TASTE & SEE COFFEE WITH MELODY JOY
Taste and See Coffee Shop and Gallery, located on Poplar Street in downtown Macon, offers a unique coffee house environment. Whether you need somewhere to sit and blog or sip brew with friends, Taste and See is the spot. They offer a delicious variety from Counter Culture Coffee made by professionally-trained baristas; everything from classic coffee to housemade specialty beverages. From the early stages of menu-planning, Taste and See was determined to offer high quality, natural and pure ingredients. A portion of each day is spent making fresh syrups and sauces. They do not use any synthetic sweeteners, chemicals, or preservatives and only serve organic coffee, milks and organic nondairy milks. In addition, they use raw organic cocoa powder, raw agave nectar, local raw honey and raw cane sugar.
Since "April showers" is a very real thing in Georgia, we decided to enjoy a particularly greyish day by curling up on the plush couches at Taste with our friend Melody of Melody Joy Designs to talk coffee, community and how she keeps healthy with a busy bee calendar of traveling!
Tell us your name: Melody Joy Munn
Hometown + Current city: I was born in Tampa but consider Chicago my hometown since I moved there early on. My current city is Warner Robins, GA. God has given me wonderful friends in this area and it is definitely a calm escape from my delightfully exciting life of traveling.
Biz inspo? My business is called Melody Joy Designs. I am a web and graphic designer. I absolutely love re-branding businesses and helping startup companies become more well-known. My inspiration is definitely the fact that my husband Christopher (Munn Brothers) has many creative talents as well and we are able to spend quality time traveling and working alongside each other on different projects.
Coffee community: My coffee journey started when I was in elementary school. I would sneak coffee at my grandpa’s all of the time. Through college it became more of a “tool” for studying and staying awake during my all-nighters. Present day, it is important to me because I have “matured” in my coffee choices and can taste more of the notes of the beans and blends. While traveling, I am able to try some of the best coffee around the country; Chicago, New York, Savannah, and Atlanta have some of my favorite shops. As my taste for coffee improved, I realized that I needed less flavoring, sugar and cream. I now make my coffee black at home and only have lattes or blended drinks at my most favorite spots. Black coffee not only tastes cleaner but leaves you feeling better. I have definitely noticed a difference in not only my waistline but my budget as well.
Describe yourself in one word: Joyous (my personal mantra is to always choose joy.)
Favorite form of exercise: I enjoy running and swimming. Well, I enjoy the results of running more than the actual running, of course. Even with a busy schedule, I try to make time for it a few days a week.
Pick a Superfood: Blueberries. My husband makes the best blueberry pancakes!
Taste and See Coffee, owned and operated by Brian Nichols and Kevin Reaves.
TEN UNDER TEN
Haley and I have been friends for over ten years (do we get an award?) which means we share a few commonalities + a few differing traits. Even though one of us (ahem, Haley) is a product junkie, I on the other hand like to find my beauty staples and stick to 'em (classic case of FOMO vs. Fear of Change.) Thankfully we both share the gift of thriftiness. Recently we began making the slow but sure switch to DIY or locally-sourced products (COCONUT OIL ON EVERYTHING!) But, let's be honest, sometimes you just need a grab and go store-bought back-up. So, below I have gathered our fav bargain beauty buys -- ten tried and true items under ten dollars that can all be purchased at your local drugstore or drugstore.com. What are some of your best-kept beauty secrets?
Neutrogena Naturals Cleanser // MARVIS Toothpaste // J.R. Watkins Body Scrub (under $10 at Publix) // Shea Moisture Body Bar // MOP Mint & Basil Shampoo // Burt's Bees Hand Crème // OGX Hair Mask // Nourish Deodorant // Smith's Rosebud Salve // Not pictured: Spectrum Coconut Oil