Tea Rituals

collection of vintage tea and coffee cups | via @victoriamstudio

antique demitasse cup, hand painted | via @victoriamstudio

Do you collect anything? Stamps, coins, the occasional designer handbag (lucky you!)? I was never much of a collector growing up. But over the last 5+ years, I began collecting tea and coffee cups, most of them vintage or antique. I’ve grown to love collecting these babies, for a whole host of reasons. For one thing, it’s something I can enjoy on my own (it brings me such pleasure to drink out of an old teacup on workday afternoons). For another, it’s something I can enjoy with friends — girlfriends especially get a kick out of drinking from these tea cups, and I really love home decor pieces that are also conversation pieces. Nearly all of my teacups have happy memories or family history associated with them, and as I was making myself a cup of tea last week, I decided it’d be fun to share some of my collection here with you. More on my favorite pieces, the stories behind them, and my favorite teas below. I hope you enjoy! 

collection of vintage and antique coffee & tea cups | From @victoriamstudio

So, my little collection! It all started when I went to visit my grandmother in Houston in the summer of 2012. As many of you know, I inherited my love of old things and decor from her — so it should come as no surprise that my collection started on a random antique shop visit that hot summer.

vintage english 'lobster' Cancer sign tea cup | via @victoriamstudio

vintage tea cups | via @victoriamstudio

I saw the lobster teacup pictured above in a glass case, and immediately had to have it. Backstory: years before, I’d bought a t-shirt off Etsy that had a screenprint and a cute poem about lobsters written on it in French (listen, it was my fresh-out-of-college t-shirt style. Don’t judge). Whenever I’d wear it, Joe would call me “his little lobster,” and after a while, the nickname stuck (or at least, became one of many random nicknames I’d respond to. But that’s another post. Wait, no it’s not!). So when I saw this lobster cup in the antique shop, it had to be mine. The saucer that it was perched on was not from the same set, or even the same maker. But they looked so perfect together, I bought it anyway. The lobster cup is from an English maker (ironically, named Tuscan). It’s part of a series of zodiac cups, and this one is associated with the astrological sign Cancer. Yeah, that’s the thing — the lobster is actually a crab. But damn if it doesn’t look like a lobster to me, so “the lobster tea cup” it shall remain. I’ve searched around online and found other cups from this series. I kinda hope I can find more out in the wild! Though this Leo one might have to be an online purchase…

The green tea cup and saucer I’ve pictured with it are an Alameda Antiques Faire find. There aren’t a ton of vendors focused on vintage or antique tea cups, but there’s one lady on the north side of the fair that always has them. If you’re a local, look for her — she’s always at the end of an aisle, with tea cups stacked on a few tables. I was drawn to this particular cup because of the color and the shape. I thought the angular shape of the cup was unique.

antique demitasse cups | via @victoriamstudio

The demitasse cups pictured above are a recent gift from my grandmother. They actually belonged to her mother, and are part of a large collection of china that I’ll eventually inherit some day. When I visited my grandmother in the spring, we were going through her china cabinet and I saw these. I thought they were stunning! I don’t think she’d used them in years, so we carefully packed them up and she shipped them to me. The cups are so feather thin and delicate — I always think I can feel their age. The hand painted motif is so beautiful, as is the gold that rims the cups and saucers. I love the pattern so much, I “stole” one of the saucers to use as a soap dish in my bathroom. You gotta find little ways to bring things you love into your everyday life, you know? These are a set I’ll treasure forever.

emilie tea cup - astier de villatte, and le creuset ceramic french press | via @victoriamstudio

emilie tea cup from astier de villatte | via @victoriamstudio

The last cup I wanted to tell you about was also a gift from my grandmother, but of the more modern variety. This teacup is the one I probably drink from the most, when I’m not drinking from our basic everyday mugs. It’s from Astier de Villatte, a wonderful French ceramics company that makes the most incredible serveware pieces. I dream of having a china cabinet full of the stuff, but it’s, shall we say, an investment. My grandma surprised me with this particular cup a few Christmases ago. I just love the handle on it — it’s so intricate and beautiful. The cup also has this really organic, handmade feel, as it’s not perfectly round nor perfectly level at the top. It speaks to the individuality of each piece Astier de Villatte makes. If you want to get to know the company, I highly recommend you watch this adorable video they released a couple years ago. It really shows the care and craftsmanship that goes into their work — and actually, everything the company does.

vintage tea cup from germany | via @victoriamstudio

collection of vintage tea cups | via @victoriamstudio

Ok, so now that you’ve seen my collection, what type of tea do I like to drink? Well, to be honest, many days I keep things simple and will use bagged teas. But be forewarned, all bag teas are definitely NOT created equal. You should try and purchase a loose/full leaf bagged tea if you can. I’ve tried so many brands over the years; my recent favorite is a brand called Paromi. I tend to default to jasmine tea, and theirs is excellent — the aroma is gorgeous, and the flavor is really well balanced. I used to drink Mighty Leaf’s organic spring jasmine (which I’ll still order at restaurants, as many places serve it), but when I switched to Paromi, I couldn’t believe the difference in taste. Paromi is available at Whole Foods, and bonus alert: the grey jars the tea comes in are also great for storing random knickknacks, pens, or brushes. I use mine to hold paint brushes in the office.

cast iron tea pot | via @victoriamstudio

green tea | via @victoriamstudio

After years of meaning to, I recently bought a little cast iron tea pot and filter. Whenever I’ve seen these in stores and online, they’re quite expensive. Pro tip: check out your local restaurant supply store. I bought mine at Kamei in San Francisco (out in the Inner Richmond, on Clement), which is one of my favorite places to find little dishes and serveware. I think it was $30? A far better deal than any I’d seen at bigger retailers! Anyway, having a tea pot like this has allowed me to start working my way through all the loose leaf tea I’ve bought or been gifted. The last few weeks, I finally opened a beautiful green tea my friend Hitha brought back to me from China quite a while ago (Hitha, if/when you read this, know I was saving it for a proper tea vessel!). I love making the tea in the cast iron pot and bringing it into the office to sip on throughout the afternoon. I think I drink more (yay for being hydrated!), and the ritual of it is just so fun.

Beyond obvious tea sources like Mariage Frères, I’ll cop to it: I know very little about finding the best full leaf teas, especially online, so I’m just gonna let this post do it for me. In my case, it was step one: fun tea cups. Step two: find amazing tea. So with that in mind, recommendations are welcome! If you’re a tea lover, what loose leaf tea brands/companies do you like? As I mentioned, I’m particularly partial to jasmine.

I hope you liked getting to see my burgeoning tea and coffee cup collection! I’d love to know — do you collect anything? Why’d you pick that item in particular?

5 Comments

  1. 8.18.16
    Monica said:

    So intrigued by your little collection! It’s making me want to start collecting teacups, but your connection to family is truly special. They’re all so cute–can’t even pick a favorite! Saving the Astier de Villatte to watch later :)

    My family has collected spoons from traveling for ages, and has amassed quite the collection in a display case in our family dining room. They’re unfortunately way harder to find now, except in touristy European cities. I’m hoping to keep that tradition alive, but have also been collecting restaurant matchbooks myself. Sort of annoying when you have to fly with them because technically they aren’t supposed to even be in your checked luggage, so I’ve been emptying out the actual matches and keeping the books/boxes in my handbag out of fear of them being confiscated. Paranoid but some of them are SO cute (and they’re so hard to come by these days!).

    • 8.18.16

      I think you’ll love the AdV short film!

      Interesting you say that about spoons — someone in my family collected those too. She liked collecting the small serving spoons, often used for dishing up things like candies. It’s really popular in the south…maybe it’s a Texas thing!

  2. 8.18.16
    Kiersten said:

    My mom and I collect teapots. It’s a nice hobby to have. :)
    Kiersten @ Autumn Country Girl

    • 8.18.16

      Ooh, how fun! If we combined my tea cup collection and your teapot collection…ultimate tea party?

  3. 11.30.16
    Michele said:

    Since I was a little girl, I loved the little soaps that my dad would bring back from his business trips. Not the square paper-wrapped ones from a motel, but the shell-shaped soaps or the pretty rounds ones in paper with a foil sticker. I had a huge drawer full of them! As I’ve gotten older, my tastes are a little more sophisticated (although I totally still take an extra soap with me home from a hotel stay!) and I like to buy soaps made locally or that have scents of the specific region. There are great soaps from Brazil that I’ll hook you up with when Fer gets back from seeing his family this January. FaceTime date for the holidays over a glass of vino?

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