Goodies From Winnipeg, Sooke, & Vancouver - Part One

Part two... A couple of weeks ago I posted about a visit from my friend, Serena, her partner, Jason, and their little boy Sebastian, who you can see above being loved by my daughter, Quinlyn. They brought us many goodies that I wrote about here in part one.... On their second visit they brought us more goodies, which I am sharing below.



Serena brought us a bottle of mead from the Tugwell Creek Honey Farm and Meadery in Sooke, BC. They are the first Meadery in BC. This was taken from their website.

"Tugwell Creek Honey Farm and Meadery was licensed as British Columbia's first Meadery in 2003. The combination of Bob Liptrot's 43 years of beekeeping experience and over 25 years of mead making experience bring a unique and educational culinary experience to each visitor to our tasting room. Our award winning Meads (honey wines) reflect harmony and balance by blending varietal honeys and berries from our local region.

Mead (Honey Wine) is the oldest art of fermentation. Consumed by all, from kings to peasants, mead has gained a reputation as a giver of life, wisdom, courage and strength down through the ages.

The term “honeymoon” has been associated with drinking mead during the month long celebration following a wedding in pagan times."

Our bottle of seasonal mead was delicious! It brought back memories of going to the Renaissance Festival every late summer/early fall in Minnesota, where I grew up. My aunt would usually go with me once I was old enough we would sample the mead. She would love this! I am going to contact them about whether they can ship to the US. In the meantime you can learn more about the history of mead on Tugwell Creek's website.


The second treat that Serena brought was a tin of organic Tea of Serenity from Silk Road. I LOVE tea and am always looking for good Canadian companies from which to buy it. Silk Road is in Victoria, BC. They also have aromatherapy and natural spa products. They have a great website from which you can buy all of their offerings.


The Tea of Serenity is so fresh and colorful. I could photograph it all day!


My little QQ is quite the herbal tea drinker, so we made a pot of yummy tea right away.


And what is a pot of tea without some cookies and chocolate?


I am so excited about this next treat that I can hardly contain myself!! I had posted on this blog about making play dough and had wondered aloud about natural ideas for dying play dough. Serena commented with some ideas. She remembered that I has mentioning natural dyes at one point and emailed me from Vancouver Island to ask if I would like a natural dye kit from Maiwa. Now, I don't plan to use these to dye play dough. I would like to use them to dye fabric and maybe even photographs. I think the $40 price is really reasonable for a kit to get a person started on something new. Many times the set up costs for a new hobby can empty your pockets. I can't wait to give these a try and will keep you posted.


If you are interested in natural dying and have questions, Serena said the woman above knows everything about it. You can check out all the craft supplies they sell at Maiwa on their website and you can learn more about this kit here.

Thanks, Serena! It was great to see you all and we look forward to seeing you in Winnipeg next summer!