Tea cozy or not tea cozy?

I have been doing various online searches in attempt to find all the perfect pieces I would need to a proper tea set, including all the extraneous items, like napkins, spoons, filters, and - a knitted hat for my teapot? Wtf?

Of course, I have heard of tea cozies. I always thought of them to be dated, useless items that act as nothing more than a decoration. A lot of people associate tea with older women. A lot of people also associate knitting with older women. Tea cozies seemed, to me, a perfect marriage of these two activities. Being that I have no desire to knit a tea cozy, I assumed tea cozies weren't for me.

Well, in my recent scouring of the interwebs for tea stuffs, I actually read up on the history of tea cozies (yes, I know - it is absurd that tea cozies have a history). The cliffnotes version is: tea time became a staple activity in or around the 1840s in England for dignified women to mingle, converse, and generally gossip. That being said, and as we all know, women can talk each other's ears off with little enough provocation, so logically with all the gabbing, tea would get cold! And who wants cold tea?

Bring in the tea cozy! A sweater for your hot beverages! Have your hot tea and drink it too!

Nowadays, tea cozies come in all shapes and sizes. They're mostly absurd, and I find them to be tacky. But nevertheless, here are a few samples!

This is known as a dome tea cozy. It sits over a tea pot.



This one is referred to as a snuggie tea cozy. (You can keep your teapot's arms warm and still let it answer the phone!)



They can come in boxy shapes...



Or knitted like a beanie!



I have never had an issue with my tea getting cold - and even when it does, I still finish drinking it! Maybe, one day, I will succumb to my desire to have a complete repertoire of tea accessories... but until then, I will remain shamelessly cozy free.