From the choice of high-quality dishes depends not only its service life, but also the resulting emotions when used. Even drinking tea is more pleasant from beautiful and comfortable cups that you don’t want to let go of.
To this end, in ancient times, China began to produce whole tea sets, and then they appeared in Europe, but in a completely different form.
Equipment
European sets can contain a different number of items, but, as the name implies, a tea pair is designed for two people. Therefore, it usually includes two cups and two saucers. Saucers are considered an obligatory attribute of tea ware in Europe. They are needed so that tea does not spill onto the tablecloth, and also there was an opportunity to put a candy, biscuit or other product somewhere for tea.
Sometimes the kit includes a teapot, made in the same style as a pair of tea, as well as a milk jug (for English tea drinking with milk) and a sugar bowl. Some manufacturers also add teaspoons.
With a pair of tea from China, the situation is different. If it is intended for a Gunfu-cha ceremony, then these are three items for one person - a wide cup that looks like a small bowl, a tall and narrow glass, and a rectangular saucer on which they fit. Accordingly, for the second person you will need another tea pair, as well as a small teapot for brewing tea. Some manufacturers may produce their service or, conversely, confine themselves to a cup and a glass, which are traditionally put into each other after tea drinking.
What are
Porcelain
The most popular material for tea pairs is, of course, porcelain. Once upon a time Dulevo Porcelain Factory He became famous throughout the world for the excellent quality of the material and the original designs of the dishes, which more than once received awards at various exhibitions in Russia and the world. Now it is the largest plant in the country.
The second major porcelain factory with a long history is Imperial Porcelain Factory (LFZ). He became famous for bone china dishes and the cobalt net pattern. Bone china got its name from the addition to the molten mass of kaolin, clay and other substances of the crushed bones of animals. This betrayed the dishes a special whiteness.
The white surface allows you to apply any pattern. This is not only contrasting, but also delicate pastel shades, drawings in the form of flowers, berries or fruit - poppies, roses, peonies, cherries, oranges and apples.
Earthenware
Earthenware tea pairs look similar to porcelain, and sometimes manufacturers even copy the patterns and shapes of porcelain products from leading factories. However, such cups are usually thinner and the gray contents of the walls are clearly visible on the cleaved surface.
From the slightest chip, dishes take on an unpresentable look, when, like on porcelain, they may not be so noticeable - inside it is also white.
Clay
Cups and saucers can be made of clay. According to its characteristics, it is not inferior to other materials., but it allows you to mold unusual shapes or create a pair of tea in the folk style.
Glass
Glass, unlike other materials, allows to make absolutely transparent materials. And due to this, extremely interesting cups are obtained in which you can watch the movement of tea leaves or sugar.
Classic glassware is made of clear glass, but darker cups have become much more popular in recent years, as well as various color variations.. For example, a cup can be blue, orange, red, black, sometimes even making white.
Usually they do not distinguish between male and female sets, however, for example, a number of football clubs produce dishes with their own symbolism, which is designed mostly for men.
There are also unusual solutions. For example, with a square saucer or with a cup of more than 250 ml. Czech tea pairs are usually, on the contrary, designed in the style of the XVIII-XIX centuries, as their producers appreciate the centuries-old history of their plants. Sometimes these cups are available with rhinestones that make them as refined as possible.
Major manufacturers
In addition to the Imperial Porcelain Factory and the factory in Dulyovo, there are still several pottery manufactures in Russia. Also on the market of dishes presented a large number of products from Germany, Italy, Turkey and to a lesser extent the Czech Republic.
Tea pairs for Chinese ceremonies are traditionally produced in China and Japan. As a rule, their porcelain is considered the best, and such dishes are in high demand. Most often it is bought as a gift, therefore quite a lot of Chinese tea pairs, which are sold in gift packaging.
Review of tea pairs, see below.
