How to Make Your Own Teabags

Forget the store bought version. You’re going to love this DIY teabag recipe. And they make great gifts too.

Something I started to appreciate from my lockdown experience back in 2020, was re-channeling my creative side. I started baking again, cooking interesting recipes, painting, and a variety of other DIY gifts like making soaps and even my own tea. In-fact to ensure I had a nice strong immense system during the whole plandemic (no that is not a spelling error), I began growing my own echinacea and then brewing my own tea when it was ready for harvest, to boost my immune system and keep me healthy whilst in lock down.

Though I didn’t really post much content about all my DIY experiences from last year, as I was spending my time going through a little URBEX craze (exploring abandoned buildings) which is still kind of something I like to do, just not as much. I opted to move most of this content into 2021, as I knew a lot of people would be looking for ways to perhaps start something on the side of their normal job, if they found the whole 2020 experience more than traumatic, when it came to your financial status.

I have always had odd jobs on the side. My problem is sticking to them. Simply put, life just gets in the way. So, this year, I opted to focus on the things I really nailed with my DIY experiences, like making tea, making soap, lip balms (which I have been doing forever), gift cards, and wreaths. Which you would have seen my post (maybe) on a Christmas wreath I made for the bestie)

Click HERE to see a variety of posts I have done for DIY wreaths.

with all that being said, I am super excited to announce as a pre-launch, I will be launching my very own shop on Etsy. Of course, I did already have a store on Etsy for my lip balms. however last year and 2019 were bad years for personal reasons. So, I didn’t have much of a chance to actually do much about my lip balms. So for the last three months, I have been buckling down, creating and getting things ready to launch a proper shop on Etsy, which will also be on Instagram too.

Inside the shop you will find the following, occasional wreaths for special events. These will be one offs though, as they are very time consuming to make. But can be made to order if needed. Gift cards for occasions, like Easter, Mother’s Day, Father’s Day and Christmas. I may do Birthday’s. Undecided right now. I will be of course keeping the lip balms. However, these have changed a little. And I will be adding soap and teabags to the shop now too.

I’m super excited, so make sure you stay tuned for when it launches, as I will Abe announcing it are with launch deals and sales to kick start the business.

In the meantime though, I have fallen in love with making my own tea and tea bags. So, I wanted to share with you a fabulous recipe I have been using to make my own.

What you’ll need:

• A pencil and pinking shears (or small scissors)
• Muslin cloth or cheese cloth – which can be purchased from a fabric shop. You can also use fabric similar to that of organza bags, but just make sure you don’t get anything that’s been died with colours.
• If you want to go pro the first time around, you can also purchase empty teabags online too.
• If you don’t want to dry your own tea and make from scratch, then you can simply purchase your favourite loose tea and bag up for this purpose to get you started.
• Uncoloured natural twine, which can also be purchased from a fabric shop. Here in Australia Spotlight and Lincraft are the best for these supplies.
• Vintage postage stamps. These can be handmade, by sources images online and then printing onto stickers and placed on cardboard.

Of course, a lot of this can be up to your imagination as well. I know a few people and have bought some as well, where many have been mixing up their own loose tea leaf blends and popping into test tubes and selling online. Such a great way to sell tea. It’s really up to your imagination and what you wish to create.

Here’s how you make them:

1. Using a pencil, draw circles around 16cm in diameter onto whatever cloth you have chosen to hold the tea.
2. I used an overturned breakfast bowl as a template which kept the circle nice and neat.
3. Using your pinking shears, scissors or whatever you can, cut the circle out of the cloth.
4. Place a small amount of the tea into the centre of the circle.
5. Gather up the edges of the circle and bunch into a nice neat shape.
6. Tie with the twine to secure the tea, leaving enough of a length to drape over a teacup.
7. If you find there is excess cloth, you can neatly trim this ensuring you don’t make it to messy or damage your twine.
8. Grab 2 of your stamps, whether they are actual stamps or ones on cardboard and place the end of the twine which would drape over the teacup between the 2 stamps.
9. You will need to glue these together somehow, using safe glue. Or if you;re using real stamps, then can be wet using a little water, and then pressed together to seal.

And you’re done. You just made your first teabag – well done you. Enjoy or make for a friend, so they can enjoy it too.