A Granny, a Baker, a Candlestick Maker (Minus The Baker)

By Marketing Intern on Jul 30     Filed In Austin, Texas, Intern, arts & crafts     3 Comments

Zoe's Sweet Spot Pic

While perusing all of the Sweet Leaf Sweet Spot picture submissions, as we often do, we came across a pretty nifty one of a Sweet Leaf Tea bottle transformed into a candle. Sustainability is always a focus here at Sweet Leaf, and we are constantly looking for new ways to transform our bottles, cans, lids and labels into something new and interesting and something that isn’t going to be thrown away. This candle idea is a prime example, so we contacted the candlemaker, Zoe from San Antonio, to ask how she did it. It turns out that Zoe and her boyfriend Danny have been converting used Sweet Leaf bottles into candles for quite some time now. They gave us some directions so we–and anyone else reading this–can make Sweet Leaf candles of our own. Take it away, Zoe and Danny!

Step 1: Purchase any delicious flavor of Sweet Leaf ice tea found in a glass bottle, a plastic funnel, a small bread pan, tin foil, a candle wick, and any scented candle.

Step 2: Preset your oven to 350 degrees F.

Step 3: Cover your small bread pan with tin foil and place the candle into the pan and then place the pan into the preheated oven.

Step 4: Set the oven timer for 20 minutes and while waiting for the wax to melt open and enjoy your Sweet Leaf ice tea until it unfortunately runs out.

Step 5: After the 20 minutes have expired remove the bread pan from the oven carefully with oven mitts.

Step 6: Place and position your candle wick into the empty Sweet Leaf bottle.

Step 7: Place the plastic funnel into the empty glass bottle and carefully pour your melted wax into the funnel.

Step 8: Now simply wait for your wax to cool and in only a few steps you’ve made your very own “sweet” candle!

Step 9: Drink another delicious Sweet Leaf tea to celebrate your pretty SWEET accomplishment.

Thanks, Zoe and Danny!
If anyone else has done anything cool with their leftover Sweet Leaf materials, let us know! We’d love to share it with everyone! Also don’t forget to submit your pic to the Sweet Leaf Sweet Spot contest page. You could still win a year’s supply of tea or a VIP trip for two to ACL!

Lollapalooza: One Day, Some Way!!!

By Marketing Intern on Jul 29     Filed In Chicago, Events, Food & Beverage, Intern, Live Music, Lollapalooza     1 Comment

I’m a sucker for great music, delicious food and exciting new places. So, one can imagine my immense disappointment in not being able to attend this year’s Lollapalooza Festival in Chicago. After seeing this year’s line-up, an early bird ticket purchase for next year’s festival is happening.

It’s funny after seeing the line-up, I  realized how broad my musical taste really is. Even if it’s not something I would go out of my way to listen to I can still either appreciate it, dance to it or sing to it –so long as it’s not pop-country–, but even so, poke fun at how ridiculous and terrible I think it is. So in a nutshell  when there’s music in the air (good or bad), you know I’m having a good time!

The bands I would go out of my way to listen to at Lolla, however, jumped off the page and my heart got pretty sad knowing that I wouldn’t be there to enjoy them. Among the shows that will be sadly missed- Minus the Bear, The Strokes, Blues Traveler, The Black Keys, AFI, Edward Sharpe & The Magnetic Zeros and Spoon, which has been my summertime favorite this year.

So for those of you going to Lolla this year, enjoy! I’ll have to settle for ordering in a deep-dish pizza from Mangia’s with a side of Spoon and a box of tissues = ( I’ll see you one day Lolla, but until then I’ll have to party down with my ridiculous fun favorites at home.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IIEVqFB4WUo

By, Kamie Dorris

KEYE, Kinky and Snackies, Oh My!

By Marketing Intern on Jun 21     Filed In Celebrities, Intern     3 Comments

Ah, the unpredictable job that is the Sweet Leaf Internship. We never know quite what’s in store for us when we walk into the Austin Sweet Leaf Headquarters, but that’s one of the things that makes this job so exciting.
Take last week for instance. Did you know that last Thursday was National Iced Tea Day? I sure didn’t–not until that day, at least. Anyway, KEYE, the local CBS station, called us that day and asked if we could do a quick spot for their show, “We Are Austin Live.” The marketing team decided to bring with them one of the Tea Snacky recipes, dishes that are made with Sweet Leaf Tea. They wanted us to tag along to film the behind the scenes action and help out, so we all piled into the Sweet Leaf Van and set sail to the studio. Everyone at KEYE was really nice, and because there was about forty minutes before they were ready to film the spot, they led us into a swank conference room to wait. However there was already someone in the conference room–someone with a big cowboy hat, black, pearl studded shirt and a cigar. Did our eyes deceive us? No! It was musician, author and former Texas governor candidate Kinky Friedman!
We learned that he was also supposed to be on the show and was waiting for his spot, just like us. After taking pictures with him, we gave him some of our new Citrus flavor tea to try and in return he gave us some pretty awesome stories. Some were interesting, some were funny, and some were probably too inappropriate to repeat on this blog. After a good conversation with Kinky, KEYE was ready, and someone led us to the filming studio where Sweet Leaf April and Sweet Leaf Charla led a terrific three-minute cooking segment. Check out the behind-the-scenes video of the shoot we took below or the official video here.

Sweet Leaf April, Sweet Leaf Ashley and Sweet Leaf Charla with Kinky Friedman!

When we finished, we packed up, said our goodbyes to Kinky, who was still waiting for his spot, and hit the road back to Sweet Leaf Headquarters.

It was only my third day on the job, and I helped out with a news segment, rode in the awesome Sweet Leaf van and met a Texas celebrity. I learned an important lesson that day: You never know what to expect here at Sweet Leaf.

Let the Adventures Begin!!

By Marketing Intern on Jun 15     Filed In Intern     2 Comments


Aloha all you Sweet Leaf junkies!

I’m Kamie (pronounced like Jamie, but with a -K-) and I’m a new summer intern here at Sweet Leaf. As I am “the new chick” and I’m entering a world of very dedicated fans, please allow me to introduce myself.

I’m from Canadian…Texas that is. A cozy little town tucked in the corner of nowhere! Or more formally put, the Panhandle. As crazy isolated as it is, it truly does have a place in my heart, however, Austin is the place I call home. How did this happen? To tell you the truth I really have no idea. I kind of just woke up one morning, threw my clothes in the trunk of my car and here I am!

It’s funny to me that as exotic as Canadian isn’t, I still get pleasant reminders of it in this super eccentric city. When asked during my job interview why I chose to apply at Sweet Leaf, I couldn’t help but think of the first time I ever tried the product. For the record it was Sweet Leaf Original and the first sip took me straight back to being a little kid running around the swimming pool, reeking of Bull Frog sunscreen and lemon juiced hair, sippin’ down my moms sweetened sun tea! Who wouldn’t want a daily reminder of that!

Intern Antics: HI MY NAME IS…

By Marketing Intern on Jun 14     Filed In Austin, Texas, Intern     Add a Comment

Hey ya’ll!  My name is Sarah, and just like Sweet Leaf Tea, I was born and raised in Texas.  I grew up in Houston, not far from Sweet Leaf Tea’s birthplace of Beaumont.  Austin became my home in 2007 when I started college at The University of Texas (hook ‘em!).  I immediately fell in love with this city.  Austin has a character that no other place can rival, and Sweet Leaf epitomizes that uniqueness.

Austin has inspired me to explore my creative side, and this internship has provided me with the perfect outlet.  As Sweet Leaf interns, we are encouraged to be innovative and expressive by posting on this blog and producing videos for Sweet Leaf TV.

Living in such an active city has also pushed me physically to places I never thought I could reach.  Whether I am running Town Lake, kayaking, or swimming at Barton Springs…this city is an epicenter for physical activities.  I love that Sweet Leaf Tea is all natural, and the perfect compliment for this lifestyle.

The laid back atmosphere, the cute dogs, and the unending amounts of tea are wonderful perks to working at Sweet Leaf Tea, but not what keeps me coming back everyday.  I feel lucky to be working with a product that I truly enjoy; for a company that appreciates the Austin community, the environment, and a little originality; with amazing people; in a city that I love.

You can also follow our intern-antics on twitter @sweetleafintern.

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