Stuff, 31 October 2016
"I grew up in Tawa and Levin so I wanted to make some friends in the hills," the Belmont resident said.
She started the High Tea Honeys in July 2013 and the group now has 429 members and has had 166 meet ups.
Making new friends as an adult, after moving to new areas or changing countries like a lot of the members had , took courage, she said.
She had been anxious about how a group of women aged between 20 and 60, meeting at restaurants and places like the zoo and Zealandia around the Wellington region, would get on but there had been lots of laughs and deeply educating conversations.
"We have a laugh at our husbands' expense and a giggle at life."
Her husband was very supportive of her tea and china obsession.
"We once drove to Rotorua, there and back in a day, to buy some china. My husband said it was really early on in our relationship and he would probably never do that again," she laughed.
The software salesperson said she had always been old fashioned at heart and loved china.
"The inspiration came from my grandma who had cabinets full of china but would always make me tea in a mug from the cupboard. I would always ask why she wouldn't use the china and she would say it was just not the way anymore."
She had also brought back crafts through "crafternoons", where groups of 10 to 15 members bring their craft, such as knitting, crochet and paintings, and work on them.
"If they are stuck on something in their knitting there are seasoned knitters that can help them."
Because she originally catered a lot of the high teas, she now loves baking.
Although now each member brings a plate, she has launched her own baking ingredient delivery service called Bake Joy.
Subscribers receive on a fortnightly or monthly basis a recipe and the quantities of each ingredient needed to make it.
"I have a lot of recipes books that I don't use much because they call for ingredients that I don't often use and this service will get around this for people."
She counteracts all the delightful food by training for her second half ironman this year.
"I spend my Saturdays drinking tea and eating cake and my Sundays on my bike for a couple of hours."
Anyone wanting to join the High Tea Honeys can look them up on www.meetup.com/high-tea-honeys.
https://www.stuff.co.nz/life-style/food-wine/85691677/high-tea-honeys-could-be-your-cup-of-tea
Shop decadent boutique tea and beautiful fine china tea cups and saucers from our Little Tea Shop. Book our High Tea at home service or join us at our public monthly afternoon tea events. Be set for the finest of tea parties or gift the people you love something they will treasure. Shop online from the High Tea Honeys today.
