TeaChat

Pleasure. Need to know these things.

I used to teach Photoshop and web development. My first class I would ask everyone what level they were. There were beginners and experts only. The beginners had just started and saw what a huge task it was. The "experts" had been doing it a while and got a few successes under their belts but they had been working more or less in isolation so their successes made them feel that they were, indeed, experts. I would hit them up first thing with something hard, expert stuff, then at the end of the class I would ask again. Invariably there were now beginners (more of them...) and some intermediate folks.

I feel a little like that. I have some successes and it is easy to say that I know something, but really, I have started a journey on an endless path and I am probably one or two bricks in.

Getting info from all of you, even contradictory info, is VERY important to me. Thanks for the conversation on this topic.

revising my answer after measuring the volume on my 6 favorite cups to 3-4 oz. I'm drinking LESS tea than I thought. Better get busy.

my everyday cup holds about 8 or 9oz...its my favorite size.. i use it mostly for senchas and dragonwells. its the perfect size for me anyway. since i usually brew around 5 to 8 ounces depending on the tea so that size hold that range easily. i use a 5 to 6oz cup for my gyo's which i brew in about 4 oz sessions

Also shapes ... a flared cup in 3-4 ounces is my top pick, but not always easy to find. This generally requires 2 fills per pot of tea, but I pour into a glass pitcher from a kyusu.

It is interesting that this size and shape is quite common however in Japanese porcelain, but Hagi ... much harder to find. It is not unusual for me to reach for a guinomi, but that falls below 3 ounces ...

my teapot teacher, ah leon gave short demonstrations of chinese tea ceremony. a yixing looking teapot and two cups were used, a small narrow one for sniffing and the second, which you drank was the standard, smaller chinese cup (looks like a guinomi). all of the implements of tea were placed on a wooden board with a cool drain system.

i 'm not at all familiar with the above process, maybe some one can share about this process

i find my guinomi are about a size very close to a small teacup. hehe ! about 2.5 inches tall x 2.5 inches wide.

thanks !

bonjiri wrote:i 'm not at all familiar with the above process, maybe some one can share about this process!

I believe you talking about something like this. He's doing a gong fu style brewing over a tea table/serving tray (which catches the extra tea and water that run off). There are 2 types of cups tasting and aroma.

new tweeter pic posts test

pic from i-phone



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and the tea set

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thats Bubba in the firs 2 shots he just wanted to let you know its not his best work but it works.

cpu, I like what you are trying to do with shapes and sizes!!! A lot. Keep it up, I say. And since you asked and other potters have also jumped in ...

As I mentioned above, I lean towards 3-4 ounce flared/tapers. Some cups in house that fit that description...also generally light color interior.

Hagi, around 4 ounces.


Interesting shape, semi lily shaped Hagi


Japanese porcelain with interesting constriction


Deishi flared Hagi cup, a little larger albeit, but very nice.

Guinomi (sake cups) make excellent small teacups, but tend to be smaller yet, <3 ounces. Tend to be lower and wider. Often 2.5-3 inches wide and <2.5 inches tall. Also tend to be cylindrical.

I thnk many of them look just like tiny Chawan, check it out.

Deishi Hagi in loquat


Another Deishi


Yamane Seigen doing his thing.


And again ...


OK, I guess I have made my point (and man, they reallllly do look like Chawan!!!).
.

I looove the glaze on the last one!

Chip wrote:Guinomi (sake cups) make excellent small teacups, but tend to be smaller yet, <3 ounces. Tend to be lower and wider. Often 2.5-3 inches wide and <2.5 inches tall. Also tend to be cylindrical.

I thnk many of them look just like tiny Chawan, check it out.

Deishi Hagi in loquat


Another Deishi


Yamane Seigen doing his thing.


And again ...


OK, I guess I have made my point (and man, they reallllly do look like Chawan!!!).
.

love the yamane seigen blue piece too ! WOW ! beautiful !

stunning !

Heh, me too ... ooops, sorry to cause a distraction. When a Hagi shows up, it is like a super star has just walked into the room.

Focusing on my point, smaller size and alternative shapes and proportions can be beautiful and very functional for tea!!!

It all comes down to personal taste though.

Chip, like you, I prefer the size and shapes you illustrate. One gets the feeling that the tea is still the center of attention rather than the toys. I find I get bored by gimmick. The simplicity of the Deishi really moves me. I find him to have a great feeling for this type of teaware. His pieces draw me in. I'm sure I will buy something from him.

jars for tea