As a lover of tea, I love glassware. As I enjoy the taste of a fresh cup of tea, I find that the experience is heightened by the rich colors of the tea through the glass of the teapot: the dark mahoganies of black teas, the flaxen color of green and white teas, the deep golds of oolongs.

But what I don't love? Tea stains on my glassware. After so many pots of tea, my glass started to dim with the remnants of previous brews. Suddenly, the subtlety of the colors of green and white teas is overshadowed by a haze of brown from darker oolongs and black teas. I struggled with cleaning my glassware: it seemed like no amount of scrubbing could completely remove the stains that plagued by glass teapot and mugs. And to top it all off, I even noticed my tea strainers getting a brownish tinge as well. Even my ceramic teapot I use from time to time showed waterlines and remnants of some great tea of a bygone week.
There must be a way to clean those stains. Some hidden, household item just lying around the house that could banish those stains to the drain where they belong. And then after some research, I found it. And it was right under my nose the whole time. Right in the kitchen next to the flour.

Baking Soda: a simple household item.

I figure that since there was a box of baking soda in the pantry, why not give it a try? I filled the sink with soapy water, had a little dish of baking soda next to me, and got to work. And without scrubbing, just gently rubbing baking soda on the wet glass, the stains lifted. The glass was clear again.

I was amazed. I had to try it on my other tea accessories. Metal infusers? As shiny as the day I got them. Ceramic teapot? Not a waterline to be seen! Everything looked as good as new! This age-old life hack saved my tea-drinking experience. How could a simple household item so easily clean those stains that I scrubbed and scrubbed so hard before?

Baking Soda, also known by its chemical name Sodium Bicarbonate, is an excellent cleaning agent. It has numerous uses in cleaning, baking, and even beauty, but I'll focus on the cleaning uses. Because of its basic nature (as opposed to acidic), it can lift acidic substances off surfaces. It's an abrasive against stains, but is still mild enough to clean glass without scratching it. Since tea is slightly acidic, the stains it leaves are prime targets for baking soda. And just when you thought it couldn't get better: baking soda is also a natural substance that's even used in cooking, so there is no need to worry about using cleaning products that could potentially contain dangerous chemicals.

No tea lover should be without baking soda in their pantry. Even if you prefer something other than glassware, baking soda even cleans ceramic and metal tea accessories. It certainly is a miracle tea-cleaning agent!