So my mother is turning 50 next week, and she LOVES tea, I mean, she drinks about 5-10 glasses a day. The thing is she drinks bagged tea, which usually is a worse quality and not as healthy as leaf tea. For her birthday I bought her:
- a glass teapot and glass teacup (she prefers glass over porcelain for tea)
- two infusers (one ball and one pyramid)
- 3 colorful matching tea tins
- a selection of 4 100g bags of tea (the tea expert at the store helped me pick teas that were similar in flavour to the bagged teas she buys)
- a blooming flower tea (no idea how it tastes but the concept of a flower blooming in her new glass teapot is too cute to pass up)
- 50g of ginger tea (she complains of headaches and nausea, I found ginger tea helps with both)
I'm having second thoughts though, my mom and dad are rich people and the gift I got her didn't cost that much really, and I'm worried she'll not like the idea of changing from bags to loose leaf. I'm afraid she'll think I cheaper out because I didn't buy her perfume or something more elegant.
I think its a great gift. Parents usually don't care about the price of a gift. Its a very personal and thoughtful gift, I would love it and be touched that you knew me so well!
I think it's a nice thought BUT you're also making work for your mother--all the cleaning out of the infusers gets to be a drag. Have you considered adding or subbing in better quality bagged teas?
And I'm sure you're not telling her that you think your choices are somehow healthier.
Personally (being "of that age" myself) I would love to have my daughter pay attention to what I love, as opposed to another bottle of perfume. You put a lot of thought into her gift, and things are things, but memories are priceless.
I think it is a great gift! my mom is also a tea drinker, as am I. Nearly every Christmas I give her tea. She has one kind she really likes but it is about 3 times the cost of another one she likes. She chooses not to spend the extra money. I usually buy her the more expensive tea and some white honey. She loves it!
I have seen the blooming teas, though I have never tasted them. They are very pretty.
In my experience - most people prefer a thoughtful gift (regardless of price) over an expensive or elegant gift that was randomly selected.
Even if your mom continues to prefer tea bags, she will treasure the gift, because you selected it based on your understanding of her preferences.
I would though make one small suggestion. Don't tell your mom that loose tea is healthier or better choice than bagged teas. It could come across as condescending or critical. It's fine to say that you chose teas she might not have chosen for herself, but if it feels like you're trying to "convert" her to loose tea, it may feel like criticism.
Also loose teas and bagged teas all come in a wide range of qualities. It's nice that you want to introduce her to a better quality or wider variety of teas, but try to avoid tea snobbery.
Also some incredibly wonderful cheap tea-bag teas (from asian groceries, especially) are as high, or higher in quality than some of the very expensive loose and designer tea-bags found in the tea-snob shops.
It sounds like a great gift! My sister gave my parents a similar gift, along with a zojirushi water boiler. I think it takes time to appreciate good quality teas, because the flavors can be delicate. It took some time for my parents to fully appreciate the gift, but now they exclusively brew loose leaf teas. The water boiler is handy, too, because they always have very hot water available for a quick cup of tea (or instant ramen). :-)
With parents it's not the price tag that counts, it's the thought that goes into the gift. I'm a tea drinker too (and coffee...coffee is just coffee bean tea...right? Right? ) for Christmas my son got me a single cup tea brewer that fits over the top of a mug and strains the tea right into the cup and my mom got me an awesome chai blend that is a little bit spicy. Both were probably under $20 but they were the best and most used gifts ive received all year. My tea blend is almost gone and she got me a big can!
I think your Mother will love it. And, the infusers are not that hard to clean, you just rinse them out.
It sounds like a very thoughtful gift. I love tea and always just buy bags, I would think that was an absolutely amazing gift if someone got if for me.
IS this a lame birthday present?
