"The Vintage Tea Party Book" by Angel Adoree

If memory serves, never before have I come across a tea party book by an orange-haired British lass whose tea bread recipes are accompanied by instructions for applying false eyelashes, but hey, there's a first time for everything! I actually saw "The Vintage Tea Party Book" by Angel Adoree on Amazon a while back, but the cover reminded me of another tea book I own and I didn't give it too much thought, especially since I hadn't seen it reviewed anywhere. In Anthropologie at Lenox Mall last week, however, I came upon this most intriguing hardback and had an entirely different reaction to the book. "It's gorgeous!" said the friend who was with me. And it is.

First, please note the cover features an oval cutout, but open the book and you'll see artwork of the flame-haired author pouring tea for her friends. A few pages over, there's an actual photograph from which the artwork was created. It made me smile, and the edgy photos make it clear this is not your grandma's tea book!

But — and this is an important but — there is quite enough of the traditional in this book to make it worth the while of us old fogeys: treats like these pretty heart-shaped cucumber sandwiches.

There's also a yummy-sounding recipe for Plum and Honey Tea Bread I aim to try.

And there are quite a few recipes for beverages, such as blended teas as well as other hot drinks, including the ones served here in vintage wares.

Angel (whose real name is, ahem, Angela) sounds like she must be a lot of fun. According to the book she owns a business called The Vintage Patisserie, and I love her passion for all things vintage. She bought her first tea set at age 12 at a "boot fair," and she says her favorite pastime is thrifting. My kinda tea lover! I could say this book is "whimsical," but "wacky" would probably be a better word. (And I mean that as a compliment, of course!) It tells you how to make cardboard and fabric butterfly decorations, how to create a forties hairstyle, and how to make a Green Tea and Pear Cocktail. The book also has a copyable stencil of Queen Elizabeth (Angel is rightly proud of her British heritage) and recipes for Sugared Fruits, Rose Petal Sandwiches and Earl Grey Truffle Hearts, among many others. It's a book that's given me lots of new tea party inspiration, but best of all it just makes me smile!