There is nothing as refreshing as a steaming cup of tea early in the morning, or even after a long and tiring day of work. The immense consumption of tea also generates thousands of tonnes of waste tea powder, most of which is tossed in bins. But what if this waste can actually be used as a nutrient-rich compost for your home garden, for your personal skin care and even to remove kitchen odour. Whenever you make tea, keep the used tea powder aside, rinse it in running tap water. Spread it on tissue paper on a tray and let it dry in the sun for two days. You can store this dry tea powder in an air tight container and use it in the following DIY’s.
Nutrient Rich Compost-Tea powder contains 4 per cent nitrogen, along with phosphorus and potassium, as well as other micronutrients that are beneficial for soil. The used tea powder often has herbs such as basil, ginger, cardamom, and sugar, mixed in with milk. It’s important to wash the tea powder before turning it into compost, in order to avoid bad odour and ants from crawling into the mixture. Sprinkle a thin layer of used tea leaves (green or black) around the base of acid-loving plants, including tomato, rose, blueberry, etc. and gently scratch them in. But, use sparingly, so that it only adds a small amount of acidity to the soil. Just sprinkle a decent amount of the used tea leaves powder directly on the top layer of the soil and mix gently. Tea leaves can also be added to a compost pile. It will make your plants bloom and keep them healthy.
Beauty Tips – Mix a tea spoon of yogurt with a small amount of the dried tea waste powder. Mix it well in a bowl. This natural remedy works wonders if you have any kind of blemishes or sun burn on your skin. Just apply this mixture on the affected area and gently rub it, leave it for a few minutes and rinse it off with normal water. You’ll see a considerable reduction in tanning and darkening in a few days.
Removing Odour– Whenever we cook anything non vegetarian like fish or turkey in our kitchen, it leaves a bad odour in our hands. To remove this bad smell, you can take a teaspoon of this dried tea waste powder, mix it with water and wash your hands with it in the kitchen sink. You’ll see that the bad smell from your hands will no longer be there.
Remedy for Stinky Shoes– Spread a tissue paper and put some dried tea waste on it, roll it vertically, fold it and put a rubber band on it, so that it stays in that shape. You can put this folded tissue paper inside your shoes or in your shoe rack itself. This will stop any kind of bad or stinky smell coming out from your shoes. You can also put it in your refrigerator if your it starts stinking.
Reducing Puffiness of Eyes– We know that green tea is rich in anti-oxidants. Whenever you drink green tea, you can put the used tea bags in the freezer. Later, you can put these chilled tea bags on your eyes. It will reduce any puffiness or swelling of your eyes. It will improve the blood circulation of your eyes and provide them the much-needed relief and relaxation.