– Fully Handmade Benshan Duanni Plum Blossom Yixing Teapot by Fan Aijuan, 300ml

Details Capacity: Approximately 300ml Photos are of the actual teapot. There is only one teapot available. This teapot is entirely handmade by the Yixing clay artist Fan Aijuan. Ms. Fan was the apprentice of Master Jiang Rong, one of the “Seven Masters of Zisha.” Ms. Fan has achieved the national artistic rank of “National Assistant Craft Artist.” This pot is known as fully handmade as unlike most Yixing teapots that are half handmade the sculptor does not use a molding tool to shape the body, but instead shapes everything, including the body, by hand. Fully handmade teapots require more labor and more skill to construct, especially in the case of more complex shapes. Each one is entirely unique, reflecting the style of the artist, Fan Aijuan. You can read more about fully handmade teapots in our blog entry here. This is teapot was made from Benshan duanni mined from Huanglong Mountain , a rarer kind of Yixing clay (zisha) with a pale beige yellow tone. This clay is favoured for rounding out the harsher notes of some teas. It is very porous compared to other zisha and is better at retaining heat. You can read more about benshan duanni and other varieties of duanni here, in our blog entry. Preparation Before Use Yixing Teapots should be prepared before using the first time. This is called “opening the pot”. It removes the dust from firing the teapot. We recommend rinsing the teapot under warm water two or three times, then filling the teapot with boiling water and emptying it out two to three times. After this the teapot is ready for use.