Hosting tea parties gives me such a feeling of satisfaction. My guests leave full and happy and I hope a little pampered feeling. It’s the social aspect of tea time. Friends and relatives gathered around the table communing over a meal and drinking tea…and in some cases champagne…is what it’s really about for me. But I love the other aspects of tea: the tea sandwiches, the scones, the little desserts, and the table décor. Notice the lack of tea mentioned. Don’t get me wrong, I like tea, I enjoy tea, but I’ll take the champagne, please.
I hosted my first tea party many years ago…probably 10 years ago…for a luncheon that the girls in my family would do twice a year to celebrate our birthdays. Usually we would go to a restaurant for lunch, but I had been wanting to host a tea and since it was my turn to plan the lunch, I surprised everyone with a party. I was given pieces of Royal Copenhagen and Bing & Grondahl porcelain from my Bedstamor (Grandmother) and other family members. I had always been reluctant to use it, as some of it is very fragile and had been my Great Great Aunt’s originally. However, since this would be a gentile (Ha!) event, I felt it was ok to us them. I love the vibrant cobalt blue designs against the white porcelain. So using that as my theme I added a bright yellow as a contrasting color. I even made little menus for each person. I loved every moment of it. Unfortunately, I have no pictures to show you. Bummer, right?
The teas have become a yearly tradition and I have extended the invite to more people, as it is no longer tied to family birthdays. I have even been “taking them on the road” as I set tea tables for a Danish Sisterhood tea party the last two years and I’ve done them on my weekends in Bodega. Picking a theme is always on my mind. I always have a table design (or two) going in my brain.
Though I’ve hosted a lot of tea parties, I’ve only used my Danish porcelain a few times. The fall design I did for a Danish Sisterhood party was my very favorite…still is my favorite. I like the wood tones that ground the design and then the pops of orange that are the perfect complimentary color to the cobalt.
I also used it in a wintery design for a party in January on a weekend in Bodega. Yes, those are plastic plates. Who said, plastic and porcelain don’t go well together? It’s sort of like wearing pearls with a t-shirt. Casual yet elegant. Here the blue adds to the icy look to the winter themed table. I didn’t use any flowers in this table design but it was still fun design. Considering the party was only a few weeks after Christmas, it was easy to incorporate some of my Christmas décor for the look.
