Thursday, October 22, 2009

The Art of Painting with Coffee

Coffee painting is not a new art form by any means, but has recently been increasing in popularity. Not only is it appealing to the eye and smells great, it is a great medium for any artist who is looking to try new things.

The art of painting with coffee is known as arfé, which is a combination of the words "art" and "café". Coffee artist from all around are being featured in galleries and on TV, making appearances on shows like Martha stewart, and even sponsored by big names like Nescafe.

Paintings by these artists go for hundreds of dollars and are the focus of a lot of international attention. Though there are many people who encounter coffee painting and think that it is nice but dismiss it as a passing fad, painting with coffee is more than just a novelty, to many people it is a genuine art form.

So if you are intrigued by this branch of coffee culture and are aching to give it a try, it is simple and easy to do at home. Coffee paint is created simply by adding coffee (usually instant) to water and varying the strength to get different tones. Some even boil the coffee to get the darkest colors possible. From that point all you need is a bit of talent and some watercolor paper to create your own aromatic works of art.

Sunday, October 4, 2009

Blossoming Tea

This is a great gift for any tea lover as well as someone who just appreciates a unique gift.

As you add hot water, watch the delicate teaposy slowly unfurl, revealing a flower that blossoms from within the tea leaves creating flavorful tea. Each teaposy is made from premium Silver Needle White Tea leaves and whole dried flowers that are hand-crafted with natural cotton thread. Flavors include jasmine, magnolia, amaranth, lily, camellia and rose.

The delicate and complex tea is a treat for your taste buds as well.

Visit www.gifts.com to find one of these extraordinary gift ideas.