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20th December 2016
12:10am GMT
Ah tea parties, the very height in elegant social gatherings. Make yours the most sophisticated affair with our tips for planning the perfect tea party.
So you want to throw a perfectly refined tea party? Or maybe something a bit off the wall? First you need to pick a theme: a unifying theme will give you something to hang all the elements of your party on, and bring it all together to make a great experience for your guests. Go vintage for a classic tea party, or rustic for something inspired by home country cooking. Or go mad with an Alice in Wonderland or even a circus theme. Not everything needs to be true to the theme, but it will give you some ideas for food, decorations and colours.
Whatever your theme, you’ll need pretty decent complement of beautiful cups, saucers, plates, even teeny tiny spoons. Unless you ’re lucky enough to have a set of fine china at home already, the second-hand markets are your friends. Make a few trips and pick up an eclectic selection of beautiful crockery and cutlery on the cheap.
When you’re out shopping, don’t forget the tiered cake stand! After all the trouble you ’re going to go to baking and making, it would be a shame not to display it properly. Lots of us have these in the back of a cupboard somewhere just waiting to be dusted off, but in case you ’re not that lucky, make sure you keep an eye out when you’re out shopping. Flowery ones are generally the norm.
Yes you could make a Facebook event and invite your 1200 contacts that way, or send a plain plain email to your select few. But better yet, why not design and print your own invitations? Depending on the vibe you ’re looking for, you could get something printed up on the cheap in a print shop (many have in-shop graphic designers that can help out too), or try something yourself. Break out the coloured card, markers and pritt stick and remember why you used to like doing this stuff when you were a kid.
Keep everything personalised at the party too with some homemade, personalised decorations. Better yet, EDIBLE homemade, personalised decorations. Try out these coconut/cinnamon place-name cookies
At the centre of any tea party is, well, the tea. Bear in mind that not everyone likes black tea with milk and sugar: make sure you have a few good options, including green teas, herbal infusions and fruit blends. Go for loose leaf versions and you ’ll get amazing scents as well as flavours. Either brew them in big pots for sharing, or give everyone small personal filters for their own use, with the added advantage of using them for multiple flushes by just adding more water without worrying about where to put the teabags.
For an alternative tea party, try an iced tea party! Ideal for summer afternoons or picnics, and you can mix up your iced teas with homemade lemonades. For a twist that your guests won ’t forget, try making some fancy ice-cubes – buy shaped trays, or freeze tiny sprigs of fresh herbs, or a twist of lemon peel into them. (Warning: you ’ll need a good supply of glass jugs or jars, as well as fruit slices. And don ’t forget the fresh mint leaves)
It’s having the little extras ready and to hand that will add the real class to your event: a decent supply of napkins; dishes or bowls for teabags and filters; sugar bowls for white sugar, brown sugar and sweetener; milk in a delicate jug; wee slices of lemon on a little plate. Oh and don ’t forget, small spoons for each bowl.
Now you have the tea sorted, time to think about your food. Whether you ’re going for classic scones and petit fours or sandwiches and snacks, think small. To create a perfect tasteful tea party, the last thing you want is for your guests to be dripping food over their clothes: make sure all your food is in bite-sized chunks, or at least easy to eat. As well as sweet foods, have a few plates of nuts and berries available.
Whatever your personal feelings about scones, you simply cannot leave them out of your tea party menu. Try to think outside the box a little with your scones: think spices, think chopped fruit, think a selection of jams and preserves. Or try these supremely rocky rock cakes for something with a bit of edge.
If you want to really show off to your guests, make some macarons, the perfect colourful bite-sized sweet treat. Macarons are difficult sure, but not impossible, so give them a few trial runs. Check out these tips and tricks for making perfect macarons.
The point of having cake trays is so that your guests can take their nibbles as and when they feel like it, and you don ’t have to worry about serving up the right portions. Take this to a new level by having a range of serve-yourself options, like this cupcake shrub!
Swap the tea for booze for a different kind of tea party: after all cocktails are just like iced tea for grownups. Perfect for an alternative hen idea.
