How to Make Adorable, Cat-Shaped Tea Bags

What's better than a handcrafted tea bag? A cute, cat-shaped one! Whether you love tea, cats or both, you won't be able to resist these adorable, handcrafted tea bags. They make the perfect gift for Mother's Day (hey cat moms), birthdays or as a "thinking of you" present.

Sketch Out Template

Trim off about 1/4-inch from one side and the bottom of a cone coffee filter (image 1). On a piece of graph paper, sketch out or trace a cat face template. My kitty ended up being a 3x3-inch square, leaving plenty of room to embroider the details of the face. Tape the template to the filter (image 2).

Make Puncture Outline

Use an awl or large needle to make a puncture template on the coffee filter. Pierce the paper to make holes about every 1/4 inch, following the lines of the template. Pierce through both filter layers for the outline, but when making holes for the eyes, nose and whiskers, be careful to only pierce the top filter layer (you might need to open up the filter to do this).

Stitch It

Pull out two threads from the skein of cotton embroidery floss and thread the needle, leaving a two-inch tail. Open up the filter so that both layers lay flat. Following the punched template, use a backstitch to stitch the eyes, nose and whiskers of the cat's face ONLY ON THE TOP LAYER of the filter.

Once the face details are stitched in, fold the filter back together and backstitch around the outside of the cat's face through BOTH LAYERS of the filter, leaving the area between the ears open.

Fill & Close

Use a funnel to fill the tea bag with about 1.5 teaspoons of loose leaf tea (image 1), then backstitch the top closed (image 2).

Trim It Up

Trim away the excess filter around the face, leaving a 1/4-inch border.

Make Tea Tags

Punch or cut out shapes (like these cute hearts) from cardstock — you will need two cutouts per tag. Thread a needle with a 4.5-inch piece of embroidery thread. Pierce the top of the tea bag with the threaded needle and tie a knot to secure the end of the string to the tea bag. Remove the needle. Glue one side of the paper cut out to the other end of the thread. Then, place the matching cut out piece on top, sandwiching the thread in between (image 2).

Repeat

Make several of these adorable cat-shaped teabags for gifting. Customize the thread color and paper tags to suit the recipient or fit a party theme.

Enjoy!

Enjoy a cuppa with a cute little face looking back at you.