diy by Kate Pruitt 68

diy project: valentine’s tea, three ways


I come from a family of die-hard tea drinkers, so I am naturally predisposed to liking pretty much anything tea-related: teapots, mug cozies, you name it. Last week, one of our readers, Austin-based blogger and crafter Emma Hadzi-Anitch, shared an adorable idea she had to make her own teabags for an easy and simple Valentine’s Day gift. I loved the project so much, I had to experiment with it, and I went a little crazy . . . too much Irish Breakfast pumping through my system, I guess.

I’ve included three different teabag designs, each one easier than the last. Whatever your time, budget or skill level allows, I guarantee you can whip up a whole batch of love tea for your Valentine before next Monday. I’m so charmed by these teabags that I might just make my own tea from now on, although I’ll gladly accept a box of Samovar’s Earl Grey or Yogi’s Ginger Tea any day. Thanks for the fantastic project inspiration, Emma, and Happy Valentine’s Day! — Kate

Floral arrangement by Studio Choo

CLICK HERE for the full how-to after the jump!

Materials

  • scissors
  • paper (white, red and/or any patterned paper you like)
  • cotton string
  • sewing needle and natural-color thread
  • lightweight cotton muslin (look for natural unbleached muslin, which should be available at most fabric stores)
  • heart-shaped paper punch
  • glue stick (or any craft glue)
  • loose tea (you can buy this or make your own)
  • pen

Instructions

Teabag Design #1: Heart-Shaped Teabags

1. Cut a 2.5″ square of cardboard, fold in half and cut half a heart shape against the fold to create a symmetrical heart template. Use the template to trace and cut heart shapes out of the muslin fabric.

2. Take two muslin hearts and stitch them together using the needle and cotton thread. Start at the bottom point of the heart and work your way around the edge, making your stitches very close together to prevent leakage. Stop stitching when you have just sewn past the second hump of the top of the heart, and leave the thread and needle hanging.

3. Fill the heart with about 1 tablespoon of loose tea, gently tapping the heart to settle and pack the tea inside. Pinch the heart shut with your fingers and sew the remainder of the edge to close up the heart pouch. Cut loose thread.

4. Thread the needle with the cotton string and pull through the center of the top of the heart. Make a knot to secure the thread to the teabag.

5. Cut a 0.5″ x 1.5″ rectangle out of paper and fold in half to make your tea tag. Write a cute note inside, or label with the type of tea. Poke the needle through the center of the tag fold and double knot the thread to secure the tag on the thread. Cut loose string.

6. Repeat all steps to make more teabags.

Teabag Design #2: No-Sew Teabag

1. Cut a 5″ x 5″ muslin square. Remove any long stray threads.

2. Fill the center of the square with 1 to 2 tablespoons of loose tea.

3. Roll the muslin into a tube, and fold the tube in half, tapping it to shift the tea to the bottom of the pouch. Pinch the two ends of the tube together, and tie a cotton string around the neck of the tube, right above where the tea sits inside. Knot tightly to secure the pouch. Cut extra muslin off the top of the pouch.

4. Cut a paper heart for the tag. Thread your needle onto the loose end of the cotton string and thread through the top center of the heart. Tie a small knot and cut the loose string.

5. Write a cute note or the type of tea on the back of the heart label.

6. Repeat all steps to make more teabags.

Teabag Design #3: Customized Pre-Made Teabags

1. Remove the paper tag from a store-bought teabag.

2. Cut 0.5″ x 1.5″ rectangles out of paper and fold in half. Use a heart punch to make small hearts from a contrasting color paper. Glue the heart onto the center of the tag and write a cute note inside.

3. Thread a needle with cotton string that is already attached to the teabag, and poke the needle through the center of the fold on the new tag. Knot inside the tag and cut extra string.

4. Repeat with other teabags.

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68 Comments

Katy

Such an adorable idea. You can also get these little tea bags that you can fill and iron shut, I’ve made tea blends as gifts before using those.

Shayna

What a cute idea! I love the heart shaped tea bags! I think I’ll use a back stitch to make sure none of the tea slides through the gaps.

On a completely unrelated note, the cup and saucer are just about the cutest I’ve ever seen. Please tell me where you got them (fingers crossed they’re not antiques)!

Shayna

One more thing. The “CLICK HERE” for the full how-to after the jump link is broken. The “read more” link does work.

dustin

I have to say I read the headline for this DIY a few times..at least four…and snickered.

jamie

My boyfriend (and lots of friends) love tea- these would make such cute v-day presents!

Asiya

wow…tea, hearts and a craft project…could it get any better than this?

Thank you so much for the idea, I will definitely include this as a favour to my friends!

Megan Page

Very awesome, I cant wait to whip some of these up with my girls!

Liz Carter

This is the best DIY project I’ve seen for Valentine’s Day in years, thanks so much for the idea and I can’t wait to get started on them this weekend!

Kelly

I love this! And I love tea, so this is perfect. Maybe I’ll be forgiven if I don’t give any of these away?

Ella

Oh that is so cute! What a great idea…

I love tea too. I drink it like crazy.
Have you ever tried the tea from Aveda? It’s really different.

But this post just makes me want to make my own…

I have a recipe for The Perfect Cup of Tea on my blog, Big Hug Studio, if anyone is interested. Just click on tea under labels on the left.

Blair

I love tea! This would be a perfect gift for my good girlfriends for valentine’s day! Thanks!

~Blair

Cathy Watters

I’m a ‘new’ tea drinker. I only started about a year ago. I have to say, I love that heart-shaped t-bag. What a great idea! Thank you.

Christa

This is the perfect gift for all my tea-loving friends! I wonder if the pattern could be tweaked for any other holidays…?

Cat

Love this!

The heart-shaped tea bags should only take a teaspoon of tea leaf, though. :) That’s the serving size, and why it’s called a teaspoon in the first place. ;)

Carla

This would also make great guest gifts for weddings! Very cute, easy to make and for any budget!

Courtenay

Great idea. Another spin is to get the teabags that you can fill and seal with an iron and add your tag. You can find the bags online. I found my @ a local health food store that sells bulk teas.

Lynn

Look so nice, but what do you do when done with the heart tea bag?
seems a waste to toss or compst. if could pull the stitch out easy and reuse.
Lynn D

grace

lynn

this is a great way to make use of fabric scraps that would be thrown away anyway, so if you’d prefer to find a way to save this, you can definitely remove the stitches, but i think this works best as a fabric-scrap project so you feel less guilty about throwing them away :)

g

Kate Pruitt

Hi Lynn,

Another option for the heart shaped bags is to make them out of paper instead of fabric. You can use coffee filters or another porous paper made form natural fibers, which will decompose when thrown out. Then the act of tossing them when finished isn’t so unbearable. Hope this helps!

Khinna

What a wonderful idea for the loved ones in my life! I must know where the teacup and saucer are from. Anyone know?

Kate Pruitt

Hi Khinna,
The teacup and saucer are from Anthropologie, about three or four years ago. They came in red, green, and yellow. I love them!

agostina

i loved this idea!!!! I’ll make them for a friend that LOVES tea. but i’ve got a question… did the heart fray when you put it in the water?
lovely idea! thank you for sharing

Rachel Blasdell

I love this. So much so that I made the heart shaped bags for my daughters at college today. I designed custom tea tags for them that have a phrase we use all the time to sign off on our emails, picked up a couple of cute mugs at Anthropologie and a wonderful pomegranate/green tea blend to put in the bags. A neighbor is taking them for me when she heads to Austin this weekend. Thanks for a lovely idea!

Alana

Started research into making the tea bags and my local craft store said that the muslin needs to be unbleached, natural muslin otherwise it is not “food safe.” I am now making my heart shape tea bags out of paper coffee filters. They sew together just fine and are safer to use when consuming. Make sure you check your muslin is safe for consumption.

isabelesque

Just read this for the first time and had to share. Could make the perfect note to accompany this gift:

Carol Ann Duffy

TEA

I like pouring your tea, lifting
the heavy pot, and tipping it up,
so the fragrant liquid streams in your china cup.

Or when you’re away, or at work,
I like to think of your cupped hands as you sip,
as you sip, of the faint half-smile of your lips.

I like the questions – sugar? – milk? –
and the answers I don’t know by heart, yet,
for I see your soul in your eyes, and I forget.

Jasmine, Gunpowder, Assam, Earl Grey, Ceylon,
I love tea’s names. Which tea would you like? I say
but it’s any tea for you, please, any time of day,

as the women harvest the slopes
for the sweetest leaves, on Mount Wu-Yi,
and I am your lover, smitten, straining your tea.

Danielle

I love the mug and saucer in the picture. Where did you find them?

Mandy

Wonderful! I made the heart shaped ones for my boyfriend for Valentines day and they are perfect! Thank you! <3

susan

I’ve been wondering about the ‘food safe’ aspect, as well.. I am for sure going the coffee filter route, now I am just unsure about the thread.. thoughts?…..

Brittany

I love this idea! I made these as thank you gifts for a fundraiser I did and everyone loved them! Such a wonderful Idea!!!! Thank you!

Brittany

Heather

I had my 8 year old son stitch some of these for teacher appreciation day. He also made some plantable wildflower paper for a card and the whole thing can be planted. His teacher was so impressed and loved the heartfelt gift. We also made one for his soon to be step mom for mothers day. I absolutely love these, they are simply lovely.

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