Cloth Tea Bags

Author: About.com
Original Source: Tea Strainers

There are a few different kinds of these little do-it-yourself teabags. You can get them in reusable cloth or disposable paper. Simple to use, just fill them with tea and pop them in your pot or cup.

French Press

Author: About.com
Original Source: Tea Strainers

Made for coffee, but can be used for tea as well. When your tea is steeped to your liking, you just press the plunger and the leaves are pressed to the bottom. Like the pots mentioned above, these are the best ideas when making several cups at a time.

Bamboo Strainers

Author: About.com

Original Source: Tea Strainers

Bamboo-type strainers are more traditional and very inexpensive. They are similar to the bowl strainers, as you pour your steeped brew through the strainer into your cup to filter out the leaves. These usually don't sit in your cup, but have a handle for you to hold while you pour.

Ball-Shaped Strainer

Author: About.com
Original Source: Tea Strainers

These are the most common and popular way to use loose tea. They come in different shapes and styles, but they are typically a perforated metal ball that you fill with tea. Let the ball steep in your hot water, and then you pull it out. The most basic ones are a wire mesh ball on a short chain. Tea balls are usually used for single-cup brewing, but you can get larger ones for a whole pot.

Tea Strainers

Author: Wikipedia
Original Source: Tea Strainers

A strainer is a device that is placed over a cup and catches particles is poured through it.

Example: When tea is brewed the traditional manner in a teapot, the leaves are not contained in teabags. This means they are freely suspended in the liquid. As the leaves themselves may be distasteful, it is usual to filter them out with a tea strainer.

Strainers usually fit into the top of the cup and hold the leaves as the tea is poured through them, when you brew in a pot. Tea strainers of this kind are usually either sterling silver or china. Most strainers come in a set, with the strainer part and a small saucer for it to sit in between cups.

Not many tea strainers are used today because of the teabag launched in 1953 by Tetley tea.