Tag: novelty teapots

Small Business · Teapot Favour Boxes

My Journey from Teapot Collector to Designer

EsselleCraftsLeave a comment

My love of novelty teapots started when I first visited the old Cardew teapottery factory in Bovey Tracey, Devon. I was about twelve years old and was instantly captivated by all the intricate little details on the teapots and the extensive range of designs.

A view inside the gift shop of the old Cardew Teapottery in Bovey Tracey Devon

Intrigued by how they were made, I came away with my very own little teapot – this Victorian wash stand one cup design – and the behind the scenes booklet, which I studied at length.

A one cup novelty teapot designed to look like a Victorian wash stand with a small jug and bowl as the teapot lid
A booklet entitled The Cardew Teapot Collection
A page inside The Cardew Teapot Collection booklet showing a range of one cup novelty teapot designs

After subsequent visits to the pottery, my collection grew to include this tea chest design, the Welsh dresser and the Singer sewing machine – again, all one cup sizes.

A one cup novelty teapot designed to look like a wooden tea chest with a small teddy bear and newspapers as the teapot lid
A one cup novelty teapot designed to look like a dark wooden Welsh dresser with a small book and newspaper as the teapot lid
A one cup novelty teapot designed to look like a Singer sewing machine stand with a small black sewing machine as the teapot lid

I think it’s the vintage vibe that I’m drawn to with these teapot designs. They’re like a moment in history, captured in magnificent miniature detail. And speaking of miniatures, I still have my old ceramic tea set from when I was a child, still in its original packaging.

The box lid of a childs vintage ceramic tea set
A twelve piece childs vintage ceramic tea set consisting of four teacups four saucers a teapot with a lid a small milk jug and sugar bowl

Just look at that cute little teapot!

A small white ceramic teapot decorated with delicate summer flowers from a childs vintage tea set

Over the years, I often dreamt about making my own novelty teapots – not real ones that you could use for tea, but model ones that could be displayed on a shelf or in a shop window.

Fast forward to 2013, and that dream became a reality! Combining my love of teapots with my passion for papercraft, I was looking to create a small box in the style of a classic teapot design, an instantly recognisable form. I had a hexagonal shape in mind and it wasn’t long before I had created my very first teapot treat box!

A red papercraft teapot gift box decorated with white paper spots

At the time, there were no other teapot boxes like it anywhere and it soon became a hit. I had so many enquiries about it, asking whether there was a template available so that people could make their own versions. I set to work, creating the PDF template, which proved very popular, and then I converted it into an SVG cut file, which very quickly became my bestselling papercraft template!

A blue papercraft teapot gift box decorated with pink roses and white spots on the lid
A white papercraft tea set consisting of a teapot gift box paper teacup and saucer and tea plate all decorated with a pink rose design

I have never strayed far from my love of novelty teapots and now I have my very own range of novelty teapot gift box designs (21 to date), with many more residing on my to-do list, waiting patiently for their turn to shine!

Watch this space…

Suzanne