Formatting Template
Happy February, winter, and St. Valentine's Day!
I am finally getting back on track with the things I'm supposed to be doing, and getting organized {per my New Years' resolutions}. I'm posting this in anticipation of my Valentine's/Midwinter tea post to explain my new format.
Any good tea party needs a checklist, so, here's a list of the main components of a tea party. I will be using this list in most if my future posts, filling the categories with the specific theme items for the tea I'm doing. If that doesn't make sense right now, it will eventually. Well, here we go.
The Tea: So, you can't have a tea party without tea {unless you're The Mad Hatter}.
The tea for your theme can be black, green, white, or herbal. There are some really fun and interesting teas out there, but you can never go wrong with a basic black, herbal mint, or Earl Grey tea.
The Savory Food: If you're me, you would just forget about this sometimes, but it's a little important to have some variety, and something to complement your tea that's not sweet.
The Sweets {of course}: This is my second favorite category! As a baker I have to make at least a couple of sweet treats to go with my tea. Cupcakes are a favorite, as well as a small pound cake, cookies, and on occasion tarts. Sometimes candies are fun to have on the side.
The Decor: The decorations and table-setting for your tea party can be simple and elegant, or as elaborate as you like, they should be what really brings your theme to the forefront.
Inspiration: This is where I'll talk specifically about the theme for each tea, and why I chose certain things to go with it.
So there are things you can do on the side of your tea to make it even more fun, especially if your friends, neighbors, pets, or guests of all sorts are on the energetic side.
Party Favors: You can always give little gifts with your tea, especially to go with your theme. {this is a good thing to remind your guests of how much fun they had, and to remind them to come next time. :D}
Games, Crafts, Activities {for those who's friends don't like to sit still}: Like I said before, you might have really energetic friends. Because not everyone is a Jane Austen fan who can sit around for hours exchanging witty banter, you might have to do something to entertain them. There are some basic games that can go with any tea, but this is a fun theme category too.
Some of the basics are:
Tea leaf reading: {this works best with loose-leaf tea, even after straining everyone's bound to get some leaves in the bottom of their cup.} When you can clearly see the leaves floating in just the tiniest bit of tea at the bottom of your cup place your cup with the handle facing out in your non-dominant hand and swirl three times clockwise. Gently pass your cup around so that everyone gets to offer their {funniest} interpretation of the shapes in your cup.
Cat's Cradle: You will need a string for this. This is good because it's something for those who like to keep their hands busy, plus two people can play together. Be sure to do Cup and Saucer. ;)
There are lots of fun word games for parties, and you can probably think of some of your favorite games.
Origami: You can even just do this with your napkins. Look up some shapes beforehand that you can teach, and, if desired, find good paper.
Well, that's all for now.
I am finally getting back on track with the things I'm supposed to be doing, and getting organized {per my New Years' resolutions}. I'm posting this in anticipation of my Valentine's/Midwinter tea post to explain my new format.
Any good tea party needs a checklist, so, here's a list of the main components of a tea party. I will be using this list in most if my future posts, filling the categories with the specific theme items for the tea I'm doing. If that doesn't make sense right now, it will eventually. Well, here we go.
The Main Components of Any Tea Party:
The Tea: So, you can't have a tea party without tea {unless you're The Mad Hatter}.
The tea for your theme can be black, green, white, or herbal. There are some really fun and interesting teas out there, but you can never go wrong with a basic black, herbal mint, or Earl Grey tea.
The Savory Food: If you're me, you would just forget about this sometimes, but it's a little important to have some variety, and something to complement your tea that's not sweet.
The Sweets {of course}: This is my second favorite category! As a baker I have to make at least a couple of sweet treats to go with my tea. Cupcakes are a favorite, as well as a small pound cake, cookies, and on occasion tarts. Sometimes candies are fun to have on the side.
The Decor: The decorations and table-setting for your tea party can be simple and elegant, or as elaborate as you like, they should be what really brings your theme to the forefront.
Inspiration: This is where I'll talk specifically about the theme for each tea, and why I chose certain things to go with it.
Optional Components:
So there are things you can do on the side of your tea to make it even more fun, especially if your friends, neighbors, pets, or guests of all sorts are on the energetic side.Party Favors: You can always give little gifts with your tea, especially to go with your theme. {this is a good thing to remind your guests of how much fun they had, and to remind them to come next time. :D}
Games, Crafts, Activities {for those who's friends don't like to sit still}: Like I said before, you might have really energetic friends. Because not everyone is a Jane Austen fan who can sit around for hours exchanging witty banter, you might have to do something to entertain them. There are some basic games that can go with any tea, but this is a fun theme category too.
Some of the basics are:
Tea leaf reading: {this works best with loose-leaf tea, even after straining everyone's bound to get some leaves in the bottom of their cup.} When you can clearly see the leaves floating in just the tiniest bit of tea at the bottom of your cup place your cup with the handle facing out in your non-dominant hand and swirl three times clockwise. Gently pass your cup around so that everyone gets to offer their {funniest} interpretation of the shapes in your cup.
Cat's Cradle: You will need a string for this. This is good because it's something for those who like to keep their hands busy, plus two people can play together. Be sure to do Cup and Saucer. ;)
There are lots of fun word games for parties, and you can probably think of some of your favorite games.
Origami: You can even just do this with your napkins. Look up some shapes beforehand that you can teach, and, if desired, find good paper.
Well, that's all for now.
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