International tea leaf expert, Amber McCarroll has put together this 12-step guide to tassology - the art of tea-leaf reading. So, put the kettle on and make yourself a cuppa. It might help you look into the future ...

We recently got our tea leaves read by Amber. We always thought you needed a special blend of loose leaves but she told us we could do it with your regular Tetley bag.

Before you begin, you need to create some space where you can perform the reading. I recommend a table in a quiet area. Then boil the kettle, and have a nice cuppa using your favourite tea bag. To perform the reading you'll need the following items:

• Teacup or mug
• Saucer or small plate
• Teaspoon
• A tea bag of your choice
• A quiet space

While you are drinking your tea, leave your tea bag resting on the spoon. Once you've finished your tea, squeeze all the liquid that's still in the bag into the spoon. This will give you enough liquid to use for the reading.

Once you've finished your drink, take the squeezed bag off the spoon. You'll need to pour the liquid from the spoon into your empty mug or cup, and then tear your used tea bag.

• If it's a square bag: tear it at the top in the shape of a cross
• If it's a circle bag: tear the bag at the top in a crescent shape
• If it's a pyramid bag: tear the top off the pyramid bag to create a small pyramid

Allow one mass of tea (about the size of a 5p coin) from the torn bag to fall into the cup, adding the liquid left in the tea spoon

Hold the cup upright in your left hand and turn rapidly three times anticlockwise (what you are doing is spreading the tea around the sides of the cup - a bit like a tumble-dryer). If you've spun it enough, it should look like this (see pic left).

Turn the cup over into a saucer and leave for about one minute to let the liquid drain out.

Hold the handle towards you and look into the cup for symbols. The handle represents home and the cup is read clockwise.

To find out more about tea and tassology,
visit www.tea.co.uk

Symbols around the side of the cup going away from the handle are events that have just happened or are about to happen, usually within the family. Here we see an anchor. This shows that you will soon find an answer to a problem, maybe a family issue that has caused anxiety but will soon be over.

Symbols around the side of the cup coming towards the handle represent near future events outside the family. Here we see a key. This predicts a fiery and passionate relationship that may occur soon.

Symbols at the bottom of the cup need to be taken seriously as they depict your emotions. Here we see a cherry - this is a powerful symbol of love and emotion. Perhaps indicating that you are in the middle of a secure and loving relationship.

Around the rim of the cup is the happy zone, depicting fun, light-hearted events. Here we see an egg. This is an excellent sign as it signifies fresh plans, fertility and an increase in wealth and success in whatever you are currently doing.

Tassology is a lot like other skills - the more you practise the better you become. I recommend that in your first week you should try to perform a reading a day. This will give you good grounding for future readings.

Symbols should be read in the context of where they are in the cup, what other symbols appear and events that are happening in your life at the time. Remember the symbols won't offer you quick answers or tell your fortune, they will simply help you to visualise problems/issues and show you the way forward to solving them yourself.

We had our leaves read as a guest of Tetley and its new specialty teas. To find out more about Tetley's new range of teas including herbal infusions, visit www.tetley.co.uk/specialteas.

To find out more about tea and tassology, visit www.tea.co.uk