Tea Party Supply

Tea Party Supply Essentials

So you are throwing a tea party. Whether it is one for children, a bridal or baby shower, or simply a gathering of friends, you will have items that you need to furnish regardless of the purpose.

You will need to have the following items on hand for your tea party:

• Invitations and decorations
• Food
• Tea (and other drinks)
• Table service
• Favors or keepsakes

When it comes to choosing your party supplies, try to keep them in harmony with your theme (if you have one), your guests’ tastes, and time of day.

Supply Shopping

Before you go shopping for your tea party supply, you should make a detailed list. That list should include everything from the aforementioned items to have on hand. You will probably have to make two trips to stores for your supplies. The first trip shopping will be for all of the non-perishable items, like napkins, favors, and decorations. The second trip will be mainly for the foods you plan to serve.

Visit a tea or coffee house to get recommendations for teas that go well together. The experts may also be able to give you ideas of complimentary foods.

Consider shopping for a majority of your supplies online. You can often find your supplies a little bit cheaper, but beware of shipping and handling charges. Even if you do have handling charges, the time you save may be worth it.

Invitations and Decorations

Invitations in the shape of tea cups are a wise choice for your tea party. Choose more whimsical designs for a children’s party, or more formal ones for a women’s luncheon or bridal shower. Make your own invitations or purchase them through a discount party supply store or online.

Party decorations should go along with your theme of the tea party. Centerpieces should not be so big that they take up the entire table or hinder conversations. Items like the following would make excellent centerpieces:

• Medium sized decorated cake
• Floral arrangement
• Silver, gold, pewter, or porcelain themed trinket (such as a wedding cake topper)
• Dolls or stuffed animals
• Tiered serving platter

Make sure you have a nice tablecloth to cover your tables with. Pastel colors would look lovely for a ladies’ tea or one held in the spring or summer. Lace or simple floral designs would work well too. For children’s tea parties, get vinyl cloths that make spills easy to clean up.

Tea Party Food Supplies

Having a wide array of food available is essential to the success of any tea party. Your supply should consist of mostly finger foods, unless you are hosting the party over a dinner hour. Finger foods like hors’ devours are good choices.

Unless you are hosting a “sweet treats tea,” you will want to have food supplies to cater to several palates. The following foods would be good to have on hand for your party:

• Finger sandwiches (with crusts cut off)
• Strawberries
• Cut veggies
• Petite fours (mini cakes)
• Cookies
• Grapes
• Scones
• Biscotti

If you are hosting a morning tea party, you may want food supplies that are more brunch or breakfast related:

• Mini muffins
• Small turnovers
• Croissants
• Bagels with cream cheese
• Donut holes

Depending on the size of your tea party and if it is near a dinner hour, you may want to have a light green salad or pasta salad as well.

Shopping early for your non-perishable or freezable food items can cut down on your party costs.

Tea and Drink Supplies

As with any party, you should have a several drink choices available for your guests. Several kinds of tea should be available, such as earl grey, lavender, black, or a Japanese blend. If you are hosting an outdoor summer party, an iced tea drink (plain or flavored with raspberry or lemon) would be appreciated by your guests.

In addition to the tea, keep a few stir-ins available so people can make their tea according to taste. These can include:

• Milk
• Half and half
• Lemon wedges
• Sugar
• No or low-calorie sweeteners

Because you may have some non-tea drinkers invited to your party, you may want to have a few supplementary drinks available. Water, lemonade, clear soda, or ginger ale would be good choices.

Your morning or child’s tea party supply should include a few juices, like pulp-free orange, apple, or pineapple.

Table Service Supplies

Gather your table service supplies in advance of your party. If your party will have more than six people, you will want to get a second or third set of cups, saucers, small plates and teapots. You can borrow from friends or search for a reasonably priced second set to purchase. This is a good idea if you frequently host parties.

Find plastic tea service sets for children’s parties. This way, you do not have to worry about them dropping your good china. You can have a supply of disposable cups and saucers, or get a “play” set of more durable plastic that can be used after the party.

Favor and Keepsake Supply

Give your tea party guests a memento of your party by placing a small party favor or keepsake at each setting. For tea parties that are also club meetings, a small floral notepad and matching pen for note-taking makes a great take-home gift. Place card holders or small frames from parties with assigned seating are also sweet favors.

Garden tea parties may have a small seed packet for wildflowers. You may want to give out lotions or soaps at your tea party.

At children’s tea parties, have them do a craft together as an activity before they eat and drink and it can double as their take home favor.