Introduction
ORIGINAL TEA BAG DESIGNS was the inspiration for the African Brew Ha Ha.
The brilliant idea of re-using old tea bags to create delightful mini works of art showed how one person with a simple idea and the conviction to make it work can make a huge difference to other people's lives.
This project deserves to succeed (actually, it is!) in the face of many obstacles - both bureaucratic and personal - as it is bringing employment, purpose and, as one employee commented "a future, and my children's future".
The artists from Original T-Bag Designs live in an informal settlement called Imizamu Yethu, in Hout Bay, Cape Town, South Africa. Their homes are simple structures to say the least — some are precarious structures made of odd bits of tin, wood and plastic nailed together for shelter.
Although many do not have formal schooling, they do have grit and imagination and a desire to make their families' lives better. The artists, using recycled tea bags as their canvases, are painting themselves out of poverty.
Used tea bags are collected and dried in the African sun. Then they are emptied of leaves, carefully ironed, and finally each tea bag is painstakingly painted.
The artists work mostly at home during these early phases so they can care for their families while they work. Sometimes the little ones help by emptying out tea leaves.
The project was founded in 1999 and continues to be run by Jill Heyes.
