ISFMA the Blog

For many people, taking time out of a busy afternoon to enjoy sipping a cup of flavorful leaf tea from a favorite herbal tea, can help to melt stress and push their concerns into the background so they can gain perspective and some respite from the demands of the day. Tea time can have a magical effect when sometimes nothing else will do.

Tea cups come in many different varieties of shape, color, material, and size, although in general they all have some common attributes that make them different from other types of cups and mugs. First they are typically more shallow than coffee cups, which allows the tea to be able to cool off more quickly.

tea cup
Most often, tea cups are made from fine materials, such as bone china or fine porcelain, and the higher quality cups have a very translucent aspect to them, adding to the sense of refinement in them. Tea cups normally come in sets, often with a full tea service that includes a matching tea pot, and various accessories such as sugar bowls and creamers, infusers and strainers, and sometimes even spoons and a spoon rest.

Tea cups also have a traditional shape and components that set them apart, such as small handles designed to be held with the thumb and just one or two fingers, as opposed to a coffee cup which generally has a more substantial handle to accommodate all the fingers.

tea pots
Most cups designed for tea drinking also have a elegant shape meant to fit comfortably in the hand and have a well-formed cup that gracefully curves outward toward the thin rim that makes sipping quite easy.

Most tea cups also have a footed base that also flares out slightly adding to the classic design. Matching saucers also are traditionally part of the tea cup set, although many tea sets are also available without saucers.

Tea cups seem to lend themselves perfectly to being embellished with flowing floral designs, but many other patterns can also be as well. The great variety in their shape and the many different patterns that have been applied to tea cups over the centuries has made them highly sought after by collectors and are some of the most prized possessions in many collections.

green tea extract
Tea cups do tend to be fragile, which is one of the reasons that collectors are so excited to find older pieces in good condition, especially if they are able to find multiple cups with their matching saucers to form a complete set.

If you are considering hosting a tea party, you will want to find some lovely tea cups for the occasion, as coffee cups or coffee mugs just don’t have the right feel for such an event.

For your special tea cups, having a distinctive tea cup to call your own is a great way to make your break even more memorable and enjoyable.