Tuesday, April 17, 2012

Behind the scenes at Cari's Tea Party

In my family, it takes a village to throw a tea party! And if I may brag on my six-year-old niece Amelia for a moment, I have to tell you that this sweet little girl was a worker bee.

She diligently prepared the fruit cups, even if she did eat more of the strawberries than she actually put into the cups.

She also made sure the table was set just perfectly. (A fun teapot story: Amelia worked so fast she kept saying "I need another job," so at one point I told her to get six teabags out of the box of green tea and place them in one of the teapots. She looked a little confused. "Put these teabags in there?" she asked, holding out one of the individually wrapped teabags. "Yes," I said. Later, I went to make the tea and nearly poured hot water right in on top of the still-wrapped teabags. Now I see what she was asking!)

Another thing I wanted to mention about the table setting was that I found the perfect paper "placemats" to fit around tea-and-toast sets.

These are actually fancy Anna Griffin scrapbooking papers, which were on sale for just $1 at Michaels last week. I recommend stocking up on these when they're on sale like that!

The Chicken Salad served in egg cups was a real hit, so I wanted to mention how easy these were to make and decorate. Satin ribbon, double-sided tape, a rubber stamped teacup and you're done! (Please remember the cute pink teacup stamp design, as it will become quite significant later this week!)

And I've written about these before on the blog, but in case you're a new reader, this is just my standby Waldorf Chicken Salad recipe garnished with a Pepperidge Farm butterfly cracker and chives. Easy—and gets rave reviews!

I also thought you might enjoy seeing some more of my mom's ladies head vases.

Even after we decorated the table, she still had quite a few left!

So on behalf of the birthday girl, I hope you've enjoyed reading about Cari's Birthday Tea. Cheers, everyone!

14 comments:

  1. It's always fun to see the "behnd the scenes" -- looked like a really fun party!

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  2. It certainly pays to have open eyes no matter where you are shopping! The placemats are wonderful and so pretty!♥♫

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  3. I loved reading every word and seeing every photo in today's post! Amelia is quite the helper! And WHAT a collection your mom has of ladies' head vases! I don't think I've ever seen that many in one place!
    You incorporated so many wonderful details into Cari's tea party. It was lovely in every way.

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  4. A lovely Tea party,I always say the preparation is 1/2 the fun!
    I love the placemats!

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  5. Beautiful Tea and such fun to read about the tea bags! Thanks for sharing.
    Nancy

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  6. Your table is so cheerful and springy! Love the teapot apron that Amelia is wearing! You have created such special memories for your nieces!

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  7. I agree with Nancy's comment above. Your mom's collection of head vases is very impressive. What a special family event!

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  8. Thanks for showing us "behind the scenes".

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  9. Looks like you are doing a great job of training the next generation of tea party hostesses. Amelia looks like she is having fun learning how to plan and execute a wonderful party.

    Mary Jane

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  10. Those butterfly crackers are hard to find in my area ! You will put Tea Time magazine out of business with your attractive tea party blog post !

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  11. Hello Angela, what a Fabulous Tea Party! Your attention to detail is spot-on and how great to have a wonderful helper like Amelia. I love all the photos and your Mom's ladies head vases are so impressive.
    Question: what kind of cups did you use for the fruit? They are so pretty. Thanks for sharing, I enjoy your blog so much. Joanie

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  12. I loved reading both posts about your niece's birthday tea. How beautiful it was and how beautiful the girls looked. How sweet your younger niece was as she helped. Thanks for sharing the party and the behind the scenes info. Loved the ladies head vases. What an amazing collection your mom has. Just beautiful! Oh and LOVE the tip about the scrapbook paper placemats! Thanks again.

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