Surely the best part of winter is having reason to drink even more tea. Gotta keep warm, right?
‘Tis not the season for mug-in-the-microwave tea. Nay, winter tea calls for the careful selection of just the right teapot, just the right cup and saucer, and your favorite silver teaspoon. It often means turning your nose up at tea bags (gasp!) in favor of that raise-the-eyebrow indulgence, loose tea. Oh yes — you’re worth it, you tea slut, you.
Loose loose loose.
Don’t worry, I won’t tell your mama.
And as long as you’re gonna brew a perky pot (better look sharp as Mr. Darcy is sure to visit), you know very well this will require some patience. Once it’s ready you’ll want to sip and savor ever so slowly, while you dip into that bodice ripper socially redeeming literary novel, or skillfully chat up your dapper British tea companion.
It was for times like these that lovely, adorable, whimsical tea cosies were invented. They likely appeared around the same time the Duchess of Bedford popularized afternoon tea in late 19th century Britain. With so much serious chit chat and juicy gossip going on — and when one is trading scandalous bon mots, one must never rush — they had to find a way to keep their teapots warm.
Warm and covered. Naked teapots would never do (oh, my virgin eyes).
Aren’t tea cosies so veddy British? Who else would think to “dress” their teapots with such care and attention, in the same manner a doting mother would adorn her offspring? A warm teapot is a happy teapot, and happy teapots produce the best tea. 🙂
The Victorians dressed their teapots in elegant brocades and linens. It was a chance to show off fine needlepoint, embroidery and beadworking skills. Why not turn a utilitarian object into a beautiful work of art? We’re British, after all.
Lucky for us, today there are tea cosies to suit every whim, occasion and fancy. They are sewn, crocheted, knitted, felted, embroidered, quilted, lined and padded. You can purchase them ready made, or if you’re feeling especially crafty, there are many instantly downloadable PDFs with knitting or crocheting instructions.
But how to choose? So many tea cosies, so little time! Here are a few others that caught my eye. Such imagination and creativity! Click on each image for more info. Enjoy!
Oh, and did you know there’s actually a National Wear a Tea Cosy on Your Head Day? Sponsored by the White Stuff Foundation, it usually takes place in September and is held to benefit various local charities in the UK. Pretty cool, no? 🙂
Wishing you an exceptionally cozy day doing whatever it is that makes you happy!
❤️ Love,
Cozy Loose Cornelius
xo
Copyright © 2017 Jama Rattigan of Jama’s Alphabet Soup. All rights reserved.
Jama's Alphabet Soup 
WANT! I would be happy with any of those. Some of my favorites are the antique beadwork, sheep, cottage garden, and velvet and lace. Great collection, Jama!
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Yes, I would be happy with any of them too. I marvel at the prize winning cosy made with all those strings!
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Tea cozies! One of my favorite things!
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It’s fun to look at the many different possibilities.
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Makes one feel all warm and ready to cozy up with a good book and to drink hot tea. Love the Queen tea cosy! Mmmm….. Cozy vs. cosy! Cozy, I found out from Dictionary.com is the US version of cosy. Interesting. Thanks, Jama, for some “word play” today!
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It’s interesting to compare U.S. vs. British spellings of certain words, isn’t it?
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I so agree. I’ve never been able to bear tea-bags -the tea tastes dusty and leaves a chemical film on the surface and even the name sounds disgraceful. The reason a cosy is essential is that otherwise your second cup of tea isn’t properly hot. BTW the best use of tea-bags ever was in that exquisite gallery of paintings on tea-bags.
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Yes, I love how Ruby Silvious used tea bags as her canvas. Part of the enjoyment of tea drinking is all the accoutrements that come with it — not only cosies, but infusers, tiny teaspoons, tea bag rests, etc.
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JAMA. YOU’RE KILLING ME.
I never even thought about felted tea cosies, but NOW I KNOW THEY EXIST. Argh. I now need a much larger tea pot, because seriously, the point of some of these tea cosies is to keep much more tea warm… and I need to get my loose tea thing on, too, and make an order (I am weaning myself away from bags)…
…I love that there are so many accoutrements to things that I love. Honestly, it’s not like there’s a huge run on tea pots now; people really LIKE microwaves, and convenience. I’m happy to go 100 mph backwards.
Here’s to being a Luddite. ♥
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I couldn’t do without my microwave — can’t beat it for convenience. It’s nice sometimes to be a Luddite and do things the slower way. And as far as I’m concerned, one can never have too many teapots or teacups! 🙂
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If there is a National Wear a Tea Cosy on Your Head Day, I think we now have every kind of day possible!
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Only the British would think of that. 🙂
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Oh my goodness, these are amazing! I have shopped for a tea cosy in the United States, and it was an extremely frustrating experience. And I am craft challenged, so making one myself is not really an option either. I do have one now, but it’s not nearly as cute as these. Ruth, thereisnosuchthingasagodforsakentown.blogspot.com
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The two I have were bought in England back in the 70’s. Still love them, but these are nicer. 🙂
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Oh, how wonderful!! I grew up in a family in “putting the kettle on” was a regular ritual, and my grandmother had a trusty, handmade tea cosy that she used for years and years. I actually never experience loose leaf tea until I was an adult! Growing up it was always bags of Red Rose or Tetley, and actually having loose leaf tea was so exciting! 😉
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These are all wonderful! ❤ the hedgehog and snowy owl, oh, and Paddington, too!
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