Top Of The Pots

By: vennasa lee

It soothes, provides a totally acceptable excuse for a break and we were all weaned on the stuff.

These days most people resort to mugs and dusty little gauze bags, but would remember and sometimes practice for guests the art of making the real thing.
Tea. Mostly taken for granted and one of the more acceptable addictions among the general populace.

Many Asian cultures have for centuries used it in elaborate social ceremonies.
In the Western world, there was a time - a century or so ago - when it was reserved for the rich, and the paraphernalia that went with its making and drinking was as elaborate as you could afford.

Many a Victorian and Edwardian lady caught up on the gossip, met a future mother-in-law over a steaming silver or China pot, or had an afternoon out with friends on the pretext of drinking the stuff.

Once the masses got the taste though, chunky "Brown Betty" teapots marched across the land and into every kitchen.

In spite of the cardboard packet rather than the caddy, the teabag and mug instead of the pot, the traditions have refused to die.

There is an army of teapot collectors out there. How many people do you know who collect souvenir teaspoons?Or tins? The beauty is, you get to use the goods, unless it is a George III silver job worth $6000 or a rare piece of Royal Doulton.

Sisters Victoria and Joanna Garner probably know more about tea and teapots than most. Victoria's addiction started while she was living in London in 1984 and kept gravitating back to the specialist Tea House in Covent Garden. The teapot choice and the stuff to go in them was ever changing.

"I missed it so much when I came back to Australia that I went on a long search for the right place to open one," she said.

Last year, she and Joanna found Edwardian heaven in Maling Rd, Canterbury and, in a short time, Time For Tea has become a magnet for collectors from across Melbourne and interstate.

The younger generation is increasingly attracted to the novelty of the traditional teapots on offer. Any haunter of weekend markets and general antique markets knows that teapots are easy to come by. The old Brown Bettys and traditional china ones can be had for under $20, but can range up to thousands depending on their quality, antiquity or craftsmanship.

"We get quite a few men collecting and buying them for themselves.It's not a strictly female thing," says Victoria.

The serious ones, she says, would never make tea in them and do not even check whether they pour well or judge whether they will make the consummate cuppa. They live on shelves.

Others are attracted by the zany in the shape of cars, dressing tables, sphinxes, camels, cupcakes - you name it. Victoria's last trip to the UK revealed a roaring trade in caricature Princess Dianas and a Queen with a corgi for a spout.
Traditionalists go for willow patterns, decorated china, quaint cottages or the coveted silver service for best.

Victoria personally has about six much loved pots. She is an anti-mug person and firmly believes in different pots for different types of tea.
This is in spite of the fact she has four children who all hate the stuff and steadfastly refuse to even take a sip.

There are a few tips for serious drinkers. To Victoria though, the old standby metal is the greatest horror, as the tannin reacts with the material for a truly metallic brew. Even that ornate silver number Grandma uses for best would turn a connoisseur off, as their interiors are usually of a lesser metal.

It is simple, Victoria says. Any good quality China teapot is going to provide the taste sensation.Most porcelains, unless very heavy duty, will not handle the strain and the old clay varieties tend to conjure up mugs of strong stuff if that is your poison.

A lot of people are experimenting with herbal teas in the wake of the caffeine debate, but Victoria believes it will be some time before they replace traditional blends.

"It's a bit like becoming a vegetarian. You don't do it overnight, it's a weaning process." Environmental awareness has had its spin-offs, though. Many are turning off excess packaging and opting to buy their tea loose. Even the quainter balsa-wood packaging on more exotic varieties is giving way to scooping your own.

Traditional old Bushell's tea tins, which are becoming very collectible and valuable, and other decorative lines, can be picked up for around $20 or more, depending on your budget, and simply refilled.

Which leads the bowerbird towards teaspoons, strainers and infusers.Again they can cost a few dollars or thousands.

And, for the collectors who like to use their teapots, there's the question of the cups and saucers to go with them. Expand that into a full-blown afternoon tea for friends and you could end up with a houseful of china.

Article Source: https://www.collectibles-articles.com

Please consider handmade yixing teapots and accessories from Yixing, China.

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