Mirelfea

I'm a 27 year old mother, wife, university student, upper secondary/college teacher and language nerd. In my free time I enjoy life at home in my tiny red and typically Swedish house together with my husband and son, growing things, reading and going for walks and runs outdoors. My tea collection is my pride and joy. For more information, check out my wishlist ;)

To get presents for your birthday, for Christmas or just as a surprise is fun, of course, but I actually think I enjoy even more to try and think of the perfect gift for someone. I always check my partner's profile for preferences, even when it's completely sender's choice, since I really want the envelope to give my swapping partner's day a silver lining. I only wish I was better at paper crafting and such to make my swaps more decorative :/

IF YOU HAVEN'T RECEIVED A SWAP OR A RATING FROM ME IN GOOD TIME AND SHAPE, PLEASE PM ME AND WE'LL FIGURE OUT WHY. So far I have never sent out a swap late without a very good reason or missed a rating that I know of, and I'm not planning on starting either.

I am a devoted collector of tea bags and if I receive a letter or package containing such I will be super happy! :D I collect the wrappers the bags filled with tea leaves are in, not the bag itself, although I also enjoy drinking tea and therefore don't mind if the tea wrapper still contains tea for drinking.For me, it's always been all about the wrappers, which makes me wish for individually packed (sealed) tea bags :)

I always feel better about sending my swaps in envelopes that are either a bit crafty or at least colourful and nice. At the moment I find my self at a loss for this kind of envelopes and am forced to send out swaps in regular white ones. For this reason I'd also be incredibly happy to receive some new pretty envelopes (perhaps in a less mainstream colour than the regular white ones or with some kind of print that sets them apart) to use in future swaps! Notecards and such are also the kind of thing that would make me happy since they're both pretty and useful : )

I collect all tea wrappers, no matter the size, form or material, but I do prefer the "standard" size that fits neatly into the kind of plastic pockets used for baseball or hockey cards. I'm not at all picky about the design of the bag (plain white with just some letters written on them is just fine) although I get a bit extra happy when I come across those kinds of tea bags that really are tiny pieces of art.

For drinking I'm a big fan of rooibos and teas tasting of orange, raspberry, blueberry, rhubarb, cranberry and other kinds of refreshing fruits and berries. Also ginger, cinnamon and other teas well suited for cold winter days eventually get drunk in this house, by me or my husband, when the right occasion arrives. If you have any flavours or combinations of flavours that are a tad odd, this is also really interesting to me.

Teas not flavoured at all are not among my favourites when it comes to drinking them but I still collect them gladly! So, black, green, red or white doesn't matter and neither does the caffeine contents. I also collect mate and infusions as long as they're in the right kind of bag. If you've only got non-flavoured ones it's OK. However I get up to do my most elaborate happy dance when receiving a beautiful tea bag where the designer has really made the most of this little paper envelope and it's also flavoured with something fruity fresh or slightly different.

Being a busy mother and teacher also working on the house, I have little time to be creative in any other way at the moment. Every now and then though, when my son is sleeping, I thoroughly enjoy some quality time on the couch under ablanket with my crochet needle and some yarn. My big long-term commitment project is working on a bedspread for our kingsize bed while I also make some attempts at learning anew how to knit, producing oddly fitted baby sweaters in the process! :P

Most other forms of creativity I watch and admire from a distance. Scrapbooking I've tried and decided to leave to those who have a real talent for it. I love their work and how they can make something truly beautiful out of plain everyday objects. When it comes to sewing, my skills are quite limited (I still get very excited every time I manage to sew new, rather plain curtains for a room in our house) but I'd like to learn how to sew clothes. I constantly get ideas for dresses, skirts, sweaters and vests and some of them want to be crocheted, some knitted and some sewn, so to be able to realise the ideas I'd better get started learning by doing. As soon as I find the time for it between all those other, much more boring things that have to get done first...

I've created a group for newbie swappers who would like to exchange tea bags with people all over. It's called Newbie Tea Swappers if you'd like to join. I'm not sure how much time I'll have to arrange swaps etc. the upcoming months, but if you're interested in becoming an officer and hosting swaps there you're more than welcome! Check out the group page for more info.