100BC- Tea was invented by mistake and many myths about where the first cup was brewed, although there is two stories about the invention of tea. The first was that the Chinese emperor was drinking boiled water as he was very health conscious, when some leaves from a nearby shrub flew into his drink. At first he was going to punish his servant for allowing this to happen, but then he tasted the drink and then realised it tasted delicious. The second is that the Buddhist was chewing on leaves to help him stay awake in his sessions of meditation.
790BC- What we do know is where tea drinking was first documented in China. We also have a vague idea of when: at some point in the first millennium BCE. In around 790 CE, the 'sage of tea' Lu Yu wrote a book called Cha Jing: the 'tea classic', which describes how to grow, prepare and evaluate tea.
800BC- Ancient sources suggest that tea first spread from China to Japan in the ninth century CE, and for the first few centuries it was seen as a royal drink, exclusive to the Emperor and his family. Today, green tea is the most popular kind in Japan, and comes in a wide range of different varieties.
850BC- The style of tea preparation used in tea ceremonies is known as 'chado' and involves whipping together hot water and powdered tea. This began around the end of the twelfth century. However, the highly elaborate practices that form the traditional tea ceremony, as it is now known, evolved slowly over many centuries.
1100C- The twelfth century may also have been when tea-drinking spread south and west to India. It has been suggested that there is a reference to tea in the Ramayana: the 'Sanjeevani' plant brought from the Himalayas for medicinal use. However, this is now generally thought to be an unrelated plant.
1600C- The East India Company was an extremely powerful, monopolistic trading company that dominated trade between and in the Indian sub-continent. When the UK's demand for tea surged in the 18th century it was uniquely placed to supply - and massively profit - from the circumstances. Although later challenged and regulated, its influence on the tea trade should not be underestimated.
1700C- However, in the eighteenth century tea was heavily taxed. This led to a rise in tea smuggling, which could be surprisingly violent. In 1747, the country was shocked by the crimes of the Hawkhurst tea smuggling gang, who tortured to death a customs official and an informer.
1840C- Anna Russell, Duchess of Bedford, is credited with the invention of 'tea' as a light afternoon meal, involving black tea with milk and sugar and light finger foods, predominantly sweet but also savoury. The cream tea, in which tea is served with scones, jam and cream is one of the most popular varieties. This is more popularly known today as afternoon tea.
1920C- Things changed during the World War One, when the British government took control over tea importation. They recognised that a good cuppa was a vital part of keeping morale high, and wanted to make sure it was available at a reasonable price to everyone who wanted to drink it.
1950C- Designs for a teabag were first patented right at the beginning of the twentieth century, but it was not until the middle of the century that they became popular. They were originally little sacks made out of silk: the classic paper fibre, rectangular bag, was invented in 1944.
2000C- Over 60 billion cups of tea are drunk in the UK every year and some 1,500 different varieties are thought to exist, according to the UK Tea Council. With an ever expanding afternoon tea scene, it would appear the British love affair with tea is as strong as ever.
Packaging
Teabag Tag
Concept Ideas
Current Solutions
I have found so many good contraptions that have created a solution to my concept already... So I have decided to change my idea, to create tea to deliver best to different times of the day rather than having a solution to the teabag spillage.
In my research I also found that teabags are also very bad for your health and therefore I have decided to change my outcome to loose leaf tea. As this has led me to also change my drinking habits & I only not drink loose leaf tea.
