Hooray! We didn't have to travel far for this week's installment of "Explore". Piper & Leaf Artisan Tea Co. is one of our favorite places to visit in town and I often find myself toting around a mason jar hoping to find one of their many farmers market stalls or downtown stations.

This family operated tea company boasts gourmet blends straight from the garden, farm, forest, and briar patch (my favorites are Front Porch Special and Healing Honeysuckle). Although Aissa, Ginny & I would drive almost anyway for our favorite brews, Piper & Leaf is currently calling Lowe Mill (a cotton mill turned arts & entertainment center frequented by Huntsville's artist community) home and what a beautiful home it is... With handcrafted details like the custom woodworking (done by one of the shop's proprietors) and personal touches such as the take-one-leave-one "little library", Piper & Leaf just might be my favorite spot in town.

The magic happens when businesses truly feel intentional, authentic and have an air of family history supporting them.  I can always count on finding Lydia, our favorite tea master and model (she worked on this editorial with us!), brewing up a little bit of love and goodness. Recently nominted for Martha Stewart's "American Made" awards, these tea people are on an amazing journey and I love following along/stopping by to smell the swirl of sweet tea in the air.

p.s. Don't forget to stop by Aissa's blog for more.

A huge thank you to Piper & Leaf for allowing our little tribe to explore and for always providing the refreshment for our meetings, projects and celebrations!