5 Ways to Use Leftover Tea Leaves

At Our Remedy, we are lovers of anything we can reuse, repurpose, and recycle.

We also love tea.

Pre-packed and loose leaf tea leaves can be repurposed and reused for lots of different things. I know, we thought tea couldn’t get any better either.

We’ve been trying out these ideas with Oh My Flo, green tea, and good old English Breakfast. 

Let’s look at 5 different ways you can use your leftover tea leaves and tea bags.

5 ways to use leftover tea leaves 

1. In the garden

Over the week collect up the contents of your tea bags or loose leaf tea. When you have a good amount sprinkle it into your pots. You can also bury your biodegradable tea bags in with your plants. Rose bushes are particularly like tea. 

2. As a drawer or wardrobe scents 

Place your tea leaves on a kitchen towel on the radiator or windowsill to dry. When they are fully dry you can pop them into mesh bags and leave them in your drawer to keep your clothes smelling fresh. 

3. In your beauty regime 

A homemade, plastic-free beauty product is right up our street and used tea leaves give us that chance to have just that. You can make your own DIY facemask from used tea leaves, sugar and lemon juice. 

Green tea is particularly good for a face scrub. People love green tea for its antioxidant, anti-aging and anti-inflammatory properties and claim the same benefits can be enjoyed when applying it directly to the skin. 

4. Carpet deodoriser 

How good does a flavoured tea smell? When I used to work in the office there was a flavour that no one liked to drink but everyone loved the smell of, so we just brew it as an air freshener! 

I just wish I knew back then that you could use used tea leaves as a carpet deodoriser too. Simply dry the leaves of choice, sprinkle them on the carpet, and allow them to sit for 10-15 minutes before you vacuum. 

5. Freshen up the fridge 

Left something festering in the back of the fridge? Don’t worry, we’ve all been there – the weeks can just run away with us and before we know it we’ve got a fridge of limp carrots, mouldy cheese, and slimy mushrooms. 

Freshen up your fridge by placing used tea leaves in an open container on the middle shelf (and removing the food on the turn!) 

If you want some tips on reducing food waste, read our blog 7 creative ways to reduce food waste.

Here’s a quickfire round with a few other ideas:

• Use cold tea bags to relieve sore nipples in the early days of breastfeeding 
• Create art by pressing the tea leaves or tea bags onto paper 
• Cleaning windows 
• Sprinkle on salads or rice
• Put the bag in with your underwear to keep them smelling fresh!
• Bake tea-infused cupcakes, cakes and cookies 
• Use teabag to make smelly shoes smell like your favourite tea! 

There you have it! 5 ways to reuse your used tea bags!

Where will you start? Let us know by tagging us on Insta, @itsourremedy