A Love Letter to Lady Baker's

Among the long list of joys in this life, for me, is a hot mug of tea. The thought alone is often enough to evoke a feeling of calm amidst a bustling, noisy, world. A thoughtfully chosen blend is a perfect way to rest, re-set or transition from one task to another. Isn’t it lovely to stand before your tea cupboard and choose the perfect tea, the one that matches your mood, or even better, the mood or feeling you’re reaching for?

It was with this love of tea in mind that when asked to write something for Lady Baker’s blog, my mind drifted back to early spring days at the Charlottetown Farmers Market. Back to when I first met Katherine, Lady Baker’s founder, and back to the beginning of my little business, Harris Leatherworks. When I began at the Market in 2008 Lady Baker’s had been settled in for about a year and Katherine happily told me about her start in business, her love of tea, and how she used to do leatherwork. With that, we were fast friends. So, when given free rein to write about “anything I choose” I was flooded with memories of sunny summer market mornings, tall mugs of frothy tea lattes, Katherine smiling and joyfully serving loyal customers, and the very beginning of my journey as an artisan and market vendor.

I immediately began the enjoyable task of sampling many of Lady Baker’s teas. I found a few favourites quickly, London Fog, Lady’s Slipper and Genmaicha became my go-to’s. The boxed store bought teas in our cupboard got pushed to the back as the packages of loose leaf teas with their pretty labels took centre stage. Many Saturdays included the purchase of a new tea to bring home and enjoy over the coming week. So, with packages of tea in my market bags I would head home to begin the week at my workbench where day by day I was learning and developing the skills that would carry me along to where I find myself today.

As an artisan working on my own in a beautiful workshop (lovingly built by my husband and brother), a wide open space with lots of natural light, sun beaming across hardwood floors, and in winter, which is the season I find myself in as I write this, a wood burning stove and our beloved dog Eli curled up close by. Can you not picture the need for a bottomless mug of tea? Even better, a bottomless pot. I find myself drifting, mid-project, hands wrapped around a steaming pottery mug, to the window where I stand and watch the birds at the feeder, or the antics of my goats and horses playing in the snow. Standing at the window, observing and sipping tea, I’m lulled into the trance where creativity lives. The quieted mind, slowed down at the very least, is how my next idea arrives, how an existing project can be completed effortlessly, or where I find the momentum to continue cutting straps for belts.

How many cups of tea have I sipped while making all the pieces you see displayed at the market? I wouldn’t be able to count. Where would I be without Lady Baker’s? Which is almost the same question as “where would I be without friendship?” Because when I make a cup of tea I’m transported to my beginnings as an artisan, standing at “the tea booth” chatting with friends new and old, and where would any of us be without friendship……and tea.