This summer, entertain your guests with an elegant tea party. Whether you’re hosting an outdoor gathering in your garden or having afternoon high tea indoors, these elegant tea party ideas will ensure your guests have a lovely time. From setting the table and picking the perfect decor to pretty pastries and, of course, the tea sets, we’re full of ideas on how to throw a lovely tea party both you and your guests will find memorable.
Elegant Tea Party Ideas
Photo via June Bug Weddings by Dominique Bader
Photo: Tiny Tots Hire
Set a stylish table. Use teapots, antique books and plenty of gorgeous, fresh flowers for a stunning tea party tablescape. When selecting your flowers, stick to soft pastel colors like pink, cream and white. We especially love arranging with big summer blooms like peonies, hydrangeas and dahlias.
Mix and match plates and tea sets to add interest to your decor. We love this Miranda Kerr for Royal Albert floral tea set collection with the poppy place setting.
Photo via Southern Living by Jennifer Davick
Photo via Southern Lady
High tea calls for both savories and sweets, and you can’t go wrong with delicate tea sandwiches. Southern Living has a few recipes to try; we also love these savory strawberry sandwiches seen at Southern Lady. Serve them up on a three-tiered platter like this one from Williams Sonoma, which adds height and interest to your tablescape and allows guests to easily select their sandwich of choice. Or, make a statement with this crane sculpture.
Photo & recipe via Glorious Treats
Photos via Bakingdom
It wouldn’t be high tea without some divine and delicious pastries, and we are loving these ombré mini cakes from Glorious Treats. Macarons, petite fours and other baked treats also add to the elegant tea party theme as these pocket-sized bites are petite and pretty.
Shop the Post
Those photos are exquisite. The tea party must have been incredible.
But, and this is a big but….a high tea is the servants’ tea eaten at a high table in the kitchen. The fancy tea you’re describing is called afternoon tea. And, one never, under any circumstances, “throws” a tea party.
Dear Anna,
Thank you for clarifying the proper terms for high tea. Hope you’ll keep reading Hadley Court!
All my best,
Leslie