Tea Party Favors for All Girls

Girls of all ages at your tea party will love favors like boas, gloves, pearls and hats.  Check out these tea party hat kits - they are a tea party activity, dress up piece and favor all in one!  Each girl gets a straw hat, lots and lots of pretty, silk flowers, tulle, ribbon and easy instructions.  Have a fashion show afterward!

Tea Party Favors for Little Girls

If you have little girls coming to your tea party, try to give favors that they cannot choke on, break or lose easily.  Good favors for little girls 4 and under include pretty tea party cookies, larger dress up pieces (gloves, hat, pearl necklace), or stickers.  Stay away from small vials of lip gloss, glitter, or small rings that can be swallowed, eaten or lost.  With dress up pieces as tea party favors, girls can wear them during the party and then go home all dressed up, too!

Tea Party Favors for Older Girls

Girls ages 5-10 can be given favors with smaller parts, as well as the dress up items mentioned above.  Favor a great girls tea party favor that’s all-in-one, we suggest this tea party purse that comes filled with a necklace, bracelet, gloves, notepad and 2 mini pink slippers.  You can even take out the contents and hide them for a tea party treasure hunt game!  These paticular tea party favors would also work well for a little girls princess party, as well.

Tea Party Favors for Older Girls, Teens and Ladies

Older girls aged 11 and up as well as teens (and even ladies) will appreciate tea party favors that are thoughtful and out-of-the-ordinary.  A pretty pink or ivory porcelain tea cup and saucer that comes with tea and a golden spoon is always a hit, and comes pre-wrapped and ready to give. 

Beautiful tea party cookies with cameos, monograms, pretty Victorian shoes, tea pots and tea cups on them are beautiful for any tea party event and last up to 4 weeks left unwrapped.  These gorgeous cookies are also popular with brides for bridal shower or wedding tea favors, but girls of all ages love them…if you can get them to forget about how pretty they are and take a bite!

Large gatherings of girls or ladies might require you to put together your own tea party favors.  If so, we’ve got wholesale prices on tea cups that you can order and fill however you wish – with candies, baubles, tea, a poem or whatever seems to be right.  Lastly, consider things like candles in tea cups or fun little porcelain tea pot shaped night lights - these are tea party favors that older girls and ladies will use and think fondly of your tea party each time they do!  Still undecided?  Take a look at these adorable tea set gift boxes that you can fill with whatever you want, and order colors to match your tea party!

No matter what you decide, we hope that our tips and ideas will help you select just right tea party favors for girls of all ages.  

TeaPartyTreasures.com

 Little girls love princess tea parties and in today’s economy, many moms are opting to host their little princess’s tea party at home instead of paying hundreds of dollars for an off-site party venue.  Here we show you how, by adding just a few simple touches, you can transform your dining or living room into a Princess Tea Party  that fits like a glass slipper!

Princess Tea Party Decorating Tips

Create instant princess magic by following these tried-and-true party tips!  Sprinkle silk flower petals over the table cloth to give it an enchanted feel.  Wrap small, white  lights in tulle or inexpensive white sheers to add a soft, sparkling backdrop.   Wind strings of silk or plastic ivy and/or flowers around a pretty pink tea pot, chairs and table legs to create dressed-up feeling in the room.    

Princess Attire

If you’re game, dress up like a queen or princess yourself!  Dad or big brothers can put on a tux or suit and become a waiter for the day to help out.  Our Princess Tea Party box comes with a princess dress for each child – best of all it comes straight to your doorstep at an unbelievably great price (saves gas, too!): 

•  8 Personalized Tea Party Invitations
• 8 Princess Dresses (choose size and color)
• 8 Sparkling star wands 
• 8 sets white gloves 
• 8 Fancy bead necklaces
• 8 Silver Tiaras
• 8 Pink Rose Organza party bags /purses
• 8 Glitter Lip Gloss accessories
• 8 Plastic Tea Cups
• Pink Dress Up Trunk w/Lid
• Pink Tea
• Princess Napkins (16)
• Princess Plates (8)
• Pink Cutlery (51 forks/knives/spoons)
• Pink Tablecover

Princess Tea Time

Serve the tea in child’s tea cups that are sized just right for little hands or use our pretty pink princess tea set with tiered server, tea cups, tea pot and more (extra tea cups can be added)!  Use the server for bite-sized tidibts like small iced cookies,  mini cupcakes, fruit, cheese squares and fruit.  

Princess Tea  Party Activities

Have a princess scavenger hunt using organza bags – prepare a list of “treasure” to find (lip gloss, necklaces, wands, etc.) TIP:  instruct each child to pick up only one of each item to avoid tears.   When it’s time to sing the birthday song, have the guests encircle the birthday princess and sing Happy Birthday while they shower her with flower petals (real or silk).   Paint a large, cardboard box into a princess castle – the girls will love crawling inside through a cutout doorway! Paint the outside of your box with a rectangular sponge dipped in gray paint in scattered rows to mimic castle block walls…fill in with black paint…easy!  Adorn the “castle” with glued-on silk flowers, ivy, etc. if desired.  Take pictures of the girls peeking out for beautiful princess pictures to send to each guest!

Extra Princess Tea Party Tips

Don’t overschedule your party – tired girls equals whining and no fun.  The rule of thumb is not more than 1.5 hours for small children, and no more than 2 hours for 5 and up.  One or two activities plus tea time and gift opening is more than ample.  Have the birthday girl sit in a special “Princess Chair” (dining room chair decorated with tulle bows) and each guest can present her gift one at a time.  Develop photos right after the party and send each child a special thank you note with photos taken at the party, like the enchanted castle photo, tea party dining, etc. 

Visit us online for tons of great tea party tips, supplies and unique items to make your child’s princess tea party extra special!  www.TeaPartyTreasures.com

A Rainbow Tea Party is a celebration of God’s promises to us. Colors are used to symbolize each of these promises. We have lots of ideas for you in planning your Rainbow Tea Party as well as supplies to help make your tea party a fun, successful event!

First, it’s important to understand the significance of each color:

Rose Fairy Tea Set

By adding just a few simple touches to a plain tea party theme, you can transform any tea party event into something extraordinarily magical and fun – a fairy tea party!  Use our tips to create an enchanting fairy tea party , or  pick our  Fairy Tea Party Box for a hassle-free afternoon of fairy wings and tea among the flowers! 

With the addition of some sparkling fairy wings, fairy wands and floral touches your tea party venue can become a wooded glen full of fun surprises and fun.

 Fairy Tea Party Decorating Tips

For quick tea table transformation, sprinkle silk or real flower petals over the table cloth (and/or the floor) to give the room a magical feel.  Most florists will give you a bag of petals for free or nearly free, left over from arrangements.

• White lights wrapped in tulle or inexpensive white or pastel sheers add a soft, magical backdrop. Use these to soften walls, doors and ceilings – you will be amazed at the atmosphere these create!
• Wind strings of silk or plastic ivy around the base of the tea pot, chairs and table legs to create an outdoor, forest feel.  Use as drapery tie-backs, line around doorways or any area that needs camouflage.
• Dangle nylon butterflies from the chandelier and doorways, or even suspend with string of fishing line from the ceiling (butterflies are the special helpers of the fairies).   You can make your own by bending 2 wire coathangers into wing shapes, twist and wrap the hooked ends and secure with electrical tape to avoid sharp ends.  Slide on the leg of a pair of white stockings over each “wing” – decorate with paint, glitter, etc.  The birthday girl can help do this but it takes a little elbow grease to get them shaped just right!
• Turn a large cardboard box into a fairy mushroom hideaway – the girls will love crawling inside through a cutout doorway.  Paint the outside of your box with craft or poster paint to look like a toadstool (don’t worry about your artistic abilities – a toadstool is just a half circle on top of a rectangular base).  Paint or attach silk flowers, dragonflies, and other forest friends (this is a perfect photo op when each girl peeks out of the door!).  Further adorn the “house” with ivy, etc .— fairies don’t want their homes to be found, after all!  Not an artist?  Trace creatures using a child’s art projector.

 Fairy Costumes

• Supply each little fairy with a pair of fairy wings and fairy tutu, and ask each guest to come to the party with a leotard or tank top for the top of the costume.   Our Fairy Tea Party box includes complete fairy dress up sets for all of your guests!

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  Dust each little pixie’s cheeks and eyelids with cosmetic glitter.Spritz those who would like it with some watered-down floral perfume.

•  Consider face paints found in craft stores to draw butterflies, stars, swirls, etc. on any child that would like it on their cheek or upper arm. 

Fairy Tea  Time

• Add a drop or two of food coloring to your brewed caffeine-free green or white tea to make “Fairy Tea”.   After the tea has been poured (the birthday fairy can do this if she is able), ask each child what their tea tastes like – bubblegum, mint, lollipops, candy canes, cotton candy?  Fairy Tea is collected from the morning dewdrops and magically tastes however you wish- sometimes the taste changes with each sip!  ;-)
•  Serve the tea in beautiful child’s tea cups. 
• Sprinkle iced cookies or mini cupcakes with edible glitter.
• Create your own flower-shaped fruit kabobs or edible fruit arrangements using cookie cutters.  If you’re brave, serve a chocolate or honey dipping sauce.
• Create little toadstool salads using a boiled egg for the base and a halved tomato for the top!  Serve on a bed of lettuce with salad dressing for dipping.

 Fairy Tea  Party Activities

• When it’s time to sing the birthday song, have the fairies encircle the birthday girl and dance around like fairies while they sing and shower her with flower petals (real or silk).   Have each fairy announce her birthday wish for the guest of honor.
• If the weather is nice, give each girl a fairy treasure pouch (organza bag) and go outdoors for a fairy tea party scavenger hunt with a list of treasure to find (plastic necklace, ring, flower-shaped eraser, butterfly bubbles, etc).
• If the children are older, plant mini fairy gardens in flower pots for each girl to take home.  Younger girls can make tissue paper flowers easily out of glittery tissue paper and chenille sticks/pipecleaners (spritz with floral body spray if desired).

 Special Fairy Tea Party Touches

• Send each child a special thank you note with the photo of her peeking outside of your fairy mushroom house!

   We hope these ideas will help you create an enchanting, magical fairy tea party for your little girl!  Visit our online tea party store at www.TeaPartyTreasures.com for the best selection of fairy tea party accessories, dress up, tea sets and more!

Fancy Nancy Party Ideas, Dress Up, Games, Crafts and More
A Fancy Nancy Party is the perfect chance to let your little girl discover the joy of dressing up and playing pretend! Feeling glamorous and sparkly seems to be part of a girl’s DNA, and this theme lends itself to all things sparkly and fabulously fancy

The Fancy Party Plan

A Fancy Nancy party just cries out all sorts of fun ideas, but plan it in advance or it will become overwhelming. Small girls tire easily and overwhelmed girls = whining and tears.  It’s easy to get carried away, so take my advice and you’re nearly guaranteed a smooth, fun Fancy Nancy birthday party.

TIP: I recommend a party length of 90 mins. for ages 3-4, and no more than 120 mins. for 5 and up.

2. Get Help, Superwoman!

If you’re like me, you’re thinking, “I can do this myself… I can handle it.” Trust me, when all those Fancy Nancy’s get the glitter flying and the teapot is spilling and someone is crying because eyeshadow is stinging their eye – you’ll thank me!

If your Fancy Nancy party is for 5 or more girls, get help!  A good ratio is one helper per 4-5 girls. This can be a mature teen, an aunt, grandma, the mom of one of the guests – anyone you trust and feel would help supervise and keep your party on track. Even Dad, Grandpa or the father of a party guest can put on his tux or suite and be Prince Charming or the Parisian waiter / butler for the day!   Be sure to recruit help several weeks in advance so if your first choice falls through, you’ll have time to find others who can help.

3. Fancy Nancy Party Decor
Another area where it’s easy to do way too much and restraint is in order!  In our Tea Party Box we include all of the Fancy Nancy party supplies you need!   

Inexpensive white, pink or even pale lavender sheers with white lights strung behind them create a soft, magical feel and are an easy way to dress up any room.  Tulle is cheap, easy to handle and creates a fancy effect when tied onto chair backs, tied into bows, etc.  Play some fancy music in the background to set the mood prior to guests arrival.  Use battery-operated tea lights in votives surrounded by silk flower rings or a small ring of marabou!

Centerpieces can be easily created with large tissue paper flowers in a pretty vase or a teapot with only the blossoms showing.  Drape faux pearls over your chandelier and/or pile into clear, glass hurricanes mixed with “jewels” for a fancy table decoration in place of the centerpiece….tie a tulle bow around it and viola!  Frugal fanciness.
Purchase inexpensive round bed canopies in pink or purple or white slit up one side and tie off the four corners with ribbon…secure to the four table corners with double-stick tape and hang from the center light fixture. Ooh, la la!.

Bonjour Butterfly Theme – print off photos of the Eiffel Tower, Champs E’lysses and other French landmarks in black and white and put in dollar-store frames to for an instant trip to France.  Using an art projector, trace this fancy poodle onto a large sheet of white paper and set up in your party room:

Purchase 2 or 3 sets of butterfly wings and hang them from your chandelier or light fixture with fishing line.  Think pink poodles, sidewalk cafes, baguettes, croissants, puff pastry – anything “frou frou” to set the tone!

4. Fancy Nancy Party Ideas for Crafts and Activities
Consider our Tea Party Hat Kits as your craft. Set up stations with all supplies portioned out. If you have our Tea Party Box, look through the contents several days prior. Rinse tea cups and tea pot and have them ready to go in the kitchen.

If you are having a dressing area for the girls to change, set that up, too. Lay out the Fancy Nancy dress up sets behind the dress up area (the Posh Boutique) in sets for each girl so they know exactly what to do. Set a large, paper gift bag with each child’s name written on it containing her dress up pieces, and instruct them to replace them with the street clothes after they’ve changed. No scurrying about later looking for lost shoes! If available, keep a floor-length mirror near the changing area for girls to get a look at their tea party outfits – keep a camera handy to capture this priceless moment!

Set up the fashion show area in another room (like the living room). An inexpensive roll of paper can be used for the runway, and keep your disco music queued up and ready to go!

TIP: Show your helper(s) where everything is located and how you want it handled PRIOR TO THE PARTY so it runs smoothly. BONUS: Get a disposable camera for each helper so you don’t miss a moment!

5. Mistress of Ceremonies

As children arrive, have your helper lead them to the Posh Pampering makeover area. This leaves you, the head Fancy Nancy, free to greet guests as they arrive, thank them for coming and make introductions. If you’re up for it, dress up in your fanciest things, too!

Try to wait until nearly all of your party guests have arrived before moving on to the dress up activity – but no more than 10 minutes past the party start time.

Makeovers are a must for a Fancy Nancy party! It’s a good idea to let the party helper(s) run this for you while you’re greeting your guests. Keep baby wipes at the station and a hand mirror for each child to get a look at her gorgeous face. Use fresh cotton swabs to apply lip gloss and eye shadow for sanitary reasons. Keep it simple: lip gloss, a dusting of glitter on her cheeks and forehead, eyeshadow and possibly a spritz of watered-down perfume. Once half of or more of the girls have had their makeover, it’s time to take control of the party.

Announce a group welcome your guests and give them a brief overview of what you will be doing at the tea party. For example:

“Thank you all so much for coming to Samantha’s Fancy Nancy Party! We’re so glad you’re here and we’re going to have so much fun! After your makeover, we’re going to make our own tea party hats and get dressed up. Once everyone has finished their hat and has on their dress up things, we’ll have a fashion show! After that, we’ll have fancy party treats and tea! Sam will open each of your presents in the Fancy Birthday Chair after we eat and I’ll be taking lots of pictures, so I hope you brought your sweetest smiles!”

Your little guests will love to hear the party plan in advance and you’ve answered all of their questions – but still be ready to gently go over the plan again as small children like to know what’s next.

6. Keeping The Fancy Nancy Party Fun Going
If you have a small group (8 or less) everyone can do the same thing at the same time (hat making, dress up, etc). If you are having a large group – more than 8 – divide them into two groups – one adult per group. Tell the girls which activity their group will do first and who to go with, and that they need to stay in their group . Assure them that they’ll get to do everything at the party – little ones will worry that they won’t get to do everything.

The dress up group can go to the Posh Boutique area to change while the tea party hat craft group gets started. Remind the dress up group about the bag with their name on it if you are using these.
If one of the girls wanders away from her group, gently remind her to go back to her group.

7. Fancy Nancy Fashion Show / Paris Runway
Once each group has had a chance to do both activities (dress up and hat making), it’s time for the fashion show! I recommend that this is in another area of the house so that the helper(s) can be cleaning up the crafts and setting up the tea table, preparing the tea and food, ensuring the clothing is in the right bags, etc. while you conduct the fashion show.

Line up the girls and have them walk down the “runway” – borrow a small disco ball for fun! Play some fun music while you announce them one at a time. “Check out Katie’s gorgeous outfit! That hat is too fancy for words!” Clap and take a photos while they pose – give the other girls disposable cameras so you have lots of flashes like a real runway fashion show!

Continue until all girls have had a chance to show off their hats and outfits. Take a group photo for the Thank You cards and the scrapbook!

8. Fancy Nancy Party Food for Girls

Check out these beautiful rose-shaped tea cakes!  They are simply too fancy for words and come in chocolate and vanilla to please all palates. Select small, bite-sized tidbits for simplicity and in keeping with the tea tradition. Prepare sandwiches (pb&j is fine) cut out with heart, flower or butterfly cookie cutters and spray with pink or purple cake decorating color spray. Use pretty platters and dishes to serve – paper doilies in white, silver or gold add instant fancy to any plate or serving dish!  Beautiful teacup-shaped sugar cookies work nicely and add to the fancy feel!

Serve the Birthday Girl first and allow her to pour the tea for her guests if she is old enough. Use real sugar cubes and demitasse tea cups – they’ll be so impressed! Present the Birthday girl with a fancy cupcake with a single candle, sing “Happy Birthday” and, after she blows out her candle, serve cupcakes to the guests.

While you’re having tea time, have your helpers set up the Fancy Nancy Birthday Girl chair and gifts in another room (probably where you had the fashion show).

9. Gift Opening / Party Wind-down

You’re in the home stretch now!  About 15-20 minutes prior to the end of the party, usher the children into the gift opening area. Your wonderful helpers will have a decorated chair (this can be a dining room chair with a fancy, shiny cloth or big tulle bow!) and another chair next to it and gifts at the ready. Announce that the Birthday Girl will sit in the Fancy Birthday Chair and they may come and sit next to her one at a time. Tell them you’ll let them know when it’s their turn. My advice is that you go in order from youngest to oldest to avoid the wiggles and wandering. If you have a child that simply cannot sit still, let a helper usher them into another room to change while the rest of the children watch the gift opening. Have your child say “Merci!” to each one and snap a photo.

Have the helpers prepare the Fancy Nancy Party Favors to be given as the children leave – give it to them before then and you’re asking for lost goodies and tears….and distracting other party guests.

I hope these tips and ideas help you have the best Fancy Nancy party ever!

Written by Tea Party Treasures

If you’re planning a large event that requires your to purchase bulk tea cups, you’ve probably done a lot of legwork already.  Here’s some tips to make sure you get the best deal, safely:

• As you look around on the internet, ask the site representative if they can provide proof that their wholesale tea cups are food-safe IN WRITING – do not just take their word for it.  I’ve done some incognito phone calls to suppliers on the web and was told repeatedly that a tea cup I knew to be non-food safe was, in fact, okay to use to drink from.  Yikes!  This is extremely important for children and adults alike.  It’s no secret that most tea cups are made in China and with the recent lead scare, you don’t want to risk it to get a good deal.
• Florist’s tea cups are not food safe, nor are they FDA approved.  They are fine if you’re just using them for decor, or if you are using them as favors – but instruct your guests with a sticker on the tea cups, verbally or both that they are not to be used with food/liquid.  Here are a few that you should NOT use for drinking liquids from:

Now, these are pretty – but PLEASE don’t drink from them!  You can find affordable, wholesale tea cups that are FDA Approved for food use at a good price that look just as pretty!  Don’t believe me?  Here are just a few that we have at www.TeaPartyTreasures.com for less than $3 each – no joke!

Most of these are packed 48 or 72 per case and ship direct from the factory to you.  Allow up to 3 weeks to receive them and you will have a stress-free tea party with beautiful, wholesale tea cups that you don’t have to worry about!  Click any photo or visit our Wholesale Tea Cups page to get started.

A child’s tea set is a keepsake gift that will be remembered long after the toys are put away for more “grown up” things.  When selecting a tea set, there are several important things to keep in mind to ensure a lifetime of happy memories and safety.

All tea sets are not created equal and, with the recent lead and other scares regarding children’s toys your child is too important to take a risk.  Plastic tea sets will be broken and forgotten, so we think it best to choose a beautiful yet sturdy tea set that will be there to be passed down to generations of tea party hosts and/or put on display.  Throughout this article are examples of our gorgeous porcelain tea sets that come in many styles and colors that you can customize for your child.  Free personalization is included as an added bonus! 

Names can be added on the tea tray and/or tea pot, and you can choose cutout letters or handpainted lettering.  Each tea set includes all pieces as shown.

Most importantly, our tea sets are handmade here in the USA by artists that use safe paints and glazes and fire your tea set in their own kilns.  This means that your little girl can really drink from her tea cups, fill her tea pot with water or any safe liquid and serve it to her guests safely.  The finished product is just like a coffee or tea mug you have in your cupboard, not a mass-produced toy that came across the ocean.

The artists we work with are moms who will also happily add an inscription to the back of your tea tray; some have just written the date and occasion while others include sentiments to pass on to their special daughters, grandchildren and nieces.   

Due to the delicacy of our tea sets, please hand-wash each piece upon receipt and after each use.  Avoid oven, dishwasher, etc.  for best results.  Allow the artist up to 3 weeks to paint, glaze, fire and ship your child’s tea set – so please keep in mind when ordering.  View our website to see a complete gallery of all available child’s tea sets.  There are also other styles of tea sets on our site – let us create a memory for you!  www.TeaPartyTreasures.com 

1. Have a Plan

The best advice I can give to you, Mom, is to plan ahead!
If you’re reading this, you are obviously a smart cookie and don’t need me to give you that advice.

Every child’s tea party needs structure (idle time spells headaches and stress when small children are involved). The more planning now, the more relaxed and fun your party day.

TIP: I recommend no more than 90 mins. for ages 3-4, and no more than 120 mins. for 5 and up.

2. Recruit Helpers

If your tea party is for 5 or more girls, get help!
At least one helper per 4-5 girls is a good ratio. This can be a mature teen, an aunt, grandma – anyone you feel would help supervise and keep your tea party on track. Even Dad can put on his tux and be Prince Charming or the waiter for the day
The good news is that most tea parties are intimate and small with 10 or fewer guests.
Be sure and recruit your help several weeks in advance so if your first choice falls through, you’ll have time to find others who can help.

3. Get a Jump On It

Many tea parties are hosted right in the dining room.
If you are decorating, do this the night before. Spread out your table cover and set up your craft items (if you’ve purchased our Tea Party Hat Kits, set up stations with the hat, pile of flowers, leaves, tulle, feathers, etc.). If you have our Tea Party Box, look through the contents several days prior. Rinse teacups and tea pot and have them ready to go in the kitchen. Place several pink lemonade tea bags in the teapot and have hot water simmering on the stove to add just before serving.

If you are having a dressing area for the girls to change, set that up, too. Lay out the tea party dress up pieces behind the dress up area in sets for each girl so they know exactly what to do. Set a large, paper gift bag with each child’s name written on it containing her dress up pieces, and instruct them to replace them with the street clothes after they’ve changed. No scurrying about later looking for lost shoes! If available, keep a floor-length mirror near the changing area for girls to get a look at their tea party outfits – keep a camera handy to capture this priceless moment!

Set up the fashion show area in another room (like the living room). An inexpensive roll of paper can be used for the runway, and keep your disco music queued up and ready to go!

TIP: Show your helper where everything is located and how you want it handled so it runs smoothly. BONUS: Get a disposable camera for each helper so you don’t miss a moment!

If you are doing makeovers, have your station ready to go. Keep baby wipes at the station and a hand mirror for each child to get a look at her gorgeous face! Use cotton swabs to apply lip gloss and eye shadow for sanitary reasons. Keep it simple: lip gloss, a dusting of glitter on her cheeks and forehead, eyeshadow and possibly a spritz of watered-down perfume.

It’s a good idea to let the party helper run this for you while you’re greeting your guests as the entry activity.

4. Decor

In our Tea Party Box, we include a pink table cover and lace tablecloth as an overlay. This makes a pretty tabletop and has a bonus – the pink table cover can be used during craft time and the lace tablecloth laid over it or replaced for tea time!

• White or pink sheers with white lights strung behind them create a soft, magical feel as do shaped party lights.
• Play soft music in the background to set the mood prior to guests arrival.
• Use battery-operated tea lights in votives surrounded by silk flower rings.
• Drape pearls over your chandelier and photo frames.
• Purchase inexpensive polyester lace curtains just for party day.
• Paint a rectangular piece of cardboard white and write “Jenny’s Tea Parlor” (replace name) and either paint roses and vines or use stickers or stencils. Hang this on your front door.

5. Tea Party Food for Girls

Save the clotted cream and lemon curd for adults – girls will not like the looks or the name of either of them enough to want to try it out.
Cheese cubes, small cupcakes, sliced fruit, pretty cookies are good tea party fare.
Prepare tea sandwiches (pb&j is fine) cut out with heart, flower or butterfly cookie cutters (stay away from cucumber and cream cheese unless the children are much older).
Brownies prepared in small cupcake tins look fancy – just dust with powdered sugar or swirl with frosting.
Allow the tea to steep a few minutes before tea time to allow it to cool enough for the children to drink.
Whatever you decide to serve, keep the refreshments in the kitchen until you’re ready for the girls to eat (after craft time).

6. The Plan of Action

As children arrive, have your helper lead them to the makeover area. This leaves you free to greet guests as they arrive, thank them for coming and make introductions.
Try to wait until nearly all of your party guests have arrived before moving on to the dress up activity – but no more than 10 minutes past the party start time.
Have a helper keep a camera close by so you can snap a photo of each girl (see my picture taking tips article).

Once half of or more of the girls have had their makeover, it’s time to take control of the party. Announce a group welcome your guests and give them a brief overview of what you will be doing at the tea party. For example,

Thank you all so much for coming to Jenny’s Tea Party! We’re so glad you’re here and we’re going to have so much fun! After your makeover, we’re going to make our own tea party hats and get dressed up. Once everyone has finished their hat and has on their dress up things, we’ll have a fashion show! After that, we’ll have yummy tea party treats and tea! Jenny will open each of your presents in the Birthday Girl Chair after we eat and I’ll be taking lots of pictures, so I hope you brought your sweetest smiles!”

Your little guests will love to hear the party plan in advance and you’ve answered all of their questions – but still be ready to gently go over the plan again as small children like to know what’s next.

7. Keeping The Fun Going
If you have a small group, everyone can do the same thing at the same time (hat making, dress up, etc). If you are having a large group – more than 8 – divide them into two groups – one adult per group. Tell the girls which activity their group will do first and who to go with, and that they need to stay in their group . Assure them that they’ll get to do everything at the tea party – little ones will worry that they won’t get to do everything.

The dress up group can go change into their costumes while the tea party hat craft group gets started.
Remind the dress up group about the bag with their name on it if you are using these.
If one of the girls wanders away from her group, gently remind her to go back to her group.

8. Fashion Show
Once each group has had a chance to do both activities (dress up and hat making), it’s time for the fashion show! I recommend that this is in another area of the house so that the helper(s) can be cleaning up the crafts and setting up the tea table, preparing the tea and food, ensuring the clothing is in the right bags, etc. while you conduct the fashion show.

Line up the girls and play some fun music while you announce them one at a time. “Check out Katie’s gorgeous outfit! That hat is too fancy for words!” Clap and take a photos while they pose.
“Next, here’s Cassie in her fabulous feathers – what a doll!”
Continue until all girls have had a chance to show off their hats and outfits.
Take a group photo for the Thank You cards and the scrapbook!

9. Tea Time!

About 30 minutes before the end of the party, it’s time for tea!
It should take about 15-20 minutes to sing Happy Birthday, serve tea and treats.
Serve the Birthday Girl first – she is the guest of honor, after all!
Let her pour the tea if you think she is able to handle the teapot on her own.
Most young children love sugar cubes – have her ask them if they’d like one lump or two….this is sure to bring giggles.

Children will most likely be too excited to even eat what’s on their plate and will more than likely just lick the icing off of a cupcake and announce that they’re done…not to worry, this is just part of the excitement of a birthday party. Try to keep children at the table until everyone is finished by explaining that little ladies have to use their best manners at tea time.

TIP: If spills happen, quickly clean up and reassure the child that accidents happen – make light of it and change the conversation to another topic to avoid hurt feelings. Keep a spray bottle of club soda and cloth nearby for quick cleanup.

Have your helper(s) set up the Birthday Girl chair and gifts in another room (probably where you had the fashion show) while tea and treats are being served.

10. Gift Opening / Close

About 15-20 minutes prior to the end of the party, usher the children into the gift opening area. Your wonderful helpers will have a decorated chair (this can be a dining room chair with a fancy, shiny cloth or big bow or both!) and another chair next to it, and gifts at the ready. Announce that Jenny will sit in the Birthday Girl chair and they may come and sit next to her one at a time. Tell them you’ll let them know when it’s their turn. My advice is that you go in order from youngest to oldest to avoid the wiggles and wandering. If you have a child that simply cannot sit still, let a helper usher them into another room to change while the rest of the children watch the gift opening. Have your child thank each of her guests individually. After all gifts have been opened, allow the children to change back into their clothing. By now, parents should be arriving – have helpers watch the door and quietly show them where they can wait for their child.

During the gift ceremony, have the helpers get the tea party favors if you are using them.

TIP: present gift bags as children are leaving – if given prior to that, they can’t resist going through the bag, losing the bag, etc. This way, they can look through it on the ride home and be sure they’ve not forgotten anything.

If you are giving the dress up items as favors, simply let them stay in their tea party dress up so the parents can make a big fuss over them when they arrive to collect their child.

I hope these tips help you plan, host and carry out the most tea-riffic party ever!  Visit us at www.TeaPartyTreasures.com for everything you need for any tea party!

1.  Most young guests can’t sit still (and don’t want to stop having fun) long enough to take a photo.  Good opportunities are when they first get dressed up in their tea party outfits and they want to show off!  Also, get them to pose when they’re proud to show you something – like the tea party hat they’ve made with our fun kits!

2. Gift opening time offers automatic crowd control – let the gift giver sit in a special chair next to the Birthday Girl and pose for a photograph (allow the guest to remain in the chair while the present is opened).

3. Group photographs can be difficult to execute; especially if your tea party is attended by children younger than 4. A time-tested trick to get them all together at once is to have them all show off their tea party hats that they’ve made. For example, “on the count of three, I want everyone to give me a big smile and let me see those gorgeous, fancy hats you’ve made!” If you’ve done makeovers, something similar like, “OK, girls, let’s see who has the most sparkly lips”!

The following is a list of moments to capture at your tea party:

*Birthday Girl prior to her tea party, waiting for her guests to arrive, full of excitement. Big smiles guaranteed for this one! Let her show off the decorations, proudly present the tea table, pretend to pour tea from the teapot into a teacup, etc.

*Birthday Girl greeting each guest at the door (be ready with your camera)

*Birthday Girl wearing her Birthday Girl Hat at the tea table surrounded by her friends – take several from different angles while they’re talking, eating, laughing, etc. They will forget you are there and you’ll get lots of unrehearsed, candid shots.

*Close-up of birthday girl blowing out her candles, serving refreshments, pouring the tea.

*For makeovers or dress up time, have each child look into a hand or full-length mirror. Take a shot of her reflection in the mirror wearing her tea party dress up outfit. This truly makes magical photographs.

*Candid shots during the tea party hat craft, games, gift opening, etc.