Inspiration in a Cup of Tea 

Inspiration in a Cup of Tea

January 21, 2019

Madeline Richardson, College Student, Artist, TAZO fan

TEA INSPIRATION

Inspiration in a Cup of Tea

When I was around 12, I threw a tea party with 15 of my friends. We held it outside, so it felt like a garden party. We borrowed my great-grandma’s antique tea cups, saucers, and silver spoons, and put up little lanterns. We wore fancy dresses and straw hats and ribbons in our hair.

I served TAZO Passion tea. The colour was just so pretty. It looked like a garden party. We were a tea-drinking family, and we always had TAZO tea in our cupboard. We were also a family of artists. My dad is a book illustrator, my mom is a food stylist and photographer, my grandparents founded a theater. When I was 10, my acrylic still-life of a banana won a blue ribbon in the state fair!

As a teen, I developed a passion for fashion, and, in college now, I am studying fashion illustration. And recently, I found inspiration in an unexpected place. 

I was playing around with watercolours and drinking a cup of TAZO Passion tea. The tea was such a pretty colour, I thought, why shouldn’t I try painting with it? I opened several tea bags, sprinkled the contents onto the paper, and dripped water on them. The tea bled magenta into the paint, creating these gorgeous purples and blues, and the ingredients—the tea itself, the rose petals—created this raised texture that reminded me of beading you would see on a dress. That gave me another, unexpected idea. 

After a few test tries, I sketched a dress that you might see on the runway or red carpet, then sprinkled on TAZO Passion tea and brushed it into areas where I wanted beading. Then I let the tea work its magic. I loved how it turned out, and I posted it on my Instagram. Now, I want to try painting with other TAZO flavours, like Wild Sweet Orange, and milder flavours. 

It just goes to show, you can find inspiration everywhere, if you are open to it. I have always loved tea—the nice, flowy, relaxing, soothing, comfortable feeling that comes over me when I drink it. Yet surprisingly, while drinking a cup of TAZO tea, it became part of my artist’s tool kit as well. It sparked a totally random idea and led to a beautiful creation. 

I want to keep creating and finding new ways to surprise and delight myself and others. When you step outside your comfort zone, try something new, and it works out like this, it’s the greatest feeling.