I love giving homemade gifts. A thoughtful gift that you've made yourself is so sweet! However, DIY'ing for an entire list of people can be tiring and can get costly. I found an easy gift for the holidays that takes just a few minutes to put together and can be done up with a few accessories to make cute packaging. 

Here are the steps to creating a homemade tea for a DIY gift! I am going to be giving you the measurements for one serving of this drink so depending on how many servings you want to give, you can adjust accordingly.
 
Step #1: 1 Tbsp Loose Black Tea 

Purchase your favourite loose black tea. If you aren't sure about which tea to get, usually an Assam or anything along the lines of an Earl Grey or English Breakfast are safe bets. You can also use tea bags but I think loose leaf makes for a more attractive package. 

Here are a few of my black tea picks: 
 

1. David's Tea Assam Banaspaty Tea (C$8.00/50g)
 
2. Kumsi No. 24 Black Morning Tea (US$16.95)

3. Tevana English Breakfast High Grown Black Tea (C$3.80/2oz)

4. Tazo Awake Loose Leaf Black Tea (US$13.95)

Step #2: Apple Slices and Cinnamon Sticks

If you're going to be using loose leaf tea, you'll need to either put the loose leaf in tea bags or give a tea ball with the leaves. I like the idea of actually making your own tea bags (see step 2). Next, per 1 Tbsp of black tea leaf, you'll need one apple slice and one cinnamon stick. This fall-centric beverage is like liquid coziness! 


(additional images via 53kitchenadventures.com, perfectbrewingsupply.com) 

1. Dried apple slice (find at local health food or bulk food store) 

2. Tea Bag DIY: Here's the how to

3. Cinnamon stick 

(via hellogiggles.com)
 
Step #3: Wrap It Up! 

To put everything together, I think it's a fun idea to add a few tea accessories or a mug. Usually tea stores will already have everything you need there but you could even go to your local dollar, grocery or discount store to find everything you need, and on a budget too. 


1. Fred Flare Hidden Owl Tea Cup (US$24.00)

2. West Elm Figurative Owl Mug (C$10.46) 

3. Fred Flare Tea Sub (US$14.00)

4. Anthropologie Climbing Primrose Teapot (US$98.00)
 
5. David's Tea Mesh Teaball with Charm (C$5.00) 
 
6. Teavana Green Embossed Lotus Infuser Mug (C$17.95) 

7. Tea Forté Kati Mug Birdsong (C$19.99)

8. David's Tea Tea Filters Medium (C$5.50/100)

Have you started your holiday shopping? Are you interested in making your own gifts?