Drinks include White wine or a nice Sangria,Mimosas or Mojitos a vast variety of teas including Iced Earl Grey (this is fantastic by the way), Peach and Vanilla.For the Vanilla tea I brew a standard iced tea and add 4-5 drops of vanilla to each glass. It has a wonderful clean crisp finish. I serve these teas in Porcelain crocks.I offer a nice salad,usually a field green with endive and fresh spinach tossed in a light vinaigrette. Second course is a light soup such as Minestrone or Italian Wedding soup. Ham and lentil has done well in the past. Light finger sandwiches follow the soup such as cucumber or chicken salad served on croissant. I offer a wide variety of crackers and cheeses,a fruit platter and scones. Apple cinnamon or Raspberry is always popular with my friends.I also have a variety of shortbread cookies,chocolates and other delicate nibbles. I set everything up under a canopy on a long table covered with linen cloth. I have flowered fabrics covering the seating tables with vases of wild flowers. Napkins of course are rolled with the silverware inside tied with ribbon or lace. I usually have party favors. Such as pocket sized address books,matching pens,stationary,small bottles of body spays,scented hand creams,crocheted bookmarks,etc. I use a mix of glass and white crockery for the table settings. And we doll ourselves up in our best dresses and bonnets for the afternoon. I bring the stereo outside and play light classical just for some low ambient noise. No games get played, we just wing it. The entire idea is to socialize. And that's all we do. I've done this for several years now and the guest list keeps getting longer.Really you can do whatever you want.Serve whatever you want. It doesn't matter.I send out official invitations on a classic English style stationary listing the menu and drinks. I have never had a complaint about any of the food items or drinks. It's been a hit every year. Friends of my friends and their Mothers ask me for invites.
This is just my way of doing a Garden Tea Party. It's not stuffy or high hat,we just get together have a good time and eat.
First of all for a proper tea party I would serve sandwiches a few different kinds ham turkey and roast beef all with cheese I would prefer swiss sharp cheddar and provolone you can do one or multiple types of sandwiches make sure you cut off the crusts they look tacky and cut them into triangles so they are more of a finger food remember this is a tea party not a feast I also would serve crumpets as for tea go for a nice irish breakfast or chamomile both are very good chamomile is soothing to and games are not traditional but if you insist try something like a word game like scrabble or something like that make sure it's fun and that it will involve all your guests and above all make sure your guests are entertained all this means nothing if you have not succeed in entertaining your guests.
I want to throw a garden party this summer, and I want it to be very early 1900's and very English style. If you've ever seen episode 7 season 1 of Downton Abbey, then you know what I'm going for.
What do I need to do to make it as close to the real thing as possible? Like, what kind of teas to serve, how to serve the tea, what kind of food, what kind of games (if any) do we play, etc?
I just really want to throw a really great party that is true to its origin and not true to what the media has made it to be. Thank you!
