Slow Food Tea Infuser Research

Katherine Nochera~ 11/10/2009~ research

Luaus take a really long time. You have to set aside an entire evening if you plan on attending one; it will last at least four hours. If you think the luau is an extended event, you'll be floored by the amount of time it takes to roast the pork- a few days! When I began my research into the slow food movement, I immediately thought of all the cultural traditions that embrace a slowness in food making or ceremonies. Most cultures have a slow food tradition that involves a beverage of some sort. British and Asian cultures have hot tea, Polynesians have kava, the northern US has coffee, the southern US has sweet tea, and most areas have some ceremony revolving around alcohol. As I continued my research into the slow food movement, I realized it was not just concerned with food and consumption, but also seeking to revolutionize the hurried lifestyle.

The slow food movement, begun by Carlo Petrini in Italy in 1986, originally developed as an outcry against the construction of a McDonald's on the Spanish Steps in Rome. Now, the movement is the antithesis to fast food and seeks to improve the quality of food and consumption in order to benefit humans, animals, plants, and the environment. When we grocery shop locally, at farmer's markets, and in-season we greatly reduce our carbon footprint. The less distance our food has to travel to reach us, the less oil used per calorie of food consumed. Saving on oil saves the environment and our pocketbooks. The slow food movement encourages home garden planting as a means to establishing a more personal investment in our food and ecoregion. Then, when we are finished with our food, we can use the leftovers to create compost, recycling the health!

Taking time to plant a small garden, visit a farmer's market, have a sit-down family dinner, or even just cook at home a couple times a week forces us to have a more personal connection with our food and the life around us. When we take the time to sit around a table and eat with others while having conversation, we eat slower and allow more time for digestion. It takes approximately twenty minutes for your stomach to "tell" your brain you are full and no longer hungry. Eating with others and conversing allows our bodies the time it needs to avoid overeating.

I think an interesting table setting, centerpiece, or china design can stimulate conversation and emotions during a meal or other gastric experience. In brainstorming about my tea strainer design, I want to lure the tea consumer in not just with the design itself, but also with the emotions, memories, and associations related to the images. When most people think of island life, they think of a slower pace, long walks on the beach, enjoying beautiful scenery while eating, and luxurious naps in the shade of a palm tree. People take time to listen to the ocean roar, admire a shell's design, and feel sand between their toes. Tea ceremonies should be relaxing experiences. I want to aid the relaxation through the design of my tea strainer.

I have chosen to embrace the theme of "island life" in my tea strainer design. I want to incorporate southern pacific shells and designs. These visual references will encourage the user to take notice, relax, and think about things like vacations, island life, and the beauty & exoticism of nature.