Your Guide to Throwing an Exquisite Tea Party to Celebrate Any Occasion

Hosting a tea party is a fun, cute, and creative way to celebrate all sorts of events, from wedding and baby shower tea parties to birthday party teas. The best thing about celebrating a special occasion with a tea party is that everyone is sure to enjoy its originality and glamor. With unique floral centerpieces, creative decor, and vintage accents, not to mention the opportunity for dressing up and wearing funky hats. Here at Griffin’s Floral Design we are exploring trendy and charming ways to decorate your tea party, whether you prefer a classic Victorian high tea or a dreamy wonderland tea party, courtesy of the Mad Hatter. 

Setting and Decorating Your Tea Party Table 

Colourful, bright fresh Bouquet of summer flowers in glass vase, china tea cup with milk jug floral pattern on aged table on fence background, garden scene, daylight, floral composition, vintage style

Dazzling Floral Centerpieces 

Before you create your tea party centerpiece, you must decide on the kind of tea party you plan to host. A vintage tea party will look different from a Mad Hatter tea party. For example, a vintage or Victorian high tea centerpiece will consist of pastel blooms like blue, white, or pink hydrangeas, pink peonies, white daisies, and soft-hued roses. These flowers might be arranged in a tight cluster or round bouquet in a vintage vase to offer a refined and elegant look. On the other hand, a wonderland-themed tea party centerpiece might include more bold, vibrant, and interesting shaped blooms, like protea, button mums, stargazer lilies, and Craspedia billy balls held together by white hydrangeas. The look of these centerpieces might be described as out-of-the-box, geometric, or multi-dimensional.   

Bouquet of colorful flowers arranged in small vase

Arranging Flowers in Teacups 

Every tea party should be well equipped with lots of teacups, and they can even double as imaginative and artistic floral vases. Arrange roses, daisies, Craspedia billy balls, peonies, alstroemeria, button mums, or other small blooms in teacups or teapots to create fancy floral accents. A clever idea is to place a teacup of flowers on each guest’s place setting. Then, create a faux teabag string that emerges from the blooms, write each guest’s name on a tag, and use them as name cards so guests can find their seats. At the end of your event, allow each guest to take home their “cup of flowers” as a sweet keepsake or party favor. 

Pretty Pastel Tea Cups in Row - Afternoon Tea Party

Marvelous Tea Sets 

Perhaps you believe a Victorian high tea calls for matching dishware and tea sets, so your table looks uniform and put together. However, a beautifully designed tea party, no matter what the theme, usually consists of mismatched tea sets that work together to bring nostalgia, grace, and femininity to the event. Lavish dishes with scalloped edges are ideal for a vintage tea party, while bright-colored dishes speak to a wonderland tea party. When seeking out the perfect plates and tea sets and setting the table for guests, you may notice that each set might mirror your attendees’ various styles and tastes, making your tea party highly personalized, thoughtful, and special.  

Table set for an afternoon tea

Don’t Forget Tea Party Essentials 

Flowers, teacups, and saucers are just the beginning of setting the table. Picking out gorgeous linens, like tablecloths, runners, and napkins will also bring your event to life. Light and bright colors on flowy fabrics are spot on for a vintage or Victorian tea. Vibrant colors or a mix of black and white on textured fabrics will transport your guests straight to Wonderland. Then, choose between silver and gold flatware, and select a stunning ornate set of forks, knives, spoons, and of course, teaspoons! It is essential to set the table properly with forks to the left of the plate and knife and spoons to the right.  

Holiday themed table for the tea ceremony. Table with sweets. Tea with sweets. Table of Alice in Wonderland

Tea Party Accents to Bring Your Theme to Life 

When it comes time to add the finishing touches, start with a lovely bowl of sugar cubes, a pot of honey, and a carafe of milk or cream, and you must not forget a variety of teapots with your favorite types of tea. Towers of scones, finger sandwiches, cupcakes, and other goodies will also bring color and levels to your tea party table setting. Finally, illuminate your decor with votive candles and tealights to make your event dazzle and glow. 

Getting ready to host a tea party can be just as exciting as enjoying the event itself with guests. Between creativity, unique flowers, and choosing the perfect details to make your tea party memorable and magnificent, have fun with each item on your to-do list. Don’t forget to consult the professionals or work with us here at Griffin’s Floral Design to create the most stunning floral arrangements to fit your vintage or Mad Hatter tea party theme. 

Clever Tea Party Ideas