Whether it’s a birthday, a dinner, or just an opportunity to catch up with old friends; a tea party is the perfect cosy setting. However, knowing where to start in planning such a party can be overwhelming.

How should I decorate? What food should I serve? What activities should we do?

Luckily, I’ve created this guide to help you answer all of your questions about throwing the best tea party your guests have ever seen!

Note: This guide contains affiliate links which will earn me a small commission if you click the link and buy the product.

Tea Party Decorations

Now, for a tea party, I’m assuming this will be a more whimsical and dreamy vibe. Here, I’ll give tips on how to decorate the table into a beautiful, cottagecore dream.

Table Runners

Table runners can soften the look of a plain table, and can add to the overall colour scheme of the party. It also serves a practical function, since it protects the table from the other decorations and the food.

After searching around, This is the best option I have found to fit the atmosphere. The texture of the cheesecloth fabric creates a rustic and relaxed look, and the range of different colours allows you to set the colour scheme.

You could go for earthy tones to create a neutral backdrop for the rest of your decorations. Alternatively, you could go for another colour like pink or lilac and pair it with the other decorations to create a more whimsical vibe.

Candles and Fairy Lights

Lighting can bring such a cute element to the overall vibe of a party. By adding soft lights, you create a more cosy and delicate atmosphere, perfect for a tea party.

It’s also another way to add a delicate element to the party by using long stem candles. These are so quaint and can really add to the overall atmosphere of the tea party. I would recommend coloured candles to add a pop of fun colour, like these purple candles. To make it more whimsical, light them a few hours before so that the wax drips off of the sides.

You could also drape fairy lights around the centre of the table for extra lighting. This is perfect if you don’t have the space for candles since these cans weave between your other decorations.

Flowers

Flowers are an absolute essential for tea parties, they bring nature into the occasion is such a delicate and sweet way. There are many ways to incorporate flowers into the decorations.

You can use vases to place them throughout the table. This is so cute, but should be done mindfully to avoid cutting off lines of vision across the table. To help this, use shallow vases like these and cut the flower stems short.

You could also make dried flower pouches to place on the tablemats of each guest. This will make the room smell nice and offer a cute little party favour. I’ve made a guide on how to make lavender scent pouches here.

Table mats

Another simple way to add a cute touch to the party is through table place mats. These may protect the table from plates but they’re also useful for decorating the outer part of the table with minimal obstructions for people to accidently knock over.

A cute table mat idea to try is using lace doilies as dinner plates. They’re simple yet adorable and add a quaint little element to the decorations.

Tea Party Food

Cake

What is a tea party without cake? It’s a sweet yet airy treat which pairs lovely with tea. Even better, you can match the type of cake to your preferences. Whilst Victoria sponge is the standard, you can have carrot spiced cake for an autumnal twist or red velvet for a romantic occasion.

Tea

Tea is, of course, a given for a tea party but I believe that a truly spectacular tea party will have several different types of tea available. This is because different types of tea will have different effects on the mood of the party. A standard black tea is a good standard choice, but a herbal tea might also be appreciated for freshness and relaxation.

Either way, it’s best to have multiple tea pots on hand in case you need another batch or choose to boil up a different type of tea. Try to use decorative tea pots, the whole party will seem more impressive if little details like this are considered.

If you’re using loose leaf, then you can use a clear tea pot to show off the infusion to your guests.

Biscuits

Where there is tea, biscuits are sure to follow. You can offer multiple types of biscuits depending on your guests preferences but I will suggest three types here if you’re stuck for ideas.

Shortbread is a classic option which all guests should enjoy. It’s rich taste will pair perfectly with any type tea meaning all your guests can enjoy it.

Macarons are a sweeter alternative, but they can be decorated in so many cute ways to match the theme of the tea party. For example, you can buy a set of macarons in the same colour as your table runner to match the overall aesthetic of the party. Alternatively, you could simply get a mixture of colours for a pop of colour.

As a personal recommendation, I would suggest getting spiced cookies for a cosy, autumnal twist to the party. These would work perfectly with spiced chai and add another biscuit option aside from simply sweet. These also pair perfectly with the carrot cake suggested earlier.

Elderflower Cordial

This is a light and sweet alternative to tea which is great for if your guests want something a bit different. It’s also a good choice due to the floral taste marching the floral decorations. Elderflower is a floral and slightly sour taste, so make sure you ry some first before serving it to ensure you like it.

Tea sandwiches

Tea sandwiches are bite sized sandwiches which are great for parties like this since they allow guests to graze rather than sit for a full meal. 2 slices of bread make four of these sandwich so a whole loaf could easily cover a party of 5 when paired with the other foods suggested here.

These can be filled with whichever fillings you prefer, or even do multiple types of fillings so guests can choose whichever they fancy.

Turkish Delight

This is a bit more obscure compared to the other foods on this list, but a very good option nonetheless. Turkish delight is a delightfully sweet and floral sweet which would pair perfect with the floral decorations and herbal tea. I personally would recommend rose flavoured due to it’s soft floral taste and beautiful pink colour. To serve, you could place them onto a wooden serving board and lightly dust the whole thing in icing sugar.

Tea Party Activities

Painting

Painting is the perfect activity for a tea party, since it’s relaxing and you don’t need to be good at it to have fun. You can even make this a group activity by swapping canvases periodically to work on each others paintings. If there is a group of you, simply pass the canvases clockwise around the table so everyone can take turns contributing to each painting.

Candle Painting

Similar to paining, candle painting is another adorable idea you can try. It may even be better than painting considering everyone can take their candle home and use it. It’s a little more tricky, but still a fun idea none the less. You simply use melted wax instead of paint and lightly dab it onto the candle.

An easy way to do this is to place some wax melt burners in the middle of the table and give everyone a small detail brush. Then you can each use the coloured waxes in the melt burners to paint your candles.

I hope you found this guide useful, and have fun throwing the cutest tea party ever! If you do throw a tea party, let me know how it goes. Thanks for Reading!