Shutter Sisters

a cup of something wonderful

By

Drinking tea is part of the everyday British way of life, as soon as you’ve finished saying “hello” to visitor, you offer them a cup of tea. It’s daily activity taken alone or in company. For some, it makes their morning and for many, the perfect way to spend an afternoon.

I hear, a cup of Jo, is the only way to start your day in the U.S, some proclaim they can’t function till they have fulfilled this tradition. Do you make the regular pilgrimage to your favourite cafe for some coffee love? I know others spend time in java solitude or bond together at the end of the night.

Children seem to be fascinated with this adult indulgence. My boys love the froth off the top of a cappuccino, and I’m always so delighted to see little girls still love to play tea parties, just as I did. In fact, a hot cup of something can be the perfect tonic, soothing the soul with its warmth and delightful, kind messages.

We’d love you to say “Hello” and share your favourite cup of something with us today, and we can all enjoy each others company, round this fabulous virtual kitchen table we have created.

Cheers!

+++++

Hello Giveaway! It’s random giveaway time again from our friends at Hello Canvas. YAY!

Leave a comment here between now and Thursday at midnight and you could win a 20X24 canvas of your photo of choice from Hello Canvas. Cheers is right!

 

Comments

  3. You offer a cup of tea "as soon as you’ve finished saying ‘hello’ to a visitor" – urm no! I offer a cuppa *before* I say ‘hello’ 😉

    From Tor, a True Brit and an Earl Grey obsessive (with milk and not too strong)

    "Tea is liquid wisdom." Anonymous

  4. A few years ago I spent some time camping on the Arctic Ice Cap, studying the effects of climate change. This photo was taken about ten minutes after we had been dropped off by helicopter. Fellow Brit Hayley decided that the best way to make ourselves feel at home in this barren but beautiful landscape was to get her thermos flask out and pour us all a cup of tea…

    http://www.flickr.com/photos/dorkymum/4255788811/

  5. I’m a coffee in the morning, tea in the afternoon kind of gal, but just recently I discovered loose orange pekoe tea from Bridgehead (a coffee house here in Canada) and I don’t know if I can go back to tea bags again… you can actually taste why it’s called ‘orange’ pekoe – the loose leaves allow for so much more flavour! So I’ve been having it in the morning too! : )

  7. i cannot start my day without making a cup of chai first! (drinking one right now while I browse my blogs :))

  10. Oh I love that picture! As Australians I guess we’re a mix of both the British and American beverage drinking habits. But for me it is most definitely tea. A cup of tea definitely makes things better and a tummy full of tea will make me downright happy. I have been known to break into song….

  12. I don’t have a digital camera so I can’t post a photo, but I love a cuppa coffee in the morning. Just one will do. Unless I’m sick, then it’s Earl Grey hot tea.

  13. love this writing. and our coffee/tea has become a staple photographic subject as well. just an FYI, my friend who lives in Britain (3 years) offers me tea now when I go there to visit. And we were die-hard coffee drinkers together in the states. gotta love it. here are my most favorited coffee photos from my stream:

    http://www.flickr.com/photos/jamieklimes/4624515245/in/set-72157623448046906/

    http://www.flickr.com/photos/jamieklimes/4679926578/in/set-72157623448046906/

  14. I’m an English girl living in Canada! I love my tea in the morning and my sweet late in the afternoon when the sugar levels are starting to dip!

  16. some day i’ll cut out that morning cup of coffee but for now it is total bliss…though at this moment i’ve got the most delicious cup of tea in hand!

  18. I’ve just discovered coffee and I love it, first thing in the morning. Must. Have. Coffee. =D

  19. i love how the swedish have fika, which i think is a little coffee break – a cup of something and a pastry. and we have a name for our mid morning break – elevenses. i think that is peculiar to the u.k. lovely how we all have our different traditions.
    sweet post. xxx

  20. Although I do not partake in the drinking of the coffee, I love the smell and make it each morning for my husband. Cheers!

  21. I have always loved the smell of coffee, even when I was young. I didn’t start drinking it until college, though. I loooovvvee coffee. I love the smell, the taste, the mug it’s in, the state of mind it puts me in. I have thought about drinking less, but, why quit on such a simple pleasure?

  22. All of this tea and coffee talk has pulled me right out of my lurking phase of Shutter Sisters!
    Hello gals!
    I love both coffee and tea. Coffee is what I start my day with and a pot of tea is how I welcome family and friends.

    This past winter when I was slightly overwhelmed with a new baby (#3) who was a handful I had the displeasure of starting one day coffee-less. Later that day after I had made it to the store, bought some beans, and turned them into the elixir of life, I was so please to be in coffee again that I took some pictures and made a collage. A coffee collage. Because I was so happy.

    http://www.flickr.com/photos/21496911@N08/4292998237/in/set-72157622989414863/

  23. Lovely post, Xanthe.
    I love both coffee and tea equally but coffee seems to be what’s needed for me to jumpstart my morning. Hubby usually makes a fresh pot of coffee before leaving for work but today he was running late and didn’t get a chance. It never tastes as good when I make it so on mornings like this, I make myself a pot of tea. At this moment I’m drinking a cup of thai chai with a tiny bit of cream and a dash of maple syrup. Good morning!

  24. I love coffee but don’t do well with all that caffeine. But I adore tea. Lately I’ve bee drinking Yorkshire Gold. I wish I could visit you in London and get some real British tea! The closet I’ve come to that is a little tea shop in Greenwich village called "Tea and Sympathy".I take mine with milk (or cream, if I have it) and honey. Sometimes if I’m in a slump I’ll have another cup in the afternoon. It’s the perfect pick-me-up.

    http://www.flickr.com/photos/27982366@N06/4368495293/in/set-72157622491326250/

  26. My wife, son, and I went to England last August to celebrate my mother’s cousin’s 80th birthday (Rosemary lives on a farm west of London) and while there she taught me how to make "a proper cup of tea." Since then I make a cup of "proper English tea" every morning. I just love it!

    Cheers,
    Brian

  28. I don’t drink tea or coffee.
    I just don’t like the taste. I never have.
    I had a friend who worked in a coffee shop when we live in Mammoth and everyday when we came off the hill and she went to work, she’d make me a different blend of coffee, or type of tea – we didn’t find one i liked.

    But i LOVE the smell of fresh (proper) coffee. I could smell that all day!

  31. One set of grandparents were immigrants from Great Britain so I learned to love and appreciate tea early in life. I still remember those long ago afternoon teas with my grandparents. Each Christmas Eve, I create a High Tea for our family; it’s a favorite family ritual.

  33. I don’t know if I can even say "hello" to a guest without a cup a joe down. In the summer sun tea is the way to go.

  34. I was a avid avid tea drinker all through high school and college…..and then I had a baby. As soon as I was done nursing, I was became one of those people that cannot survive without it, as you say"cannot function" until I’ve had a sip.

  36. I’m a Iced Coffee/Tea gal – the colder the better. And since I’m from the south Sweet tea reigns – but I’ve cut back on the sugar and gone to splenda to sweeten my tea and coffee.

    However, I can’t think about coffee without thinking of my grandfather…he was a Folgers Instant Coffee drinker – he had a small green pan he used to boil the water on the stove, pour the water over those instant coffee granuals, drink it down…strong, black and hot. He drank coffee all day long…he’d even wake up in the middle of the night, have a cup and go right back to bed.

  38. love my morning cuppajo! so much so that it’s gone before i can ever pull out my camera to snap a photo!

  42. I don’t drink coffee or tea – I can’t stand the smell of coffee at all – it used to make me nauseaous when I was pregnant! I have tried several times to like tea just so I could have a hot beverage – all kinds of flavors – all to no avail. I’m not much on alcohol either. I just don’t care for the taste. Which leaves me…. water. Lots and lots of water. And occasionally orange juice.

  43. Coffee, yes, to function. My cup, a spoon, a napkin and my splendid are waiting for me when I wake up….hot pot on the maker. 🙂 I do also enjoy tea…and I love socializing around either….seems like with the busyness of my life these days, there are fewer moments to stop and soak in connection time with friends. Our family, we usually also make a pot of coffee after eating at our get togethers, regardless of the time of day.

    http://www.flickr.com/photos/modernscapegoat/4479042229/

    The early morning, some time for just me….:)

    Great topic, yes, tea parties are still part of the mix here….but G will gladly make you some blue orange juice, chocolate milk if you would like.. 🙂

  58. I drink neither tea nor coffee but think I may indulge in a beautiful cup of tea this morning, after reading this post.

  62. Although I like coffee, mine is usually enjoyed best after dinner, that is when I like my coffee! i start my day off with water! Boring, but so refreshing!

  63. I love both coffee and tea, though don’t have either on a daily basis. I’m not picky: orange pekoe, early grey, jasmine, it’s all good. For coffee I’m fine with brewed, pressed or even powdered. My favourite is probably coffee made outdoors beside the fire with maple sap that’s partly boiled off – just dump some instant coffee and cream into an enamel mug with the sap. Yum!

  71. love my morning Early Grey. strong, milky and sweet!
    my secret to a great cup of tea I learned in England at the age of 16: stir the milk and sugar in the bottom of the cup BEFORE pouring the hot water in.
    For an even better cup, let the tea bag steep in a tea pot for at least 10 minutes, then pour over the milky/sugary goodness.

  72. i cannot begin my day until my cup of jo is poured & enjoyed in the still of the morn before everyone is up. it’s also my fave way to finish off the evening, in a hot bubble bath! in between, however, i’ll enjoy a cup of herbal tea in the afternoon 🙂

    tea time with my mother:
    http://www.flickr.com/photos/aclamp/4638138726/
    coffee from the local timmy’s:
    http://www.flickr.com/photos/aclamp/4418215013/
    a quiet time for myself:
    http://www.flickr.com/photos/aclamp/4403134154/

  77. Coffee for me, every morning is a must whether I’m working or home with the kids.

  81. I just posted my cup of joe yesterday!! yes its the only way to get my day started!!

  82. I love having a cup of tea first thing in the morning before my family begins to wake. The quietness of the house, the peacefulness of outside and the anticipation of the day to come.

  85. Love this post!
    I drink coffee every day, but I love tea also. Cafes are a wonderful place and I frequent them quite a bit, but coffee made at home each morning is just as good : ).

  86. Iced Sweet Tea is the best for this time of year in a hot San Antonio, in my opinion 🙂 Thanks for the giveaway!

  87. I love the idea of coffee. Does that make sense? I always wish I could be the one to nurse a hot cuppa joe on a cold morning. When I have these visions, I’m usually driving and drinking it in a disposable cup with some mitts on.

    But in reality? I’m more of a tea girl. At my dinning room table. Early in the morning. In the spring. Yah, that’s more me 🙂

  92. All day I was imagining the photo I would take and add in this comment. But today was a bit crazy and the photo never happened. Maybe tomorrow…

  93. My mom has always loved drinking hot tea, so I grew up with a love for it. But it wasn’t until I went to England and became fully immersed in tea-culture that I fell IN love with tea. In Leeds, tea was a way of life. Fortunately, I can still try to keep it that way now that I’m back in the states — it just requires more effort.

    Man… I spent all of today missing England.
    http://www.flickr.com/photos/pishkinn/4707982976/

  94. Love & need coffee every morning. But TEA….that’s where my memories are. Nana, english muffins, hot tea w/ sugar & milk every morning. Now, as I homeschool my boys, every Tuesday we have Tuesday Tea. I read poetry, a few pages about composers or artists as they snack on a treat & we all sip our hot tea. Each week it’s a surprise as to what the flavor will be. They love it so much they’ve tried to get me to do Wet Wednesday & Thirsty Thursday so they can have tea more often!

  96. When it’s cold out, I love a cup of mint tea. But most of the year its too hot here in Texas to enjoy warm drinks, so I enjoy a glass of water with a drop or two of lemon or peppermint essential oil.

  100. Hello! Oh, something nice and warm is the best way to start the day. And the best way if you’re coming home after a long day of work. Or on a cold day. My newest addiction is cinnamon milk – just warm the milk, add lots of cinnamon and mix really well so it get’s all foamy. I had this for the first time in a lovely little Creperie in France! It’s so good and so simple! Best wishes! Resi from Germany

  102. I love coffee and start each day with a cup, but recently starting drinking tea too. Tea is so refreshing on a hot summer day, and comforting each night before bed.

    Love your website!

  105. My love for tea and coffee is endless:

    http://www.flickr.com/photos/juliealvarez/3617428888/
    http://www.flickr.com/photos/juliealvarez/4305368322/
    http://www.flickr.com/photos/juliealvarez/3463871477/

    http://www.flickr.com/photos/juliealvarez/4276273215/
    http://www.flickr.com/photos/juliealvarez/4571654402/
    http://www.flickr.com/photos/juliealvarez/4174648776/
    http://www.flickr.com/photos/juliealvarez/3495938192/
    http://www.flickr.com/photos/juliealvarez/3328811151/

    But there’s always a special beverage here in my country (Argentina) called "MATE", which is the perfect drink to share. You can read some about it here:
    http://juliealvarez.blogspot.com/2008/09/mi-mejor-aliado-my-best-ally.html

    And some other pictures here:
    http://www.flickr.com/photos/juliealvarez/3097814859/
    http://www.flickr.com/photos/juliealvarez/3291269973/
    http://www.flickr.com/photos/juliealvarez/3206398623/

  106. way too much coffee, unfortunately. when I drink tea, I am reminded to slow down. I *never* get that feeling with coffee.
    (love the tea print by the way)

  107. I’m trying to drink less coffee and more green tea these days, but either seems to be one of my ways of bonding with my friends. Meeting for tea or coffee is often a good way for those of us with busy schedules to catch up and connect. I’m fortunate to live in a town with a lot of options.

  114. Coffee with cream and sugar for me in the morning…then iced sweet tea for the rest of the day. Although I’ve gone to SweetnLow in my iced tea…it ALWAYS sugar in my coffee. I have been known to have a nice cup of coffee before bed too. Nice and relaxing and I fall right to sleep.

  115. I love my coffee (Peet’s)….home brewed, fine blend….love it. Love the smell as I grind my own beans. Yep. I do. And HELLO….Must have it in the morn, every morn. It’s hot goodness gets me going! I have a specific Vanilla Carmel creamer I must put in it though….and it’s not a name brand creamer, but if I’m out, I’m sad.