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A teacup & saucer.
The two go together much like peanut butter & jelly here in the states and clotted cream & jam on a scone in the UK (the order of which goes on top will forever be in debate ;)).
And while to the neophyte tea drinker, it may appear pretentious to use a teacup & saucer or at the very least unnecessary or perhaps extravagant, it is anything but.
This utilitarian combination provides simplicity in its functionality, as well as an encouragement to enjoy the present moment.
Let’s take a look at 14 ways why choosing to drink tea (or even espresso) out of a teacup & saucer is a worthwhile choice to make.
1.A coaster at the ready
An obvious one right out of the gate, but one that grants flexibility with where you choose to sit and enjoy your hot beverage. A teacup & saucer provides the safe resting spot for your teacup without worry of damaging any furniture.
2. Encouragement to slow down
Choosing a teacup & saucer over a travel mug invites us, no, encourages us, to find a spot to relax, be still and savor.
Sipping tea in the afternoon with savory and sweet nibbles may have been established by British royalty, but in our contemporary world that is all the more bustling and harried if we allow it, choosing a ritual, even a habit, that when we enjoy our tea we will pour it into a teacup & saucer, requires that we take a physical break from doing and instead just be. A very nourishing daily routine for our well-being.
3. An opportunity to merge beauty and function
The beauty and artistry available on teacups & saucers is endless, and what a wonderful truth that is. Just to gaze at a beautifully designed piece is to look at art. Admittedly, this makes it all the more difficult to choose which we will welcome into our cupboards and use in our everydays, but what a wonderful dilemma, no?
4. Pieces with stories contained within
As someone who has purchased far too many teacups & saucers at thrift shops and consignment boutiques, and thus had to whittle my selections down to fit cupboard space, but more truthfully, guarantee of usage, once I began choosing pieces that symbolized something memorable to me, I became able to appreciate the beauty of all of them all the more, easily not purchase and only window shop, but also know which ones would be a part of my tea cupboard.
5. Prevent having to hold a hot cup in our hands (if too hot too hold)
While sometimes indeed holding a hot cup of warm liquid is desired to warm our body up on a cold day, the assurance that we can hold a hot cup of tea without burning our hands provides a peace of mind. Because like many of you, I like my tea quite hot. ☺️
6. Provide stability and prevent spills
Again, a smart design that looks fancy, but is grounded in sensibility. Nobody wants to spill not only a hot liquid, but a staining liquid on their clothes or fabrics and furniture, and the saucer provides that base complete with a notched spot exactly sized for the accompanying teacup.
7. Perfect as a work companion
Whether due to having a variety of items – books, notepads, just things on my desk, knowing I can trust that I won’t spill my tea, and that it is within arm’s reach to be enjoyed because I can place it anywhere due to its sturdiness, is a simple luxury that is actually a necessity I treasure.
The work day hasn’t officially begun until I have poured my teacup with English Breakfast tea, placed it in its saucer and then next to the workspace I find myself.
8. Historically, the saucer was meant to hold the tea (for a moment)
While this practice is no longer in practice, it wasn’t long ago that the saucer (which originally was just that originating from China, a plate to hold sauce and having nothing to do with tea) would be a place to pour a bit of the tea (from the cup) into. Why would they do this? Due to the increased surface area, this would cool the tea more quickly as tea used to be served extremely hot. Sipping the tea from the saucer was common practice and encouraged (and understood), so that the tea could be enjoyed without waiting too long for it to cool.
The sipping from the saucer was considered “more efficient — and actually considered more polite — to drink coffee from a saucer first rather than trying to carefully sip it while it was hot” (source).
9. The tea’s full flavor is experienced
If you are sipping tea from a porcelain teacup, which is finer in its design, fellow tea lover and utilizer of a teacup & saucer Liz Steel (illustrator) shares that “there are scientific reasons [that the tea tastes better in porcelain] – the china is smoother and a thinner rim means the tea gets to the tongue quickly increasing the taste . . . [also]. fine china retains the heat longer.”
10. Keep the tea hotter longer
To continue off the last point above, fine china retains heat better than other materials. And regardless of which material you are using, if you have had the chance to enjoy tea at an establishment that warms up the teacup & saucer before serving, the reason they are doing this is so that the heat of the tea, not touching the table it will be set, due to having the saucer, will retained the hot temperature for longer than had it touched the cooler surface of the table.
11. A reminder to eat more slowly
Pairing a hot cuppa with a dessert to conclude the meal is my go-to preferred drink of choice, and when we pair our food with tea, just as sipping tea all by itself slows us down, it also slows down how quickly we eat our dessert, thus savoring it all the more (and not overindulging).
12. A helpful place to hold a biscuit
Speaking of nibbling on something sweet, the saucer also provides the place for our biscuit or small snack to rest in between bites and dunks. ☺️
13. A reminder to take time for yourself
Each of the images shared in today’s post were captured during my travels or in my everyday life. And all but three of the moments reflect a time I carved out an opportunity to be in my own company (Claridge’s afternoon tea and the chocolate cake pairing was enjoyed with my mother’s company, the latter while we stayed in Kent countryside at The Pig, and The Ritz tea was enjoyed with TOP Tier Members in London in 2023). For all of the reasons referencing slowing down, I know that when I pour myself a hot cuppa tea and choose a teacup & saucer, any rushing I may be doing will be reduced or eliminated. I also savor that opportunity to hold something so beautiful while sipping something so thoughtfully made to give the flavors of whichever harvest of leaves I have chosen. I am not alone in that I am great company all on my own.
14. Deepens our appreciation in simple, small things
The size of something does not negate or diminish its immense depth of what it offers. The British are, as we know, not the only ones to appreciate a moment to sip and savor tea. The ritual of doing so is often an opportunity for reflection and to deepen awareness of the present moment. The winding walk through the garden to the tea house in Japanese culture is to prepare the mind and body for the tea ceremony itself – to detach from the outside world, to reflect and thus deepen appreciation, ultimately bringing us to be fully present when we arrive to sit, sip and be.
The Garden of the Year at this year’s RHS Chelsea Flower Show, designed by Kazuyuki Ishihara, “Cha no Nita — Japanese Tea Garden” exhibits this aesthetic beautifully along with the tea house to engage fully while gazing on the tranquil natural space.
I hope you enjoyed today’s post, and if you haven’t felt comfortable using a teacup & saucer or don’t have teacups & saucers at the ready in your home to enjoy your tea, I hope today’s post encourages you to do so, as it really is a way to deepen our contentment as we slow down life even if for a moment, as well as keep our clothes and furniture clean ☺️.
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Interesting post. I had thought of saucers only as a convenient place to rest a spoon or a small treat but there is a lot more to it. Happy British Week.☔️
Love this! Ever so thoughtful and insightful. Who would have thought that the humble saucer could be so important?! Wish you a great day ahead 🙂
Thank you for this timely post. My 92 year old mother passed away on March 2 and today as my sister and I started going through her collections we took the time to appreciate her collection of teapots and tea cups and saucers. And most of them are beautiful porcelain sets. She cherished them all and began her collection of them after she tragically lost her own mother at the tender age of nine. She often talked about going to actual tea parties with her mother at her mother’s friends’ homes and how grown up she felt being a part of them. My sister and I will take some special ones and distribute others to the grandkids and great grandkids so they can have a special memory of their “Memaw” and we will encourage them to use the to make every day feel special for all the reasons you mentioned.
I enjoyed reading this post. A great way to enjoy, relax, and feel special all at once. Thanks much.