Also Known As Tasseography, Tassology, or Tasseomancy... 

Tea leaf reading is often credited to Gypsies, however its history began in Asia and the Middle East.  

In modern times the Scottish, Irish, English, and Eastern Europeans have cultivated the art. They have produced many practitioners, books, and even tea cups to support tea leaf reading.  

How to read the leaves effectively: 

1. Use a wide rim, shallow, white cup. Make your favorite loose leaf tea without using a filter. If a white cup is not available, use one that is light colored. 

2. Steep the tea and relax. 

3. Drink the tea without consuming the tea leaves.

4. Concentrate on emptying the mind. 

5. When the liquid is almost gone, swirl cup three times, clockwise, and turn upside down onto saucer. Some leaves will stick to the sides while others remain on the bottom.  

6. Take a few deep breaths to let the small amount of liquid that remained drain.

7. Turn the cup back over to read the leaves. Symbols forming at the rim of the cup represent what will happen in the present. The bottom of the cup contains symbols for the future. The leaves clinging to the sides are symbols of what will occur somewhere between the immediate present and far future.    

8. Reading the leaves is personal and subjective. There on many books on interpreting symbols.  

In the Victorian Era (1837-1901), people used tea leaf reading as a popular game. Today, it still remains a fun pastime.    

This is a fun tea leaf reading game to try out: http://bit.ly/KzqMFa. 

Two books worth mentioning: Reading Tea Leaves by the Highland Seer and Tea Leaf Reading by William W. Hewitt.  

http://teausa.org/index.cfm/14531/reading-tea-leaves 
http://www.readingtealeaves.info/bsymbols.html 
http://www.mojomoon.net/tleaves.html 
http://www.tasseography.com/

Life's toiling, the water's boiling, drink more tea!