Wouldn't your girls enjoy a real tea party?The moms in my group have a formal tea every quarter. The girls always beg to be included. Last year we allowed them to join us for an Oriental themed tea. They loved it.
The hostess should mail out pretty invitations stating the date, time, place, what to wear and possibly what to bring to share.
Choosing a theme makes the tea party memorable, easier to dress and decorate for, and definitely more fun. Here are some possible themes with ideas:
- Oriental Use a silk table cloth on a coffee table low to the floor. Guests qill be seated on cushions or mats. Light the table with a string of paper lanterns. (Christmas tree lights, each encased in a colored paper shape.) Provide each guest with a set of chopsticks. Guests can wear silk or satiny scarves and materials wrapped like saris over their regular clothing. Silk pajamas make a cute costume. Try adding chopsticks to your hairdo. Use bright red, gold, purple and whites to decorate the room and oragami birds at each setting. We used white plates with a gold trim. A centerpiece of a single shiny pear in a china dish is a beautiful centerpiece.
- Snow Flake Tea Use a dark blue or a red tablecloth and cover it with a white lace one. Cut out snowflakes and hang these over the table on white strings or ribbons. Eat from white plates and drink from white china cups. Serve some white treats: cookies with white icing, small dishes of pineapple sherbet or coconut pudding, white chocolate chip cookies, rice Krispie treats, or rocky road pizza. The hostess should read Robert Frost's poem Stopping By the Woods On a Snowy Evening aloud for the guests.
- Book Swap Tea party : Oh this is a fun one! The guests all bring a favorite book to trade. They can dress as a favorite book character. The table should be set with crockery dishes and lit with oil lamps. The table cloth should be a red or other bright solid cloth. Decorate for a cozy-read-by-the-fire feel. The hostess may want to ask each guest to tell about the book she brought to swap. Have a reading of one of the books--a shorter picture book. Tape a number to the bottom of each cup. Number the books as they are brought in. Before the tea is served have each guest look at the cup to see what number she has drawn. Have the guests make and exchange Valentine bookmarks.
- Valentine Tea Party: Red and pink are the colors to use for this party. Cut hearts to sprinkle on the table. Use big hearts for placemats or drink coaters. Serve sugar cubes with the tea. Pick pink and red colored teas such as raspberry, Bing Cherry, strawberry and pomegranate. Serve heart shaped cookies and peanut butter Hershey Kiss cookies. Girls might want to try a craft project like fabric and wire hearts.
Recipes for tea should be simple and tasty. Here are some to try:
Sour cream Coffee Cake. Painted heart cookies.
Hannukah cookies in shapes of doves, butterflies, hearts or dragonflies.
Strawberries dipped in white chocolate or white almond bark make a special fancy treat.
Blueberry muffins are a tea staple.
Make the tea party a fun affair with loads of color and pizazz. and plenty of yummy foods. Your guests will be asking,"When can we have the next tea party?"
 |
 |
