Welcome to afternoon tea with a bit of a twist. Afternoon tea is such an honored tradition. It’s a time to relax and chat with friends over a steaming cup of history. So let’s put together a tablescape that invites you to come in and sit awhile.
The first order of business is to establish a background on which to build your tablescape. Here I chose a simple green tablecloth to help bring in an element of nature. Be sure your tablecloth is clean and freshly ironed. Fold lines will really detract from the overall presentation. Happened to buy this one at the thrift store.
Next choose a base for your plate stack. These are glass chargers with silver foil applied to the inner charger and gold foil on the outer edge. They are really beautiful and I found them at a thrift store a few years ago. I use them all the time for lots of different china patterns.
Your base or dinner plate comes next. I wanted to continue to pull in a nature theme so chose Mikassa Flower plates. They have such a pretty textured rim but are a neutral color so act as a backdrop.
Continuing to build, I added a Limoges hand painted china plate depicting some Rosemary. The border picks up the gold in the charger and echoes the flower theme. Each plate presents a different herb which add some interest to the table.
I wanted something a little different so decided to add individual tea pots to each place setting. This way everyone could choose and brew their own favorite tea.
These are Yixing Chinese teapots and each one is an art work in itself. I love how they look on the table.
Of course you need silverware and napkins to add to the place setting. I used Oneida Community Coronation Silverware. It also has a flower theme going on. The napkins are by Lenox in a light gold with a leaf pattern running through the napkin. (A thrift store item). The table is starting to come together but still looks a bit empty.
Cups and saucers were added. Each one is unique and colorful. Most have some gold trim that picks up the gold in the charger.
When you invite people to tea you should probably serve them something to eat along with the tea. I decided to use this contemporary plate stand that reminded me a little bit of a pagoda. Then I chose some plates with cut out borders to hold the food. Two of the plates have a flower theme and the middle one is plain white with a very pretty border.
The last thing I added to each place setting was a tin of tea. I had green teas, black teas and flavored teas to choose from. The tins echo the gold chargers and pick up additional colors in the tea cups.
I was pretty pleased with how this turned out. The plate stack, tea cups, napkin rings, napkins, and chargers were all thrifted items. The teapots and silverware I had already. The plate rack and serving plates also came from the thrift store. All I have to do now is boil the kettle and welcome you to tea.