There is nothing the British enjoy more than a nice cup of tea at the end of a hard day, or if you are like me, a nice cup of tea to start the day, end the day and take up every bit of conceivable drinking space in-between. We Britons drink 165,000,000 cups of the magic caramel coloured liquid every single day and it has become as much of our culture as the Queen, red phone boxes, green fields and black cabs.
How many of us still take a tea break still at work? A lot is the answer: 80% of office workers now claim they find out more about what's going on at work over a cup of tea than in any other way so if you’re looking to climb the ladder you should be hanging out near the kettle rather than outside the boardroom. To help get in the bosses good books you need to make sure their cuppa is perfect everytime; The United Kingdom Tea Council even have a handy poster you can keep by the kettle so there is no excuse for getting your boss’ preference wrong.
A cup of tea should always be drank with style (but never with your pinkie finger out…that is just wrong) so here are some tea inspired paraphernalia to ensure you have a very stylish cuppa!
Aga 4 Mug Pink Teapot
£35.99 WoodstockFires.co.uk (Pictures above!)
No tea drinking home would be complete without a tea pot. The more ‘vinatge’ and quirky looking the better. This pink tea pot would look gorgeous in a vintage styled kitchen surrounded by kitsch prints and vintage touches.
Regency Cakestand 3 Tier
£29.95 dotcomgiftshop.com
Itgoes without saying that tea always goes well with a slice of cake (or two).
Blue Painted Kashmiri Tea Table
£39.95 dotcomgiftshop.com
How about this gorgeous Kashmiri tea table? Perfect for placing your teapot and cups onto!
Pink Regency Teacup And Saucer
£6.95 dotcomgiftshop.com
You will always need a cup and saucer. The prettier the better.
Keep Calm and Drink Tea Poster
$15.95 Etsy
Tea Party Set
£14.95 bombayduck.co.uk
Union Jack Tea Cosie
Karen Hilton Designs, £24, allthingsoriginal.com
Tea Advice
Finally, when you have all of your lovely tea bits and bobs you’ll need to know how to make the prefect brew. Follow these simple instructions and you can’t go wrong...
- Use a good quality loose leaf or bagged tea
- This must be stored in an air-tight container at room temperature
- Always use freshly drawn boiling water
- In order to draw the best flavour out of the tea the water must contain oxygen, this is reduced if the water is boiled more than once.
- Measure the tea carefully
- Use 1 tea bag or 1 rounded teaspoon of loose tea for each cup to be served
- Allow the tea to brew for the recommended time before pouring
- Brewing tea from a bag in a mug? Milk in last is best