The Brooklyn Teacup is a woman-owned small business dedicated to giving vintage china new life. Like all things that add joy and beauty to our lives, the "good china" should be used and enjoyed, not just tucked away for special occasions.

Our Story

Ariel started upcycling china in the Spring of 2018 after discovering a pile of beautiful plates, bowls and teacups that had been put out on the sidewalk on trash night. Not knowing what she would do with them, Ariel rescued the stacks of dishware and brought them home to her Brooklyn apartment.

Later that week, inspired by a three tier cake stand she spotted on her sister’s wedding registry, like the one's you see at tea parties,  Ariel decided she would try her hand at figuring out how to make one herself.

Ariel's one-bedroom apartment did not lend itself to the equipment needed to get started. So, Ariel brought the dishware out to her parents’ garage in New Jersey where she taught herself to drill through all types of porcelain and ceramic dinnerware. Soon thereafter, while commuting back and forth from Brooklyn to New Jersey to work on her wares, The Brooklyn Teacup was born.

Since then, The Brooklyn Teacup has transformed formal dinnerware into a variety of practical and elegant serving pieces and decor for customers and their loved ones across the country. We've become experts in working with all types of china. In the process, we've also become shipping pros, safely sending our creations to customers in places as far away as Australia.

The Story Behind our Brooklyn Studio

A few weeks before the COVID-19 pandemic hit, Ariel and her husband moved to a larger Brooklyn apartment in Park Slope where she was able to set up her workshop, and home office. 

Ariel never intended for The Brooklyn Teacup to have a physical location or planned to convert a portion of her apartment into a shop or showroom. But after an interview with Joelle Garguilo of NBC 4 New York aired during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, The Brooklyn Teacup began receiving numerous inquiries about visiting the studio. So, Ariel made (masked) visits available by appointment... and the rest is history! 

Upcycling Granny's Wedding China

In 2019, Ruth "Granny" Davis, Ariel's grandmother, turned 100. For the party celebrating this milestone, Granny asked Ariel to upcycle her 1940's wedding china so that each guest could take home a piece they could use and think of her. Ariel turned around 75 individual teacups, bowls, plates and saucers into serving and display pieces for the occasion. 

To this day, guests still send Ariel pictures of their upcycled party favors in use and thank her for sharing these meaningful keepsakes of Granny Ruth.