Big Exciting News!!

Hey everyone! I hope you are all doing well! As the title suggests, I have some very exciting news! This blog is going to start featuring posts from and about my new business. I have turned my passion and love of organizing and home decoration into a business (well I'm just starting to turn it into a business). I know that the posts have not always been the most regular on this blog, but that is going to slowly start changing! Fort Copper now represents myself as an organizer and home decorator.

I have a couple new weekly posts that I am going to be doing. I will start with Monday Morning Quick Tips. These will simply be short posts with tips, tricks, advice on decor and organization. I will also be doing Flower Fridays, which will be information and pictures of the weeks flower arrangement. Eventually, I will integrate Transformation Thursdays (before and afters) and Tea Tuesdays.

This blog will still have some lifestyle portions (such as Tea Tuesdays and book posts), but I will be starting to post more and more towards my business. Organizing and decorating is such a passion of mine and I am excited to start sharing it with you!

Oh the flowers!!

I have become very interested in flower arrangements...I think it's part of my need to put things together and see how individual pieces can fit together. Or I just like to put pretty things together :) Either way, I have started doing these arrangements for the past couple of months. 

My favorite flowers are Lillies (any kind), Cottage Roses and Hydrangeas. Cottage roses are the flowers I work with the most because they work with just about any flower or on their own and they are the easiest to find and buy. I also work a lot with Carnations (as you will see below). I normally do two different arrangements, one in a larger case and one in a mason jar, that way I can use a good amount of flowers and I can put them in different areas of our house. 

One of my favorites is my most recent arrangement. It includes Cottage Roses and Alstroemerias: 

The orange cottage roses were a great find (and the same color from some of our wedding roses) and I was happy to work with a great filler flower. 

I have included some more of my favorites below:

I do not have a problem...

I love tea. It is an obsession and one of my favorite things to collect. It is something that always makes me feel better and something I always reach for. I drink anywhere from 3-6 cups of tea a day and I am starting to create quite a collection.

Part of the collection...

I would say that I love a good black tea. I'm a big fan of the flavored black tea (especially something with a hint of fruit in it). I usually drink my tea without any cream or sugar and I let it steep for quite a while. I have included some of my favorites below (multiple because I can't just pick one :) ) along with where they can be purchased.

For loose leaf tea:

I think my all time favorite in this category is the Catherine's Blend from Tea For All Reasons (shop link: http://www.teaforallreasons.com/shop5/store5/agora.cgi ). This blend is so dainty but still packed with flavor. Tea For All Reasons also makes two of my other favorite blends (among quite a few of the blends that I own by them, which are all amazing!!): Dowager Countess Grey and Windsor Castle. Windsor Castle is a black tea that is so delicious. It is robust, musky and makes a delightful cup. The Dowager Countess (so named from Downton Abbey of course) is dainty yet delicious. A friend and I describe it as almost drinkable potpourri, but still will be good for any tea drinker.

The other two loose leaf teas that I enjoy drinking and are among the favorites are from English Tea Store (link: http://www.englishteastore.com/ ). This site/store is really good for the beginner tea drinker (as well as the more advanced) as they have a really good variety of loose leaf and bagged tea. They also have plenty of other goodies to purchase including teapots, kettles, and snacks.  My favorite is the Arctic Raspberry which is fruity and delicious. It is a light tea that is good for an early afternoon cup. The other favorite is the Buckingham Palace Garden Party. This tea is good, but for me if it steeps too long it becomes very bitter (which can be normal for tea).

For already bagged tea:

So many favorites in this category. The PG Tips and Taylors of Harrogate Yorkshire Gold are a must. both of these teas are delicious and comforting blends. It is usually my second or third cup of tea of the day. They are such a good pick me up blend. For green tea, I drink the Tazo Zen. It's been a longtime favorite, and I very rarely switch my green tea (except that I am ordering the PG Tips mandarin orange green tea). I was "recently" (in October) gifted a box of the Twinings Blackcurrent Breeze Tea and this tea has changed so much of my afternoon tea drinking! It is such a light blend that is soft and flavorful. I also like the Twinings Nightly Calm in the late evening. I don't drink a lot of Herbal Tea (although it is so good), but for a favorite...it is just about anything from Celestial Seasonings. They are so good with herbal blends. I have yet to find a blend that I do not enjoy drinking.

So that is my two cents on tea! I will continue to post every once in a while if I find something great! Do you have any favorite tea?

Is it already 2015???

I can't believe it is already time for a new year! 2014 was such a whirlwind year and it really did fly by! I transitioned departments at work, planned a wedding, and got married (oh and there was the dog, the house, and plenty of excitement in between it all!)! 2014 was truly an amazing year and one of the best yet. 

I am looking forward to 2015 being an amazing year as well! I have so many plans and things I want to accomplish. I want to bring my photography business back, start my organizing business, bring this blog back, and be a healthier individual. I truly believe that this year is going to be another good year!