The Devil's in the Details

Wow! There's already a lot of interest in our swap. Just to make sure we're all on the same page, please read through all of the rules and guidelines below. Also, please note that sign-ups won't begin until August 3rd.

This is the first of what we hope will be a rather regular swap. We're calling this one "The Colors of Tea." I'll explain and give examples in a moment, but the idea is that tea, like yarn, is colorful and comes in all kinds of fibers - oops, that would be varieties. Some of you are well-versed in tea, some are new and hope to learn more through this swap, and I'm betting a lot of you fall somewhere in between. Wherever you are on your tea journey, we hope you'll travel along with us.

The Colors of Tea

This is a very abbreviated primer, but basically, there are several varieties of tea - black, green, red, and white. What most of us call herbal teas aren't really made from the same plant as true tea, but for the purpose of the swap, if your partner likes herbals or you have a favorite that will fit his/her desires, go for it! The idea is to get to know your pal through the questionnaire, blogs and anonymous emails to prepare a fun, personal swap package. So, let's take the color red, for example. Say your pal is new to tea, and loves red. She is interested in learning about loose teas, for the sake of our example. Finding the right yarn, I'll leave to your imagination, but for teas, I'd pick something like Harney's Strawberry-Kiwi, and then fill the box with a mesh strainer, some strawberry preserves and a nice scone mix, and a pretty red tea cozy.

One of the reasons we're posting details early is so you can ask questions. Please do! Your tearoom hostesses want to get to know you and help you have a great tea party with us. There will also be more tidbits on tea as we go along.

So, the fine print:

Sign-ups will open August 3rd and end August 15th, or as soon as we have 150 participants.

This is an anonymous swap. You will send to and receive from two different people.

Your questionnaire (to be posted after sign-ups are underway) must be posted before August 20th, so that matches can be sent out on the 22nd.

The minimum dollar amount for your swap package is $40. That does not include shipping or the value of the time you spend preparing your package and the items within.

You may request to be matched with someone within your own country. We will do our best to honor those requests.

You must contact your pal by August 25th.

Your package must ship on or before October 1.

The package requirements:

One full skein of yarn. It must be new! It may be from your stash if it is truly something your pal would like.
One tin/box of premium tea. As with the yarn, please honor your pal's preferences. If he/she likes loose tea, send loose tea. If he/she likes bags, send bags.
A tea treat or two. We'll list some resources on the side.
A hand-made item that fits the theme. A tea cozy, coasters... use your imagination. Again, we'll have suggestions and links before the swap begins.
A tea accessory of some sort. A new mesh strainer, a mug, or anything else your pal might like.

Please keep in mind that the requirements are MINIMUMS. Feel free to pamper your pal as you would like to be spoiled. Tea is all about socializing and sharing with friends, so that should be the spirit of this swap. Your partner should get that tea with a friend feeling when your package is received.

We'll post other ideas too, including some of my favorite tea books. There's also nothing like a cup of tea and a good book.

Here's to tea, friendship and a good yarn.