5 tips for hosting a tea party

Recently I hosted a tea party for my birthday and it was an incredibly fun afternoon, so here are my tips for having a tea party of your own!

1. Create the perfect atmosphere

This includes table decorations, candles, nice cutlery and of course- beautiful tea cups. 

It is important to make your guests feel as comfortable as they can, and for them to walk into a room with a gorgeously decorated table will instantly create the perfect vibe for them.

It's also nice to decorate the table with flowers to add a fresh scent to the room, and I did so with fresh lavender from my Aunt's garden. 

{My table setting}

2. Serve a variety of food

It is important to serve not only cakes, but small savoury foods as well. I would recommend making sausage rolls; or just even buying them and other frozen foods from the grocery store because who doesn't love a good sausage roll, party pie, pastizzi or mini quiche?  

However, guests will be very appreciative if your sweet dishes are homemade. I served caramel slice, lemon cake, honey & cornflake crisps and cupcakes. 

It's good to have a variety of both sweet and savory so your guests can eat what they like.

3. Tea x 10

Be prepared to boil many, many, many jugs of water for the teapot- because that tea will go down the hatch faster than you can recite the alphabet. Try to notice when the tea is running low, and make sure to offer if they would like a different type of tea. 

I just served English Breakfast tea and placed milk, sugar, honey and lemon on the table for people to use if they wished. After about six teapots of English Breakfast, we moved onto what was about four teapots of Peppermint tea. 

If your guests like a range of teas, perhaps use mini teapots for the different types so your guests can drink what they like.

{Serve the tea in nice china teacups like this, including the saucer}

4. Set a theme

Fancy tea party? Semi-formal? Alice in Wonderland themed? 

Sometimes it's a quirky and fun idea to set a theme for your tea party. Let your guests know a month prior so that they have time to not only save the date, but organize their outfit! 

5. Enjoy the company of friends

My tea party was a success because it was an intimate afternoon tea with seven of my closest friends. Even though not all of my friends knew each other extremely well, friendships were made and everyone had a wonderful time. It's good to ease the tension so make sure for an intimate gathering like this, majority of people get along! The most important thing is to enjoy the company of those who you spend your time with, and I think tea parties are a fantastic way to do that. 

{Polaroids of my friends and I}