Living tiny means both maximizing the space you have, while also thinking outside the box to fit in your creature comforts.
Recently, I’ve been getting back into hot tea, both because I love it, and also as a means for cutting back on sugary sodas (my biggest vice).
I’ve found several tea blends that I love, but then I discovered the conundrum of preparing them each day in an efficient manner.
My original method? Heating water in the microwave using a Pyrex measuring cup. While this did work, it got tiresome when I didn’t want to stop at a single serving, and it made me wonder what other options existed for small spaces — particularly ones like mine with limited countertop space.
Enter the collapsible kettle!
Note: I am not receiving commission or compensation for expressing my personal opinions on this item.
When first reading about “collapsing tea kettles,” I first imagined something akin to what you’d see during scout camping trips: those aluminum cups that could fold down to the size of a hockey puck, but they always leaked because the rings would warp eventually, or they’d get dents and no longer seal properly. This sort of thing for heating hot water didn’t seem… safe.
Further dives down the rabbit hole filled in the gaps of my understanding. Specifically, food safe silicone has become rather prominent in recent years, and my personal experience with brands such as Stasher bags or even OXO products have helped me see its high level of kitchen utility for myself.
“Compact” and “collapsible” powered my search terms, and it didn’t take much scouring among the interwebz to construct a satisfactory shortlist of possibilities for my tiny kettle. I sought something able to handle several cups of liquid that stayed well under $50.
Bonus points if it happened to come in blue, my favorite color.
I’d set my heart on the T-Magitik due to positive reviews — both on and off Amazon — in addition to how well it fit my criteria. Content with the choice, I parked it into my “saved for later” column until my next paycheck arrived.
Little did I know that someone was paying close attention to my Amazon lists, and I instead received the kettle for my birthday. Thanks, mom! ❤️
Look — it’s even (mostly) blue!
Made of silicone with a plastic and metal base for housing the heating element, this little guy maxes out at 600 milliliters of liquid, or 3-4 cups of tea.
I appreciate that it only has one button, and that unlike my Pyrex-in-the-microwave method, the device will automatically re-warm any leftover liquid once the temperature lowers to a certain level. This feature stops once you turn it off. Part of me misses having the ability to manually set the heat level, but I honestly don’t think about it too much.
Folding the kettle up for storage is easy, though I do have to wait for it to completely cool down before doing so.
In less than thirty seconds, I can have it packed up and put away until my next morning chai… or I could take it with me on a trip. There’s actually a switch on the bottom that allows me to shift between 110 and 220 voltage, perfect when going overseas!
Instead of an appliance that hogs the countertop, I now have one that I can hide away when I don’t need it. At 2″ high and about 6.5″ in diameter when collapsed, it won’t even remotely pose a threat to my prized cabinet real estate.
It also helps make a great cup of tea, and that’s what really counts, right?
What other tiny gadgets exist and are worth exploring? Post any ideas in the comments — I’d love to look into it!
Going tiny is quite a journey, but it’s still tons of fun to see what works for me and what won’t fit! I feel one step closer to my tiny home already. As always, thank you for reading, and do consider donating to the blog if you’re enjoying the content!
Seeking Continual Flavor 