Whether it be painting or writing, cooking or crochet, most of us would agree we harbour some creative passion.
Most of us would also agree that it can be hard to find time for these passions around the busyness of daily life & work. This is why Bird & Blend encourages our TEAm to find a bit of space for that creativity in their role, if they’d like to.
Of course, there are traditionally creative roles in any company. We don’t know where we’d be without the inventive minds in Brand, Design, & beyond constantly thinking up fresh ways to bring our teas to life!
But we have creative people all across the business who show off their skills every single day…
You’ll see it firsthand when you visit any of our stores. There are typically hand-drawn signs everywhere, full of quippy slogans or quirky sketches. The shelves will likely be studded with little props & flourishes which make each display pop. If you ask nicely, you might even get to see a little mixologist creativity in the kitchen, as most stores have a ‘secret menu’ of staff faves!
These touches make each store truly unique and magical. It’s a core part of what makes Bird & Blend… Bird & Blend!
Beth, our Cardiff store manager, is an independent Welsh illustrator. You might spot her art on local restaurant or bar menus, & even displayed at local exhibitions!
But you wouldn’t need to look far to see some of her work. Beth constantly brings her illustration talents into the shop, creating signage & posters for store events. She says her creative touch also shines in visual merchandising (a fancy phrase for ‘making shelves look pretty’).
Image description: One of Beth’s prints. It is four sardines on a bright red background. The top one is wearing a Het Gymreig and is cut in half. The third one down has a sketched daffodil around its head.
Rye Team Leader Scarlett is a ceramicist, selling handmade mugs & sculptures both in person & online. She knows better than anybody how much tea & pottery go hand in hand. Check out Scarlett's Etsy for some amazing ceramic crafts!
‘Japanese tea ceremonies are a big inspiration for me,’ Scarlett said. ‘I can often be found doing a matcha demo in our store in my own handmade matcha bowl.
Image Description: Team Leader Scarlett poses in Rye’s kitchen with one of her handmade matcha bowls in one hand and a bamboo matcha whisk in the other. She has brown hair, pulled back in a ponytail with a white bow, and a pair of brown square glasses.
Image description: An array of unique, shiny handmade matcha bowls. They are white, some with blue swirls and some with brown.
Chris, our York assistant store manager, is an author, which he says helps him come up with amazing puns for their store signage & craft enticing descriptions of our teas. They even organise their store’s little book swap!
I’m a writer as well (if you hadn’t already guessed). I get to show off my creative side through these blogs, but day-to-day as a senior mixologist I’m constantly finding vivid, exciting ways to chat about our flavours. I even help host a monthly book club at our Chiswick store.
Another writer in the business is Tea Mixologist Sofia from Edinburgh, who recently brought her creative passion & her role together in a big way, hosting a creative writing workshop right in the store.
‘The writing workshop was fantastic,’ Sofia said. ‘[it was] an hour & a half filled with creativity, tea, & a wonderfully supportive atmosphere.’
She said the evening started with some fun writing exercises to get creativity flowing. Together the group explored different techniques for building vivid settings & engaging characters, trying them out with short exercises. In the second half of the evening the group had a friendly competition: each person randomly chose either a genre or an emotion, then wrote a short story inspired by the prompt.
‘Since we’re all such big Bird & Blend fans, every story was centered around the brand & our favourite teas, which led to some wonderfully imaginative & entertaining pieces,’ Sofia said.
‘A special thank you to [senior mixologist] Tee for their incredible support throughout the event. They kept everyone supplied with delicious drinks & helped create the warm, welcoming atmosphere that made the workshop such a memorable experience.’
Image Description: A group of six people sit in chairs in the colourful Bird & Blend Edinburgh store. They are writing or chatting, and most of them have iced teas.
The workshop was so successful that the team in Edinburgh have decided to run even more sessions in the coming months, giving tea lovers & writers even more opportunities to get creative together. When they’re announced, Edinbirds can RSVP here!
In fact, mixologists across many of our stores host exciting creative events of all types. Nottingham brewbirds are especially in luck, as their local is buzzing with artsy excitement. They have held Matcha Bowl workshops, po-e-TEA nights, & even have regular board game evenings (I count D&D & any game where you have to draw as creative, don’t you?)
Our TEAm is always coming up with something new, so keep an eye on our socials & Eventbrite so you don’t miss the next event at your local!
A couple of attendees from Sofia’s workshop have allowed us to share their writing with you. Sit back, relax, & grab a cuppa to sip while we see you out with lovely writing by some talented brewbirds…
‘Sunlight streams through the windows of Bird & Blend, catching rows of colourful labels and shining cans of tea. The air is filled with gentle chatter and the occasional hiss of the drinks machine. It is, all things considered, a beautiful day to enjoy each other’s company. It should be.
They sit ensconced in the corner, silent across their wistfully steaming drinks. The cheerful atmosphere does nothing to pierce the heaviness that hangs between them. They bring their drinks to their lips by unspoken agreement, sipping slowly. Frothy, sweet, and soothing, it does nothing to lift the weight in their chests; familiar cinnamon tightening their throats until it is nearly unbearable.
A muscle jumps in their jaw as they set down their drinks, willing the burning behind their eyes to dissipate. Silence and stillness settle over them once again, over their vigil, their memorial. Sweet cinnamon turned bitter and sunlight warmth they do not feel. It should be a beautiful day.’
- Emma B.
‘It was the scent that stopped me first. Green and sweet. I glanced toward him. He didn’t look up, he was completely focused on the task at hand.
“Jade Mountain?” I asked. His lips twitched upward but didn’t leave his head as he poured from the kettle.
“Vivie likes it” his eyes flicked up to me smile widening,
“With orange blossom honey”. I swallowed.
“You give our little girl the tea we served at our first wedding?” He smiled.
“Just about everything from that era of time is forgotten, even from the immortals that lived through it” he said, smiling sadly. “But sometimes it is nice to remember, even for a little while” He picks up the honey jar.
“Would you like a cup?”
- Melissa Peters
