),
Marsha (Tumble Fish Studio),
Julia (Cemerony)
and
Karen (The Graphics Fairy)
and of course, a big thank you to
Lili and Kedra of Opus Oils!
(Don't forget to check out Kedra's fascinating blog Scents of Imagination.)


...And just when I was about to serve tea and no sweet today (Oh! the shame of it!), this showed up in my e-mail box from the venerable House of Pierre Hermé, a delicious-looking pastry in flavors ranging from black, to purple, to red: his Fetish Envie!
It starts with a dacquoise base, which is an interesting meringue made with almond flour, so that it is vaguely similar to a macaron, with slivered almonds, black current compote, a vanilla cream, scented with violets and decorated with red fruits...because roller girls or rock and roller girls all love to have a little something with their tea!

The Sunshine That Was Needed...

Dearest Friends of the Tearoom,

Two nights ago, on the final night of March, my Mr. V and I were ensconced here alone in The Tearoom, waiting for our very late season snow storm to begin (which we hope is our last.) I was craving warmth and the sunshine of spring so much when I brewed one of Opus Oils’ Jitterbug Perfume Parlour Teas, Island Girl. And at 10 pm, under a cold sky of white, I found the sunshine I was looking for in this tea! My first sniff brought the stored sunlight from the mango tea, but my first sip was nothing but luscious, buttery, tropical tea cake! The mango is still there, but the coconut tea, the exotic richness of vanilla tea and vanilla bean pieces (so luscious), punctuated with the floral notes of the osmanthus and marigold flowers and pieces of rock crystal sugar bring such a deeply golden flavor to the mix! Warm and yummy, it was just perfect for watching for the first snowflakes to fall (Did I mention we hope it’s the last? I am so missing my DC weather!). And two days later, with blue skies overhead and sun streaming in every window in the house, I drank it again, but this time iced. Equally luscious, refreshing and so, so clear! Perfection. Really.

My thanks again to Lili and Kedra of Opus Oils for giving me the chance to sample another of their beautiful teas! Don't forget to check out Kedra's fascinating blog Scents of Imagination.


Keep checking back as I share with My Dear Friends of The Tearoom our experiences as we sample more of their very creative and deicious teas!

Thank you also to Mr. Jerry of Shadowhouse Creations for the black background I used in my collage from his Black Magick Texture Set.

Updates...

Dearest Friends,
It makes me so very happy to know that I have such lovely friends out there in the Aether! Thank you to each and every one of you that takes the time to stop here, wether you leave a comment or not. Of course I love to read your comments, but anytime you would like to come in, quietly have a look around and a cup of tea and leave, that is perfectly OK!

Updating what has been happening in The Tearoom, my tea review from my last post was enjoyed by Lili and Kedra of Opus Oils, they posted a link to it in their news section and Kedra blogged about me on her beautiful and creative blog, Scents of Imagination! She used the very cool picture I have added above in her post about the review, which I re-post here with much gratitude!

Now, when you visit Mirabella Morello, you will be greeted by the cheerful, twinkly sounds of music boxes:

Moonlight Sonata Music Box Works

Braham's Lullaby Music Box Works

Happy Birthday Music Box Works

There has been much to keep me busy in my little vintage shop! I have so many new lovely things to list that I can barely keep up! But I can tell you that the very newest items there are for your creative art projects! I have listed only the first batch of sweet little music boxes! Also, I have just finished some tiny projects that I am using as examples of how to use some vintage shorthand pages and 1950's road maps, now on sale in the shop. They are perfect for your altered art and collage projects!

Jar decorated with paper from vintage shorthand magazines





Card and envelope made using paper from a vintage road atlas

I have so much more coming up...rubber stamps....lovely teacups....sweet cream and sugar sets....more music boxes....

And there are even more projects to come, in case you are worried that The Gossamer Tearoom Shop is being neglected...

But on a sad note, a very dear friend has closed her blogs, due to theft of her artwork. Karma plays a big part in how this blogging/online art world works. My heart is sad for her at the contamination of her sacred art space and for her followers.

Apparently, Dreaming Is Essential

Dearest Friends of The Tearoom,
Everyone who attends my virtual tea parties here at The Tearoom knows that a great deal of dreaming goes into their planning. I find pastries and teas online, imagine how their combinations of flavors would taste and match them together for our virtual Salons de Thé. But most of the teas I write about are on my wishlist to be tried.

What a great opportunity is is for me to bring to you today a review of a very special tea from Opus Oils of Los Angeles and Paris. I was sent a sample of their Absinthe Tea, along with my order of perfume samples, which I was testing for my use in a top secret art project. And, of course, being the creature of curiosity that I am, I had to explore their entire website, which is really fun and glamourous!

Opus Oils creates highly creative and original scents and “Perfumed Teas, Hand Infused with Floral Absolutes”. I was very honored to have the chance to sample one of their Jitterbug Perfume Parlour Teas for myself.

This is what they had to say about their Absinthe Tea:
“Sweet & nostalgic, this unique black tea blend is delicious, enchanting, and extremely addictive…  
Made with Green Pear Black Tea ~ Violet Black Tea ~ Vanilla Black Tea ~ Violet Leaf Absolute Infused Blue Malva flowers ~ Anise Seeds”


They have added just a few crystals of rock sugar to this tea when they blended it, so try it just as it is before adding anything else. (As one should always do when tasting either a tea or a coffee for the first time. Even if you dislike drinking your tea or coffee black, you will better appreciate the more subtle flavors and learn to identify them easier. As a fellow dreamer told me when he taught me to taste coffee, “Just close your eyes and listen...” And if you appreciate wine, you already know how to “listen”!).

This tea starts out with strong tannic notes, but the next note is a divine, complex combination of herbal, flowery and creamy notes, with just a touch of anise flavor. At this point, I added a bit of sugar to bring out these notes even more. (Of course you may add whatever sweetening you prefer, but I find white sugar is more neutral in flavor.) The black tea adds the rich, resinous base, followed up with the green herbal notes from the pear and violet leaf absolute, the deeply floral violet, the creamy, but exotic note of the vanilla and anise seeds for a final note of absinthe; a unique and luxurious experience. This is a tea to be savored, sipped slowly and as they say it is “extremely addictive”! This tea was delicious hot and they do suggest serving it iced as well. I’m certain that sipping it iced on a hot summer night would be a decadent experience!

Thank you to Lili of Opus Oils for letting me experience your beautiful and creative tea!


(And by the way, two nights after drinking this, I tasted it again, in a dream I had, so apparently, dreaming is essential to tea-tasting!)