Tuesday, October 18, 2011

Let’s Talk…Tea. And Nail Polish.

I’ve noticed lately that I’ve developed a fascination for two things:  Tea.  And nail polish.

Perfect.  Topics for this week’s edition of Talk To Us Tuesday, hosted by Impulsive Addict and Shawn!

Talk2Us

So we’ll start with the tea.  Lately – like, during this past couple of months of non-eating – I’ve realized that tea is what’s filling that empty hole in my heart where food used to be. 

(Please, don’t worry.  I am still eating, promise.  But it’s just not as fun when it’s things like vegetables and low-fat everything.)

Most days, I have a cup of tea mid-morning (where my bag of trail mix or pudding cup or cheese & crackers or chocolate-covered granola bar used to be).  I’ve come to look forward to it.  A nice, big steaming mug of Orange Pekoe with a packet of sweetner and a drop of milk.  Mmmmm.  It’s like the little morning break I just need, but I no longer have to have a snack to go with it.  Just the tea.

teawithcookies

And lately, I’ve started “branching out”.  Last week while at the grocery store, I stood in front of the tea options for a good five minutes, choosing some different herbals that I’d never tested out.  I ended up selecting Chamomile and Green with a hint of honey-lemon.

It occurred to me after leaving the store that I used to spend that kind of time in front of the chips.  Now it’s tea.  I’m a tea-fiend.  Tea-aholic.  Tea-obsessed.

tea_coffee_packaging_1

Weird.

I’ve been sipping an herbal in the evenings while I watch TV or read, after exercising, to wind me down.  It’s so odd to think that not that long ago, there was no exercise.  Just long evenings of watching TV or movies and stuffing my face with Ruffles and dip.  That’s what I used to look forward to.

Now it’s my cup of tea.

Tea has become such a big part of my day that when I saw a friend’s status on Facebook about something called David’s Tea, I stopped and read about it.  So many different varieties…so many new kinds to try.  And now I’m actually considering ordering tea on-line.

Seriously.  What is this world coming to?

OK.  So I do realize that this tea phenomenon is not such a big deal.  I’m not exactly the first person in the world to discover it.  Lots of people are tea-obsessed.

I just never really thought I’d be one of them.

And that’s sort of how I feel about my nail polish obsession too.

The nail polish fascination has been going on for a bit longer than the tea fascination.  I’m not much of a girly-girl when it comes to beauty products – I didn’t even start wearing make-up until I was in my early-20’s. (Yes.  I know.  Sad.)  But I’ve tried to keep the ol’ toe nails painted for a long time now, so my collection of nail polishes has grown over recent years.

I rarely bothered with the finger nails because it never seemed to last.  My nails are always cut short (for guitar playing), and it ticked me off that I’d go to the effort of painting my nails and a day later, they’d already be chipping.  Why bother?

But I love looking down and seeing pretty colours on my nails.  And yesterday, when my Luxe Box arrived, I added a whole new nail polish possibility to my collection:

Crackle

China Glaze Crackle Nail Polish in “Platinum Pieces”.  SO cool.

Of course, I had to try it immediately.  So I put a coat of dark blue nail polish on that I already had, then covered it with the crackle coat…and I must say, it looks pretty cool!

So yes.  This has also become a new favourite evening pastime of mine.  Painting nails.

It goes along well with sipping tea.

At least I’m no longer obsessing about food, right???

So tell me.  What kinds of tea do you love?  What colour of nail polishes should I not live without?

Go.  Feed the frenzy.

21 comments:

Lindsay said...

IF I do my nails, and that is a BIG IF, I like to do french tips. It's easy for me because you can buy little "painters tape" kind of things to keep you in the lines. I love my peppermint tea before bed with a little sweetener...so good!

Sharon said...

I am a big fan of English Breakfast tea. It's got a gorgeous red colour and it's nice and smooth. My favourite brand is Twinnings for both the packaging, the lead line and the flavour.

I find orange Pekoe to be bitter and have labeled it so at the farm. When I'm asked if I would like a cup of tea, I always ask what kid it is, and I am told 'bitter tea' with a chuckle.

Kara said...

I just had a cranberry apple tea this morning and it was amazing!! Pretty cool that it was red in color, too.

Connie said...

I drink a lot more tea in the winter.....it's comforting for sure.

I just bought Essie Power Clutch, it's a dark grey and I love it!

Jodie said...

I have a lonnnggg list of nail polishes you need to get!! But right now I'm rocking... OPI's Road House Blues. It's a lovely dark dark navy almost black! Love!

Amber said...

Funny you bring up tea! Normally I'm a black unsweetened iced tea drinker, but this week I started incorporating green tea into my day. I bought a box of blueberry and acai green tea, it's been a nice pick me up in the middle of the morning with my snack. I'm still not sold on it being hot though, I tend to wait until it's luke warm/cold before I start drinking it. I'm not much of a hot beverage person.

I work next door to a tea shop! They sell all kinds of loose teas and they make blends and stuff. It's a great place!

Anonymous said...

I'm a huge tea freak too - I do all sorts of them - orange pekoe, green tea, Tazo Zen tea from Starbucks (it's green tea with hints of spearmint, lemon verbana and lemongrass) the Refresh tea from Starbucks as well is good, it's a peppermint type and the Calm tea - it's an orangey-rose blossom one and it's really good right before bed too! I'm a fan of Chamomile too, with a bit of honey in it!

Janette @ The Johanson Journey said...

Ah! I've missed coming to your blog-- I'm slowly getting back into being a better blog pal since being home on maternity-- i've never been into tea... but I did start an addiction to Crystal Light with energy that you shake into a bottle of water that I like to have at certain times of the day... not as sassy as sipping from a fun cup though. I like the crackle on the toes... a friend of mine did a dark pink, almost red with black crackle on top and it looked almost like animal print... you had to get really close to see it was actually crackled.. I tried it on my toes but it didn't come out as good. I have been more into polish since I had my daughter b/c I LOVE LOVE LOVE painting her piggies. I'm in love with the black solid color for the winter, well all the time these days.

Impulsive Addict said...

I need to try what you're doing. Drinking tea may help me stay out of the junk food! I really do like tea but I hate that it stains your teeth. That's probably why I don't drink coffee either. Or maybe that's just what they told me at my dentist office to get me to buy their whitening crap! Have you tried the Chamomile yet?

As for nail polish, I really love OPI but I also have some China Glaze. I haven't tried the crackle yet but I've heard about it and it sounds so cool!

Thank you Miss Jill for linking up with us this week! We appreciate it! xoxo

Stacy said...

I am not a tea drinker or a nail polish fanatic - it scares me when toes are painted and i hate not seeing the dirt under my long fingernails...not like in a disgusting way, but i am FOREVER picking and cleaning my nails, if i see a speck of dirt, out comes the letter opener (at work), toothpick or another nail to get rid of the dirt....haha so when there is a polish on it, i dont notice it!

Shawn said...

I love tea too. I was recently turned on to Teavana, it's great tea with a ton of healthy benefits but pricey!

I love painted nails too but am too impatient to let them dry 100% so I always mess them up. I was thrilled when a friend gave me a Gelish system for my birthday. Instantly dry and color that last for 2 weeks. I'm in!

Thanks for linking up Miss Thang!

VandyJ said...

We love Good Earth original and decaf. It has a lot of flavor and doesn't even need sugar. If you can find it give it a try.
I paint my toes but only in the summer. That's the only place the polish lasts for any amount of time.

Robin said...

I love teas. But mostly sweet iced tea in a tall glass with lemon.

I would rather paint my toes than my hands. I practically have boy hands and bad nails so I just go clear polish and have wild toes.

Kristine said...

I love tea as well. Second Cup used to have a really good selection of flavored teas. I love Blueberry flavor myself. :D

Leslie Lavigne said...

Just going to plug my mom's shop for a sec...ahem...Mom's got tons of OPI and China Glaze at her place, you should check them out, I know her prices are much better than in the city. And if you want to make a run to an OPI dealer with me, you could pick out a few for wholesale. If you ever feel like a trip to Ottawa for polish, let me know.

Also, she gets a lot of tea from a tea place at Carlingwood called Teopia, she gets one called Ice Princess and it smells so good!

Nicole said...

I used to do just plain hot tea with sugar... probably not good for you ;)... I like green tea though :) and that crackle nail polish is cool! My toenails are a deep dark purple matte right now. matte is pretty darn cool!

Stacie said...

I've tried to do hot tea, but I just can't-- now cold, sweet tea in the summer? Count me in!

I cannot live without a good red nail polish--its on my toes all the time.

Unknown said...

I am a huge flavored brewed iced tea drinker in the summer, but don't drink much hot tea. Coffee is my gig!

~Becca

Mrs. Match said...

How funny, as I'm reading this I'm sipping on my red raspberry leaf herbal tea. It's my nightly ritual too. My favorite tea is mint tea, because it calms the tummy and it's tasty. But the red raspberry is something I'm trying for medicinal purposes. It's supposed to regulate the female cycle and it's supposed to be very good for women. So we'll see! I'm not in love with the taste but it's growing on me.

So proud of you for kicking the munchie habit. I've been craving chips and junk a lot lately. That's where the mint tea comes in. It also curbs the appetite!

Unknown said...

I love Pomegranate tea. I only drink herbal, non-green tea stuff. Add a little bit on honey for a sore throat. And mint teas for a sad tummy. Also, stick a tea bag in your mouth when you have a tooth ache. Where the ouchie tooth is. I love tea! I need to drink more of it.

Jillian said...

Just randomly discovered your blog and I love it! I am a huge tea fan myself! My absolute favorite is earl grey but I'll occasionally enjoy green or fruity herbals as well. Just this weekend I was volunteering at an event and tea was hard to come by and the hot water not very hot. Needless to say I was a little disappointed. I also love nail polish I recently tried the Nicole OPI texture coat in black and put it over a silver shade and I loved it! I'm also obsessed with various shades of purple and I enjoy collecting various shades of purple nail polish