Discover the joy of creating your own, personalised tea ritual: my simple, 4-step guide

In lockdown last year I sold my girls’ playhouse and bought myself a garden seat to put on the spot where the playhouse sat. I had no idea at the time how much joy this simple seat would bring me. Almost every morning at around 10.30am I step out of my home office, steep myself a cup of tea and sit on my garden seat to drink it.

Chatting to some of my customers recently, I've loved hearing how much pleasure they get from their own tea ritual. The way it makes them feel calm, nurtured and grounded; how it can also be invigorating and stimulating, and how it feels luxurious but simple and necessary all at the same time.

My tea ritual does exactly the same thing for me.

My experience with my garden seat made me realise that you can be very deliberate about designing your own tea ritual. That, by doing this, you create an experience that feels personal and restorative. And its really easy to do.

Follow the steps below, make them your own, and create your own nurturing tea ritual.

Here’s my 4-step guide to creating your personalised tea ritual:

1). Design your tea tray.
Find your favourite tray and then choose each piece of teaware that feels special to you. What is your favourite tea cup? Do you have teapot or tea vessel that is functional and reflective of your own personal style? Have you got a nice teaspoon to use? Assemble these on your tray so they look pleasing to you. You could even add a little vase and single flower or a ceramic dish with a snack. You can see a photo of one of mine below.

2). Choose a spot to designate as your special tea space.
Ideally a place that is comfortable, quiet and serene. This might be a sofa chair with a warm rug and a view out the window, your kitchen table, a quiet corner or meeting room at the office (with headphones in to act as a DND), or a sunny spot outside like my garden seat on my lawn. My customer Helen’s is out on her deck looking at her view over the hills. Leave your phone far away from you where you can’t see or hear it (this is important!).

3). Decide on your regular tea time and schedule it.
Pick a time that makes sense for your schedule and put it in your calendar or daily plan. Give yourself 30 mins from start to finish. You may not need this long, but it means you won’t feel rushed. I know how easy it is to let self-care time slip and for it to be pushed behind everything else that ‘needs’ to get done. Your time might be every day or once a week. You can be flexible and change it if need be, but scheduling it helps with the mindset of giving yourself permission to take a break and installing it as a habit.

4). Prepare in advance
Once you know what you need on your tea tray, where and at what time you will be having your tea, prepare your tea tray in advance. Have your tea pouch or canister of your favourite tea on or beside the tray, along with your scales (if you use them) and your kettle filled. If you will be having your tea break mid-morning, do this while you’re making your breakfast, the night before, or as soon as you arrive at work. If you have a kettle you can program, set it to heat the water so its ready for you at your chosen time. Preparing in advance means you spend more time enjoying your tea break and less time in the kitchen.

No matter how much I have going on in my day, I know my brain works so much better if I take decent breaks. Sitting on my garden seat under my magnolia tree restores me, every time.

I’m a strong believer that investing in our wellbeing is not a luxury nor should it be a low-priority, negotiable activity. The more we look after ourselves, the more capable we are in every aspect of our lives.

What does your tea ritual look like? What will you have on your tea tray? Where is your special tea spot? Decide on it now and tell me in the comments below. I would love to hear about yours.

~ Anna