Ornate Bridal Shower Tea Parties

Ornate Bridal Shower Tea Parties

Nothing is more ornate than having a tea party with the bride to be and her best friends to celebrate her upcoming marriage. Girls no matter what the age just naturally have fun together celebrating life, but when girls are celebrating the fact that their friend has found their soul mate electricity fills the air.

An ornate bridal shower has many components. When giving a bridal tea party I like to decide my theme using the personal interests of the bride. One of my dear friends that I had an ornate bridal tea party for had an obsession with zebra print. Therefore, zebra print became the theme for my tea party.

Our tables were covered with white linens topped with black vases filled with an assortment of fresh white flowers. I found beautiful zebra print linen napkins and the tea was poured into both white and black teacups. I made my own beautiful ornate zebra print invitations and the guests were asked to wear black and white or zebra print attire. When quests are aware of your theme you will be surprised at the lengths they will go to follow that theme. My quests came with beautiful packages of white, black and zebra print paper and ribbons. Our environment was lovely.

I enjoy having soft classical music playing in the background as my guests and I gather around our beautiful tables and chat with each other. I think music can set the tone for your ornate tea parties. You decide what kind of tone you want. I typically look for relaxing and peaceful. Others may be looking for more of an upbeat fun style and tone. That is the beauty of an ornate tea party, it is all up to you.

My ornate menu consisted of fresh strawberries dipped with both black and white chocolate, zebra striped biscotti, my famous ornate raisin scones with chocolate and white frosting drizzled over the top vegetable quiche, and a garden salad with fresh blueberries, strawberries and red onions with a raspberry walnut vinegar dressing. I always have a variety of different teas for my quests to choose from. Tea is a soothing comfort that comes in many flavors.

Consider giving an ornate tea party the next time you decide to have a bridal shower for a treasured friend. ornate Bridal Tea parties are fun to plan and they can be a fabulous experience for both you and your guests. Know your bride, know her interests, and personalize your party. It will be a memory both your guests and your bride will not forget. One more thing, don’t forget to take lots of pictures. I bought a zebra print photo album and filled it with pictures from the shower. It was just one more memorable gift for the bride. Have fun sipping tea!!!

CHILDREN'S ORNATE TEA PARTIES

Ornate Children’s Tea Parties

Every little girl loves to pretend and imitate their mommy. We also know that every little girl loves to dress up. An Ornate Tea Party is the simple answer to every little girls dream. My daughter grew up having tea parties at a very early age. I can remember purchasing her first little glass tea set. If my memory serves me right she was two years old. We would sit on the living room floor in the winter time on a large blanket. I would prepare some toast with jam and we would use our favorite cookie cutter shapes to make our toast ornate.

We first began our pretend tea parties using only water in our little glass tea cups. At age three we ventured into using real tea. I believe that even small children need to experience using real glass tea cups. How do we ever get our children to appreciate the beauty and the fragile feel of a tea cup if we don’t allow them to actually use a glass cup. Yes, you may have a break but children will surprise you at how fast they learn to be gentle when they understand that there is a need to be.

I have a Montessori background and I was always amazed at the two and three year olds that worked in the environment in the Practical Life area. This area was filled with glass that allowed these small children to pour water, seeds, sand, etc out of beautiful glass pieces. Yes, we had some breaks but never intentionally. A child’s ornate tea party experience has to involve the beauty of glass.

Our tea parties over the years as my daughter grew up were spent in many ornate places. We had tea parties under tents that were built with blankets, sitting on our un-made bed in our pajamas, outside in the wooded area behind our house sitting on a special log, sitting on the front porch, and even in the back seat of our car while it simply sat in the garage. These may sound like very strange places to have an ornate tea party but guess what, that is what made them so ornate. The memories we created were priceless. Memories neither one of us will ever forget.

As the years progressed we began to invite my daughter’s little friends to our ornate tea parties. When my daughter entered school the parties would always begin with tea and cookies and often progress into a pampering party with toenails and fingernails being painted.

In Junior High the parties took on more of a grown up look with the girls usually sitting around some sort of table giggling, sipping hot tea, and talking about boys. In High School the ornate tea parties became serious. Our home was known as the Tea Party home. These parties often had a theme and devotions were an important component of the party. I always used my favorite Tea Party book with the girls. If Teacups Could Talk by Emilie Barnes was the treasured Tea Party book at our house. Tea parties are such wonderful ways to build precious memories.

My daughter is all grown up now but I still love to hear her say, “mom remember when we had that tea party…” Today she is having ornate tea parties with her three year old daughter. We have come full circle. What more could I ask for? Memories… begin to build some. It is never too late!

ORNATE TEA PARTIES WITH MOTHER NATURE

ORNATE TEA PARTIES WITH MOTHER NATURE

There is nothing that can bring women closer than spending time together at an ornate tea party. Now, we women know that the tea sipping is just one piece of the tea party. There are so many other factors to consider. Before women arrive at a tea party much thought has gone into the proper attire. Let’s face it women love to dress up, especially when we get the luxury of spending quality time with close friends.

I love to host ornate tea parties. I have collected tea cups from all over the world. I refuse to display them only to have them gather dust. I use each and every one of them. I guess the most ornate part of my tea parties are when each woman has the opportunity to select her tea cup for the day. You would not believe what a hard choice that can be when there are so many beautiful tea cups to choose from. I consider all my tea parties ornate for some reason or another.

I put quite a bit of time into setting the table for tea. I believe that women deserve beauty therefore I strive to have a rich setting for my ornate tea party events. I truly believe that my most beautiful tea parties have been the ones that take place in the midst of Mother Nature. There is no dining room, living room, piece of furniture, or Country Club that can hold a candle to Mother Nature. She is the only one that can provide a breathtaking backdrop for a lavish ornate tea party.

My most favorite ornate tea party setting is outdoors in a Hosta Kingdom located in the middle of a beautiful wooded area that is owned by a dear friend. This kingdom is breathtaking. My friend has labored and loved this land and with his determination he has created a place of solitude for both the joyful and the hurting souls. This Hosta kingdom is the home of hundreds of hosta plants along with many other colorful perennials. The flowers that are needed for my ornate tea party centerpieces are simply picked off the land. Hosta leaves are marvelous in any centerpiece and will add a wonderful green color and dimension to any arrangement. When I choose the color of linen for my outdoor ornate tea party I know that I can’t go wrong because Mother Nature looks good with every color. Mother Nature just makes having a party both beautiful and easy!

When women meet together for an ornate tea party each and every woman is at a different stage in life. Some are going through relationship difficulties, some may be struggling with an illness, yet others may be blissfully happy. Ornate tea parties with Mother Nature can not only calm the spirit but it can often be a step in helping to heal the soul. I encourage any woman that loves to give tea parties to consider taking it outdoors with our friend Mother Nature. It may be a little more work to carry everything outside, but I assure you it will be well worth it. As you sit outdoors with your precious friends raise those tea cups and give a toast to Mother Nature and thank God for your many blessings!

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TEA PARTY RAISIN SCONE RECIPE

TEA PARTY RAISIN SCONE RECIPE

Years ago I decided to start a tradition with my daughter and her girlfriends. I began having tea parties twice a year. Now these tea parties were unlike other tea parties. I guess what made the tea parties so special besides the precious friends were the ornate glass tea cups and of course my tea party raisin scone recipe.

As we all know every occasion that women are involved in always have a special “treat.” I wish I could take the credit for my tea party raisin scone recipe but I have to give the credit to Betty Crocker. Scones are an interesting dessert. There is nothing like them when they come fresh from the oven. This Scottish quick bread is said to have taken its name from the Stone of Destiny (or scone), the place where Scottish Kings were crowned.

Tea party raisin scones are sweet and are usually eaten for breakfast or tea. It is fun to decide what shape you would like your tea party raisin scones. This recipe mentions a triangular shape but don’t be afraid to use rounds, squares, or diamond shapes also. What I love about this tea party raisin scone recipe is its versatility. If you don’t like raisins simply substitute them with blueberries, cranberries, or chocolate chips.

I hope you take the time to enjoy life with your favorite gals while you sip tea and enjoy the mouth watering tea party raisin scones. Enjoy!!!

Raisin Scones

2-1/2 cups flour

3 tablespoons white sugar

1-1/2 tsp. baking powder

1/2 tsp. salt

1/2 cup butter

1/2 cup raisins

1 egg, lightly beaten

3/4 cup milk

Preheat oven to 425 degrees. In a large bowl, mix the flour, sugar, baking soda and salt. Cut in the butter until the mixture looks like coarse crumbs. Blend in the raisins, then mix in the egg and enough milk to form soft dough. Turn the dough onto a floured surface and pat gently into a 10-inch circle (about 3/4 of an inch thick). Cut into wedges. Separate the wedges and place them onto a lightly floured baking sheet. Bake at 450 degrees for 16-18 minutes or until golden brown. Note: Try blueberries, cranberries and orange peel, chocolate chips, or other favorite addition instead of raisins.

Girls Tea Parties With Ornate Glass Tea Cups

Girls Tea parties with ornate tea cups
“I want that one” is the phrase that brought joy to my heart. Why, because I knew the girls were having fun. I began collecting ornate tea cups when my daughter was in junior high. I made it known to all my friends that if they were traveling to a different state or Country that I would love for them to bring me back an ornate glass tea cup. By the time my daughter was in High School I had quite a collection. I had ornate glass tea cups from Ireland, Israel, France, Italy, and many different states.

Instead of letting these beautiful ornate glass tea cups gather dust, I decided that they would be used and loved. I worked with our church youth group at the time and thought that Girls Tea Parties would be a great way to build memories. So it began!

Twice a year, once in the winter and once in the summer we had a Girls Tea Party using my ornate glass tea cups. Each year during my daughters four years of high school I held themed Girls Tea Parties. We had WEAR A HAT, WEAR YOUR PAJAMAS, BRING A FRIEND, BRING YOUR FAVORITE CHOCOLATE, AND DRESS LIKE A PRINCESS PARTIES just to name a few. I usually had 15-20 young ladies attend the Girls Tea Parties.

I would have all of my ornate glass tea cups displayed on a table and the girls would wonder around picking them up and admiring them trying to decide which they would claim to be theirs for the afternoon or evening. After the ornate glass tea cups were selected the girls would gather around the huge dining room table, grab a delicious homemade scone, and enjoy the comfort of sisterhood with their peers. I can’t tell you the precious conversations that I heard and the wonderful sounds of laughter. Because many of these girls were in our church youth group we always made time for a short devotional.

Over the years these girls have blossomed into young women. Most of them are married and have children of their own. When I run into them on the street it never fails that I hear the words “REMEMBER OUR TEA PARTIES? THEY WERE SO MUCH FUN!” I know that two of the girls have started their own collection of ornate glass tea cups and plan to carry on this tradition with their own girls when they grow up. I think that is MARVELOUS and makes it all worthwhile!