One day, after drinking her green tea, Krithika Ravishankar was about to discard the teabag. Looking at the teabag’s texture, the graphic designer thought why not transform it into a canvas and started painting on discarded teabags.
Watercolour painting on used teabags; Krithika
Chennai: “Being a graphic artist, I love to reinvent my craft by exploring different mediums. I am a huge tea lover and daily drink at least 3-4 cups of tea. I decided to experiment with watercolour on used teabags,” says Krithika.
Explaining the process behind making teabag art, she says, “I dry the stained teabags under the sunlight for 5-6 hours. Then, I flatten the curves and make sure the bag is not torn. After finalising the artwork, I make an outline and then start painting. Initially, a lot of mishaps happened — while painting, the bags got torn, and sometimes, the paint started smudging. Over time, I learned how to handle the teabags. Since the texture is so delicate, you have to be extra cautious while handling it.”
A lot of people connect through teas and coffees and Krithika feels that teabag art can be a ‘cute gift’ one can give to their loved ones. “Anyone can try painting on teabags — you need creativity and lots of patience. After seeing the teabag series on my social media pages, many asked why I am not trying portraits. It’s been only a month since I started doing this. Once I am satisfied with painting everyday objects, I will move on to portraits. Painting with tea powder itself is a challenging process,” she smiles.
The graphic designer has now started researching the durability of used teabags. “I am not sure how long will the teabag lasts. So, I have started researching about it. I am also finding ways to preserve the stained teabags,” remarks Krithika.
Explaining the process behind making teabag art, she says, “I dry the stained teabags under the sunlight for 5-6 hours. Then, I flatten the curves and make sure the bag is not torn. After finalising the artwork, I make an outline and then start painting. Initially, a lot of mishaps happened — while painting, the bags got torn, and sometimes, the paint started smudging. Over time, I learned how to handle the teabags. Since the texture is so delicate, you have to be extra cautious while handling it.”
A lot of people connect through teas and coffees and Krithika feels that teabag art can be a ‘cute gift’ one can give to their loved ones. “Anyone can try painting on teabags — you need creativity and lots of patience. After seeing the teabag series on my social media pages, many asked why I am not trying portraits. It’s been only a month since I started doing this. Once I am satisfied with painting everyday objects, I will move on to portraits. Painting with tea powder itself is a challenging process,” she smiles.
The graphic designer has now started researching the durability of used teabags. “I am not sure how long will the teabag lasts. So, I have started researching about it. I am also finding ways to preserve the stained teabags,” remarks Krithika.