One of my favorite parts of developing new products is watching an idea slowly become something tangible. Sometimes the very first version is close to what I imagined. Other times it takes dozens of small adjustments before everything comes together.
These botanical tea lollipops are somewhere in the middle.
The original inspiration came from a beautiful Japanese Instagram account and a recent trip to the Saratoga Tea & Honey Company (they have this gorgeous tea wall with lit inserts across from a rustic brick wall that will show up somewhere, for sure!). I loved the delicate way the fruit, and herbs were suspended inside each lollipop. It felt elegant, unexpected, and perfectly suited to the kind of products I love creating.
Of course,
inspiration is only the starting point
Rather than making a traditional sugar lollipop, I changed it to honey. Honey brings a softer sweetness and a little more depth of flavor plus I use honey sticks in many infusions and am familiar with the recipe.
My first test batch had far too much honey. While it tasted wonderful, it wrapped around the fruit and botanicals too heavily, hiding many of the beautiful details that I wanted people to see. I also ended up with more bubbles than I liked, making the finished pieces feel less refined than I envisioned.
Those first attempts taught me exactly what needed to change.
The goal isn’t to make every tea lollipop identical. I actually love that each one has its own personality. The challenge is finding the balance between beauty and function – using enough sweetness while still allowing the fruits, herbs, and edible flowers to remain the stars of the show. Each adjustment gets me a little closer.
As I’m testing recipes, I’m also thinking about everything surrounding the product.
Packaging often begins long before the product itself is finished. I’ve been sketching new label concepts and exploring a direction that feels like a natural evolution of the Craft Cocktail Infusions brand. I’m moving away from the darker black packaging of the early years toward a brighter, more colorful collection built around a clean white background that lets the ingredients take center stage.
Before I ever finalize a design, I usually build a mood board. It helps me see everything together- the colors, textures, typography, photography, and overall feeling I want someone to experience the moment they discover the product. I also try to think beyond one season. Will these colors still feel beautiful in spring? Summer? During the holidays? Can they grow into future gift collections?
Lately I’ve also been imagining how these might be presented in gift sets. Clear glass teacups keep finding their way into my sketches because they showcase the botanicals so beautifully once the lollipop begins to dissolve. Sometimes it’s the serving experience that makes a product feel truly special.
There are still practical questions to answer before these ever become available.
Using honey means they’re more delicate during warm-weather shipping, so I need to make sure the numbers work without compromising quality. My general rule is to keep ingredient costs around one-sixth of the final retail price, allowing room for both wholesale and retail while keeping the product sustainable to produce. That means the recipe, packaging, and production process all have to work together- not just individually.
At the moment, I’m cautiously optimistic.
If everything continues to come together, these may become a seasonal release during the holiday season, when cooler temperatures make shipping a little more forgiving. Until then, I’ll keep testing, refining, and sharing the journey along the way.
That’s the part of product development I enjoy the most. Every prototype teaches me something new, and every small improvement brings the original vision a little closer to reality.