Designing a Timeless Tea Party

Filed under: Kitchen, Your Home, Fun Stuff

Celebrating the beauty and elegance of the teapot through design.

What is our fascination with all things teacups, teapots and tea? Tea has been a part of our global fabric since its discovery in China 5,000 years ago, and it continues to be celebrated around the world: The Japanese tea ceremony is an art form, the English sit down to high tea daily. In the U.S., we sip it as the weather turns cool, and celebrate it in home decor.

An iconic symbol of tradition, the teapot's simple silhouette is used in wallpaper, fabric, stationery and light fixtures. Many of us collect tea pots and cups from all periods and in all sizes and colors at flea markets, and then we might even use them to make lamp bases or candleholders.

"Teacups are nostalgic," says Chilean artist Mariana Torcornal. "The idea of sitting and having afternoon tea seems like something from another era."



There is a strong sentimental value attached to tea settings, especially sterling ones, which are often passed down through generations. But even the simplest of teapots is often cherished, since making tea requires a certain level of ceremony; you pull out your favorite pot, boil the water, let the tea steep, relax and wait.

"Whether having a cup privately, hosting a small intimate gathering at home or taking part in an elaborate high tea at the Waldorf-Astoria, it is all about the ritual," says Keith Winkler, director of product marketing and business development of Replacements, Ltd,, a company that helps consumers find missing china pieces.

It isn't unusual to see teapots in a variety of forms -- I've seen teapots shaped to look like birdhouses, watering cans, vegetables. "They are often thought of as art or sculptures," says Winkler. "Teapots are very unique -- there really isn't one standard shape for them."

Thanks to Original BTC, you can pick up hand-cast bone china lights shaped like teapots and cups for $288 per piece (see above) at Anthropologie. They're a playful take on the timeless silhouette.


A cup of tea speaks to a simpler time, and that's certainly the feeling invoked by the Felix Doolittle stationery and Kolene Spicher framed teacup paintings (above) that we spotted.

It also awakens the senses, says Miriam Novalle, founder and CEO of T Salon, who runs tea shops in New York and Los Angeles. "It is the sound of the water bubbling to a boil, the transformation that happens when water hits the leaves, and the steam of the aroma that rises to our noses that eases us into our day," she says.

A few days ago, Novalle witnessed something touching in her shop. Two blind women walked into the tea shop with their seeing-eye dogs. They proceeded to pick teas based on the smell. It speaks to why tea is so special to us -- it can transport you around the world with a deep inhale.


The tea cup is the subject of endless home goods, like the wallpapers shown above -- and endless art.

Chilean artist Mariana Torcornal investigates our emotional attachment to objects. She designs teacups made from 100 percent beeswax (shown below), calling them Beecups. While they cannot be used in the conventional way, their ubiquitous form challenges us to interact with the teacup in a way you normally would not. She says that people have used them as vases and as containers for jewelry or other small objects. Others have melted them or cut them.

But it's the simple silhouette that still inspires Torcornal to sit down with a cup of tea. Says Torcornal: "For me there is a sense of time, place and memory that is triggered by a porcelain teacup. It's so delicate, ornate, fragile. They evoke thoughts of Alice in Wonderland, grandmothers and old traditions that are slowly being replaced by time-efficient lifestyles."


For more great decorating ideas, don't miss:
-The Beauty of Mason Jars
-Unusual Uses for Velcro
-How to Use Wicker in Winter

If this is making you crave tea, check out our tea recipes from KitchenDaily!

 

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