Big News!!!

I am so excited to announce that Thirsty World is branching out into the world of Etsy! Some of you may have noticed the "Etsy Mini" addition to my sidebar.  That will keep you posted with my newest listings!  I've gotten several requests from readers about my photographs or drawings featured on this little blog, so I decided to make it official! The next few weeks I will be having posts highlighting items featured in my Etsy Shop, but here's a few things for a taste test!

I mainly have unique pieces of art and small jewelry.  Many of my items can be custom made-to-order to embrace any customer's personal taste!  So feel free to contact me if you have any questions or if you have seen something you liked on Thirsty World that isn't featured in my Etsy shop just ask at hannahfairweather@gmail.com, I'd love to hear from you!


Prints:

 Bold Paintings:

Custom Made-to-Order Drawings:

Eastern Daddy Longleg

Crawling around a mint bush, leaf by leaf, he has such precise control of each individual leg, legs that are five times bigger then his body.  I found him after our non-stop rainstorm over the past week.  His tiny body, smaller than a dime, has an intricate pattern of brown, black, and cream, but it's the way this Eastern Daddy Longleg moves that I think makes them so graceful and delicate.  Each of his feet ends in a microscopic claw and this particular kind only live East of the Rocky Mountains.  As many adults don't survive until spring I was lucky to see him this time of year!   I hope this addition to my bug collection adds a little color to your rainy day.

Changes Begin

Welcome to the New Thirsty World!

As I mentioned I'd be doing in my list of June expectations, I have officially unveiled the new design for Thirsty World!  I've been thinking about things I wanted to change or additions I felt were needed for a while and have finally gotten the chance to put them in place!  Some of the changes came from feedback from you lovely readers or from fellow bloggers with helpful criticism.  Thank you all so much for following along and creating such an amazing blogger community that I have become so grateful for!  If you have any ideas or inspired opinions please feel free to let me know!  I hope you enjoy the new and improved Thirsty World as much as I do!

Stay tuned this week for more updates and a beautiful addition to the bug collection!

A Tea for Spring

Anyone can enjoy a hot cup of tea on a cold winter night to warm up after a long day.  But with a grandmother who savors her daily tea time, and parents who have always been tea enthusiasts I am naturally a year round tea drinker.  So when the temperature starts to rise, I love looking for new tea blends or flavors that seem fitting for the warmer months.  I was really excited when I found this Citrus Lavender Sage herbal tea.  I was immediately enticed by the smell wafting from the Teavana shop, and after sampling several of the teas that were on display that day, this one was by far my favorite!

This spring has been a season full of sage for me.  It started with a sage and grapefruit scented candle I bought that filled my apartment with lovely citrus and earthly sage smells.  Then I got a small sage plant and a bowl of grapefruits for my kitchen to add to the fresh, uplifting aroma.  So it was only fitting that my tastes would draw me toward the Citrus Lavender Sage tea!  If anyone is itching to try a new flavor or needs a summery/spring scent, I certainly say to go for the sage and grapefruit combination!  The colors together are so cheerful and the scent is a bold enough choice while still being able to have a light and fresh appeal.

I had never ventured into the world of loose tea until this spring.  With the convenience of tea bags and small kitchen space, I had never really been able to enjoy the process of making tea, but that all changed around this past Christmas when my mom and aunt somehow read each other's minds and both got me some beautiful tea accessories, several of which worked better for a loose tea blend.  So when I finally came across a blend that I adored I just went for it and invested in a loose tea canister, a delicate, ceramic, to-go loose tea thermos, a modern teapot, and a warmer to match (I've been craving to have a clear teapot since last year and I finally found one I loved enough to get!  I'm hoping to buy some blooming tea this summer, so keep a eye out for that post!).  Now that I have expanded my horizons on the tea front, I have so many more options in front of me and can't wait to try more loose tea blends!

Happy Tea Time All, now you know what I'll be drinking this month!

Saturday Morning at the Market

So I'm going to immediately start off by saying:  Please excuse my picture overload!  I couldn't help myself!  The Farmer's Market was just so full of good energy, bright colors, and interesting people!  In every corner there was a beautiful selection of strawberries, or a unique angel flower plant that is hard to find at generic commercial super stores.  Everything looked so amazing through the camera's eye I couldn't wait to take them all home and see how the colors and shapes translated into compositions.

Supporting local businesses and producers has become quite trendy with the use of hashtags such as #shoplocal or #eatlocal, and therefore making it more convenient as well.  Greensboro has the amazing Piedmont Triad Farmer's Market that has several buildings, providing ample space for produce, shoppers, and merchants.  My favorite perk of shopping at the market, is that almost everything there is perfectly ripe and picked fresh from the garden that morning or the night before and with everything being organic, you can munch on snow peas as you shop!

At most booths you can actually talk to the person who's devoted their time to growing and harvesting the veggies you're buying.  You can ask them questions about a plant you want to buy or they can suggest their favorite recipes to enhance the tomatoes they're selling.  Having an interaction with the farmers gives a whole new experience to selecting produce and that connection adds a little more excitement for me to take my goodies home and decide what to use them for!

Beyond just fruits and veggies, our market has a vast variety or locally grown herbs, flowers, and unique plants for sale.  You can find homemade bread, jams, and wine.  There is even a honey stand and a carnivorous plant booth!  My favorite stand both in produce selection and visual display was from the Swathmoor Family Farm.  As "committed stewards of the land, animals and plants, all of which sustain us, they are trusted neighbors to our customers who value similar attitudes about sustainable living".   You can check out their great website here.   It's always uplifting to meet friendly people involved in the local community who are striving to make it a better place.  As I've gotten more excited about the local scene and in consuming more local products, it's nice to know there's a refuge like the Triad Farmer's Market that gives back and strengthens the community. 

My goodie bag, which I was so proud of myself at remembering to bring my reusable grocery bag, was filled with tomatoes, snow peas, four new little succulents, a hot pink elephant ear plant that is perfect for my shady porch, and a bouquet of vibrant fresh flowers that I spread out into five vases and spread through my apartment!  I can't wait to go back to the farmer's market next week, since I already have my eye on some homemade banana nut bread! 

Galaxy Rose

Well another beginning has arrived!  The start of June also brings the beginning of a new season! Summer is almost here, so I'm savoring all the cool spring breezes and crisp mornings while they last! As some of you may have noticed I took a brief hiatus from blogging to focus on my career and get settled into a new job!  So a lot of the updates I had planned for Thirsty World got put on hold!  But no longer!  Without further ado, I'll be making lots of changes and additions to Thirsty World throughout June!

I also still have several sponsorship spaces open for the upcoming month, so if you're interested in a little blog expansion just email me at hannahfairweather@gmail.com.

I hate that I missed posting a May desktop calendar, but I offer you this bright and colorful June calendar to enjoy!  The link that is provided below allows you to freely download and use this calendar.  I hope it brings you all a little joy in kicking off this summer season!

What to expect in June:

-a peak into my new job

-lots of summer events and adventures!

-a new look

-some vibrant color palettes

-and several awesome additions to the bug collection.

Download Galaxy Rose Here.

North Carolina Wine Festival

This weekend was the North Carolina Wine Festival, held at Tanglewood Park, in Clemmons, N.C., which is about 35 minutes from Greensboro, but still in the Triad area.  While this time of year inspires several wine festivals throughout the state, this is the largest annual festival, with over 20 local wineries presenting tastings and samples.

Vlad and I spent the day wandering through the park enjoying the sunshine and a few glasses of wine.  Represented among the booths was Rocky River Winery located near my hometown of Concord, and several wineries from around the Triad area.  I loved trying the wine that had titles and flavors revolving around life in North Carolina, like the Loggerhead Red, or the Carolina Blush.  But the most impressive item for sampling for me was the wine ice cream!  I don't about you guys, but that pretty much puts two of my favorite things into one savory dessert!  With 5-6% alcohol and real fruit pieces, the peach was my favorite with black cherry (a lavender colored ice cream) as a close second!

We ended up visiting about eight of the booths, but our favorite was the first booth of the day, Slightly Askewed Winery from Elkin, NC.  Before we left we made sure to stop back by and snag a bottle of pomegranate wine to enjoy later!  Most of the wineries were having tastings of their sweet and fruit wine selections for summer, but some of them were just entirely to sweet for my taste.  However Slightly Askewed also had peach, black cherry, and blackberry acai wine that were delicious and all while fruity and full of flavor, were not too sweet to sip on!

It was a beautiful day for the festival, with the willow trees swaying in the wind and the elegant sun hats to shield the rays, it was a southern event for the season!  This was my first wine festival and I'm already excited for next year!