Tea Time, Storage Solutions

June 26, 2012

I love tea. When it comes from Starbucks. And is actually a soy latte.

So I’m not really a huge tea person. However, I know that many of you are. It’s herbal and great for you and metabolism and yadah yadah. Tea= terrific. The flimsy cardboard boxes they come in= a real pain in the arse to keep organized. They don’t stack well and their topple over rate is off the charts. To keep your tea time calm and hassle-free, I recommend ditching those standard boxes all together.

Your best bet for ensuring the longevity of your leaves is to opt for a dry, airtight glass or plastic container. Boxes like the ones below will keep your bags organized, visible, and accessible. They can usually be found for around $10-15 at places like The Container Store and IKEA.

{Tip: alternate the direction of the bags when stacking for maximum capacity}

These modular flip-out bins from The Container Store would also work pretty perfectly.

If you’re not as concerned with the whole airtight-ness, than a basket or wicker box might be your cup of…. oh man, I couldn’t do it. Just look at the picture.

As we know, glass jars will almost always come through in the clutch.

Or opt for a decorative tin-type canister:

If you’re a real tea fiend and/or British, you may wish to devote an entire drawer to your drink of choice. Throw some drawer dividers in there and you’re good to go!

If you don’t need to accommodate a vast amount of bags at any one time but still want ready access to them, then a tea bag dispenser is a smart storage option.

Bottoms up/ Cheerio!

Image credits: Cristina ReThe Holding Company, A Spoonful of Sugar, The Container StoreThe Holding Company, unknown, Graham and Green, Deulonder, Norpro via Amazon 

17 Comments

  1. hausandhome on June 26, 2012 at 7:58 am

    I love the built in storage for the tea and Nespresso pods. I Need that!

  2. Dawn {The Alternative Wife} on June 26, 2012 at 9:23 am

    I do love tea. Mostly peppermint that I drink every day but I do have quite the assortment at home. Right now I have in some different tins because I agree those cardboard boxes are so flimsy and messy. I’d love those drawer dividers. Wish I had space for them.

    Happy Tuesday! xoxo

    • Annie on June 26, 2012 at 9:56 am

      Tins will do the job! As long as you’re banishing those silly little boxes 😉

  3. Nicole on June 26, 2012 at 9:49 am

    I’ve been a subscriber for a few months now and Annie, I must tell you something funny. A week ago today I was helping my mother-in-law find pantry storage solutions. I was at a loss about all the tea bags.. so I did a little sleuthing and, after a while, I found the EXACT two you start off with from ikea and container store! I should have just waited a week and you’d have solved the tea dilemma as well! Thank you!

    • Annie on June 27, 2012 at 12:56 pm

      I can’t believe that timing, Nicole!! Happy to hear you’ve been reading along 🙂

  4. Jen on June 26, 2012 at 4:43 pm

    I’m one of those tea fanatics and I love your storage solutions for tea bags! However, many of us drink only loose-leaf tea and organizing that is an even greater conundrum. Currently, I have an entire shelf in my pantry devoted to tea. Each type has a bin: black tea, green tea, oolong and white tea. The tea packets get thrown into the appropriate bin. Not nearly as easy on the eyes as these, but I guess it keeps them corralled. Would love your ideas for that!

    • Annie on June 29, 2012 at 2:16 pm

      Sounds like you’ve got a system down! But will see what solutions I can dig up on this front. Stay tuned 🙂

  5. Rachel {little bits of lovely} on June 26, 2012 at 11:24 pm

    I’m not a big tea drinker but have a stash for when people visit. I love these ideas Annie, especially the modular flip out bins – it looks so cool! xx

  6. Pri on June 27, 2012 at 1:20 pm

    Hi! I shared your blog post on my Facebook page – http://www.facebook.com/reciPRIs. I am a vegetarian food blogger and also lover of tea. I love all of these storage solutions so much that I can’t decide which one to use! Thanks for the post. 🙂

    • Annie on June 29, 2012 at 2:12 pm

      Thank you so much for sharing Pri! So happy you liked the post!

  7. Estefanía Mendívil on June 27, 2012 at 2:58 pm

    I love tea, I always like to have different flavors in stock. The drawer idea is great, to dedicate a special place in the kitchen for my tea! Thanks for sharing! It´s my first time visiting your blog, love it!

    • Annie on June 29, 2012 at 2:14 pm

      So glad you found your way here! And I agree– that drawer is pretty much of a tea lover’s dream 🙂

  8. Adele Emerson on December 3, 2012 at 10:27 am

    Your ideas are good for the wrapped individual tea bags, but many of the tea’s I buy come in a box not individually wrapped. how would you store them.?

    • livesimplybyannie on December 3, 2012 at 10:53 am

      I got that question from someone else- thanks for reminding me of it. Watch out for a post on this!

  9. Brenda on March 2, 2013 at 11:37 am

    Thank you for this informative article! I was not happy with the acrylic storage containers I was finding on Amazon, and you pointed me to the Container Store version, which allowed for local pickup, which prevented the problem of receiving broken merchandise. Also, such a lovely site…I will explore some more!

  10. CinZilicious on June 5, 2013 at 10:35 pm

    I’m a big time tea person so this post and the post for the loose leaf tea was great and useful! I love the transparent tea storage in the first pic. Think i’ll be able to find something similar to it in Muji:)I reckon my only problem is when i buy teas that comes in really nice packagings like when i got tea from this French brand Fauchon i got in Paris,and the famous macaron French brand, Laduree, got really pretty packagings!!!

  11. Janet on October 24, 2013 at 9:47 am

    Can you tell me where I might find the tea bag wicker storage box?

Leave a Comment





Other Posts You May Love

17 Comments

  1. hausandhome on June 26, 2012 at 7:58 am

    I love the built in storage for the tea and Nespresso pods. I Need that!

  2. Dawn {The Alternative Wife} on June 26, 2012 at 9:23 am

    I do love tea. Mostly peppermint that I drink every day but I do have quite the assortment at home. Right now I have in some different tins because I agree those cardboard boxes are so flimsy and messy. I’d love those drawer dividers. Wish I had space for them.

    Happy Tuesday! xoxo

    • Annie on June 26, 2012 at 9:56 am

      Tins will do the job! As long as you’re banishing those silly little boxes 😉

  3. Nicole on June 26, 2012 at 9:49 am

    I’ve been a subscriber for a few months now and Annie, I must tell you something funny. A week ago today I was helping my mother-in-law find pantry storage solutions. I was at a loss about all the tea bags.. so I did a little sleuthing and, after a while, I found the EXACT two you start off with from ikea and container store! I should have just waited a week and you’d have solved the tea dilemma as well! Thank you!

    • Annie on June 27, 2012 at 12:56 pm

      I can’t believe that timing, Nicole!! Happy to hear you’ve been reading along 🙂

  4. Jen on June 26, 2012 at 4:43 pm

    I’m one of those tea fanatics and I love your storage solutions for tea bags! However, many of us drink only loose-leaf tea and organizing that is an even greater conundrum. Currently, I have an entire shelf in my pantry devoted to tea. Each type has a bin: black tea, green tea, oolong and white tea. The tea packets get thrown into the appropriate bin. Not nearly as easy on the eyes as these, but I guess it keeps them corralled. Would love your ideas for that!

    • Annie on June 29, 2012 at 2:16 pm

      Sounds like you’ve got a system down! But will see what solutions I can dig up on this front. Stay tuned 🙂

  5. Rachel {little bits of lovely} on June 26, 2012 at 11:24 pm

    I’m not a big tea drinker but have a stash for when people visit. I love these ideas Annie, especially the modular flip out bins – it looks so cool! xx

  6. Pri on June 27, 2012 at 1:20 pm

    Hi! I shared your blog post on my Facebook page – http://www.facebook.com/reciPRIs. I am a vegetarian food blogger and also lover of tea. I love all of these storage solutions so much that I can’t decide which one to use! Thanks for the post. 🙂

    • Annie on June 29, 2012 at 2:12 pm

      Thank you so much for sharing Pri! So happy you liked the post!

  7. Estefanía Mendívil on June 27, 2012 at 2:58 pm

    I love tea, I always like to have different flavors in stock. The drawer idea is great, to dedicate a special place in the kitchen for my tea! Thanks for sharing! It´s my first time visiting your blog, love it!

    • Annie on June 29, 2012 at 2:14 pm

      So glad you found your way here! And I agree– that drawer is pretty much of a tea lover’s dream 🙂

  8. Adele Emerson on December 3, 2012 at 10:27 am

    Your ideas are good for the wrapped individual tea bags, but many of the tea’s I buy come in a box not individually wrapped. how would you store them.?

    • livesimplybyannie on December 3, 2012 at 10:53 am

      I got that question from someone else- thanks for reminding me of it. Watch out for a post on this!

  9. Brenda on March 2, 2013 at 11:37 am

    Thank you for this informative article! I was not happy with the acrylic storage containers I was finding on Amazon, and you pointed me to the Container Store version, which allowed for local pickup, which prevented the problem of receiving broken merchandise. Also, such a lovely site…I will explore some more!

  10. CinZilicious on June 5, 2013 at 10:35 pm

    I’m a big time tea person so this post and the post for the loose leaf tea was great and useful! I love the transparent tea storage in the first pic. Think i’ll be able to find something similar to it in Muji:)I reckon my only problem is when i buy teas that comes in really nice packagings like when i got tea from this French brand Fauchon i got in Paris,and the famous macaron French brand, Laduree, got really pretty packagings!!!

  11. Janet on October 24, 2013 at 9:47 am

    Can you tell me where I might find the tea bag wicker storage box?

Leave a Comment





Welcome

Search The Blog

Simplify Your World

Sign up for the email list to get inspiration and simplified tips sent right to your inbox.

On Pinterest

pinterest-1
pinterest-3
pinterest-2
pinterest-4

Other Posts You May Love