The Tea Time Toss-Up

There’s no doubt about it, I’m definitely not a morning person. The AM is a time when picking a tea to drink feels like a big chore. Whichever tea is out where I can see it is usually the one that makes it into my cup. While I love that my tea collection continues to grow, this also means that it’s sometimes hard to settle on a steep. This is where The Tea Time Toss-Up comes in to play. Can’t make a decision? Leave it up to chance!
I came across a version of this craft when I visited the Tea Farm Cafe in Honolulu last month. Perched on a shelf in the store was a little jar with scraps of paper inside. Each piece had the name of one of the teas that the shop offered–like a lottery of sorts. This clever little suggestion jar was the solution for both indecisive and adventurous tea lovers alike.My slightly done-up version of this project includes using die cuts, patterns, or cards that are a bit sturdier than your standard piece of scrap paper. You can use any kind of decorative trinkets here, even origami paper, wood shapes, or small balls work great. You’ll just want to make sure that the cut outs or trinkets are large enough to write on and sturdy too.
Just because I love a leafy green pop of color, I traced out hearts onto green craft paper and later cut and glued them onto heart-shaped corrugated cardboard pieces. With a trip to your local craft store you can easily personalize the look and feel of this project. Natural, wooden cut-outs like these Bubble Conversation Die Cuts are great if you are going for a slightly less cutesy look.
Use a vessel more than double the volume of the cut outs themselves to hold them all in. This way, you can mix or shake the trinkets freely when it’s time to choose your brew. Depending on your tea collection, get as specific or as general as you want when deciding on the tea labels. Because I have so many, I like to write somewhat specific types of tea without references to brands.   
Instead of just writing “Japanese Green Tea,” I write specific kinds of tea like “Sencha,” “Genmaicha,” “Kamairicha,” and “Houjicha.” If you have fewer teas, start with “White”, “Green”, “Oolong”, “Black,” and “Herbal” and evolve from there. Continue to add more trinkets into the mix as your tea collection grows and you’ll never be indecisive at tea time again!

The Tea Time Toss-Up

What You’ll Need:

jar, open or lidded (size will depend on how many teas you have)

paper or wooden cut outs/trinkets (I used cardboard hearts)

fine tip, permanent marker

colored paper, pencil for tracing, & scissors (optional, only if you are wanting to embellish the cutouts/trinkets)

craft glue

small patch of light-colored burlap (to create “Tea” label on the jar)

a mental list of your tea collection!

Step-By-Step:

1.  Write tea names and categories on each of the cut outs/trinkets using a permanent marker. You can used colored paper like I did to embellish the cut outs before writing on them as you see fit (trace the cut out shapes onto the paper, then cut them out and glue them onto the cut outs). Keep extra blank cut outs/ trinkets on hand to write on as your tea collection grows.

2.  Add the cut outs/trinkets into the jar. Using the marker again, write “Tea” on a small rectangular piece of burlap and glue it to the jar.

3. When it’s tea time, give the cut outs/trinkets a light toss with your hand, then pick one out to brew up and enjoy!

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