6 Essential Tea Party Tips

No matter the occasion, an afternoon tea party can be the perfect answer to a social dilemma. Centered around a steaming pot of history’s most time-honored beverage, a tea party is versatile and seasonal, so you can adapt it to may different occasions:

• Baby showers
• Bridal showers
• Anniversaries
• Retirement
• Birthdays
• Gathering with friends

Choose the Theme

You can, of course, stick with classic afternoon tea, in the style of the English, pair with traditional treats like small sandwiches and scones and cakes. But there are many other ways to enjoy the ceremony!

Many years ago, my sister and I had a Victorian tea party for our children. Everyone wore a costume and the ladies put their hair up. Fancy affairs like that call for dressy attire and fine jewelry (one of my favorite trends right now is fun and versatile stackable rings). This goes for tea parties that celebrate weddings and anniversaries, too. 

Here’s a charming photo of the late Queen Elizabeth enjoying tea; notice her gorgeous triple strand pearl necklace and sapphire brooch!

Princess Kate regularly enjoys one of England’s grandest traditions, and tends to choose more understated colors and elegant, conservative jewelry. Perfect pairings are the order of the day, whether that’s layered necklaces or coordinating, stackable rings.

Your tea party could be centered around almost any theme whether that’s seasonal, cultural or popular movies and music.

The Basics: Tea Pot and Cups

You might need to do a little bit of shopping for your tea party if you don’t already have a tea service. But it doesn’t have to be fancy or expensive, and you’re certainly welcome to ask around or borrow from a friend or family member. Soon after I was married, I decided to invest in a tea set that matched all my Blue Willow everyday pieces. Over the years, I’ve used my Blue Willow to serve tea and coffee to guests many time, so the investment has been well worth it. I encourage you to scout garage sales, thrift stores, antique shops and Ebay to find something really unique. Tea things can be part of a set, or mismatched for a whimsical flair. My mother had a set of tea cups that were all different and as a little girl I loved to pick a new one to drink from each time we enjoyed tea. 

Star of the Show: The Tea

I like to provide a mix of loose tea and tea bags for more variety. It’s fun to choose a flavor from an assortment of tea bags, but steeping fresh tea leaves also adds a layer of enjoyment and relaxation to the party. My family has been a huge fan of Bigelow over the years; if you have never tried the iconic Constant Comment or Lemon Lift, what are you waiting for? Another brand known for it’s quality and refinement is Harney and Sons.

Making tea enjoyable for everyone means including plenty of extras like milk, real cream, lemon, sugar and alternative sweeteners. For an elegant touch, purchase sugar cubes for the occasion and serve them in a pretty bowl. 

Floral Décor

Your teapots and food will be doing a lot of the decorating work for you, but adding fresh flowers to your tea party is timelessly elegant. Seasonal blooms can be artfully arranged in a variety of containers; the most obvious trick is to go with your tea theme and pop the flowers into a pot, kettle or mug. If you are setting up a large tea table, go for a large arrangement. If you will be serving a small group from a tray, a tiny little arrangement right in the middle looks really cute.

If you’re a complete dunce at arranging flowers (like yours truly), check out these super simple tips from Cottage on Bunker Hill. You can make something lovely even if you only have a few stems of eucalyptus.

 

 

The Food

What you drink is the highlight of any tea, so finger foods are the obvious choice if you’ll be serving something to eat. Go for small, delicious and pretty to look at. Buttery, melt-in-your-mouth scones are a traditional but still popular offering; you can decorate them with a drizzle of icing or a sprinkle of powdered sugar. Add some butter and jellies and jams for guests to spread over the scone of their choice. Cut up mini sandwiches of all types or arrange cookies on a pretty plate.

Since a tea party is all about the tea, you don’t need to stress out about the food. Don’t feel like baking or running to the store? You can order sweet, elegant treats like chocolate covered strawberries delivered to your door via the Internet.

Display tarts or decorated cookies on tiered stands, or put a paper doily on top of an open cake dome. To dress up plain Jane desserts like muffins or bars, use a tiny dollop of whipped cream and some brightly colored berries.

The Extras

The main reasoning behind tea time is socializing over a soothing brew, but you can provide some extras for fun, especially if you’ve planned this little shindig as a way to celebrate any special event in your life. Queue up movie or series that frequently features tea time, like Downton Abbey, Upstairs Downstairs or any of the BBC classics. Add old world flair with Victorian parlor games like Forfeits, Pass the Slipper and Lookabout. 

So, while you might not be able to pop over to London for tea and biscuits, there’s no reason you can’t celebrate this lovely old tradition right in the comfort of your own home. Tea time is celebrated in many cultures and in many ways, and I think it’s a much-needed respite in our hurried society.

It’s time to stop and smell the tea!

 

 

 

 

 

 

This post was made possible by a partnership with Responsival.