A birthday tea

March 13, 2017

I feel like Winnie-the-Pooh must have said somewhere,"Oh, a Birthday Tea. What a Happy Thought."


I had a birthday tea for my daughter and a dear friend of hers who flew in from out of state to celebrate the birthday weekend.

I didn't make her wear this Dollar Store crown.


Uh-oh . . . I forgot to remove the damp paper towels over the plate of sandwiches before taking this picture. I didn't want them drying out before we ate.


Another friend was to join us, but couldn't make it.

Here you see some of my mother-in-law's silver, and what looks like a Limoges teacup, but just says Made in Austria. The plate on top is the Rose Chintz pattern by Johnson Brothers. The fruit bowl is from Target.


The linen luncheon napkins are probably more than 75 years old, and came from a friend of my husband's grandmother's.


Because I'd been out of town I didn't make anything except for two kinds of scones. Oh, I did assemble the sandwiches and cut up some fruit! I got the rest of the goodies at a nearby Italian grocers with a wonderful pastry counter.


Little party favors were in order. A tiny bottle of glitter never hurt anything either.

Lady Carlyle by Royal Doulton is in the running for my all-time favorite china pattern.

Had to have some bubbly pink lemonade in my mother-in-law's champagne glasses, circa 1949 (the glasses, not the lemonade!).
These Italian hard candies are filled with soft centers. I bought them just because the packaging was so lovely. But they taste pretty good too.


Chocolate mousse-filled cups sitting atop cupcake stands I found at Target.


This tablecloth, which is really a bedspread, was hand crocheted by my grandmother. It's huge, and I can't even imagine the time that went into making it.


Croissants filled with chicken salad, and thin Pepperidge Farm sandwich bread filled with ham spread and boursin cheese and thinly sliced cucumbers.


Lemon curd and homemade clotted cream for the scones.




The birthday girl, my daughter, on the left, and her dear friend Sam.





After our tea, we sank into the couch and easy chairs for conversation in front of the fire. We were all in various degrees of semi sugar-induced comas.

A Delightful Party with two lovely young women!

25 comments

  1. Oh Deborah, such a gracious host you were and those two ladies are beautiful. I'm in love with Sam's dress!!
    Your table was stunning and my that table cloth (bedspread) is gorgeous indeed. I would love that on my bed. :)
    Your menu sounded and looked quite delicious.
    HAPPY BIRTHDAY to your daughter. ♡

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  2. A lovely celebration for two lovely young ladies. It is all beautiful and sentimental.

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  3. Beautiful and... OMG Rose Chintz! That was my mom's pattern that I inherited! What a fantastic job you did!

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  4. Oh my goodness, that looks so good. Love all the china.
    Happy Birthday to your daughter and her friend!

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  5. Oh my, Deborah...you do put on a beautiful tea party! Your table is absolutely gorgeous (love that tablecloth!), the dishes and silver are stunning and the food looks divine! Oh, and I can't forget to say what a beautiful job you do on those photos! (smile) Enjoy your week, my friend!♥

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  6. That is an amazing tea party! I am sure that your beautiful daughter felt very honored and a Happy Birthday to her!

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  7. What a delightful birthday tea! I can't think of a better way to celebrate your daughter's special day.

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  8. Very pretty table and delicious looking food! So meaningful!

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  9. Oh, Deborah, what a beautiful tea party! I LOVE, love, love the Rose Chintz and it does photograph so well, doesn't it? Your settings look so pretty. I'm on a diet right now to try to curb my gallbladder pain and your table laden with such wonderful goodies is absolute torture. ;-) But I'll handle it. The girls look beautiful and Happy Birthday to each of them!
    I appreciate your prayers, dear friend. It seems I am in need of two surgeries now {since my procedure last week revealed a problem.} 2017 isn't starting out very well but perhaps it will prove to be a good year in a few months time. I am in His hands.

    Hugs and blessings to you,
    Sandi

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  10. Your birthday girl and her friend are beautiful. Happy birthday !

    I love your tea and settings and also your menu. You have me wanting to host a tea time luncheon very soon.

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  11. Oh Deborah, this birthday tea put a smile on my face! Your daughter and her friend are just beautiful, and my, your daughter looks like you! What a wonderful hostess you were, with such a pretty table and lovely menu. I can't believe the crocheted bedspread that your grandmother made!! How perfect that you used it for a tablecloth. I'm sure the girls had a fabulous time at your tea party. Love and blessings to you.

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  12. What a sweet birthday tea! Your daughter and her friend are darling. You did a good job, considering you had been traveling. Cute decorations and the food looks absolutely yummy. xoxo

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  13. Oh how lovely, everything looks so perfect! I'll be the beautiful young ladies enjoyed it ALL! Your stand for the tea sandwiches is a neat one and the food looks delicious!
    Happy Tuesday Deborah!
    Gina

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  14. Dear Deborah, I wish you could give me lessons in hospitality-the tea party was beautiful! Love every detail. Your daughter is gorgeous, from the inside out and her friend is beautiful too. Sending you love.
    Noreen

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  15. Looks like a very delightful Birthday Tea! So much fun. . .The chocolate mousse is really pretty.

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  16. Oh this is so pretty Deborah. What a lovely way to celebrate you beautiful daughter and her friend.

    You thought of every detail. The table and the food look amazing. I am sure they felt like queens with such a delightful setting.

    Hugs to you sweet friend.

    Janet

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  17. Your damp paper towel brings back memories of so many tea parties and bridal showers in the South when I was a teenager. They always remained on the table covering the pretty sandwiches until whisked off as guests were lining up. Nothing keeps sandwiches fresher without getting gummy.

    Happy birthday to your daughter! A beautiful table, Deborah. And I bet you had as much fun as the girls did!

    I love chintz china!

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  18. I'm pretty sure Winnie must have said it ... somewhere. What a lovely, lovely birthday party for your daughter and her friend. Two beautiful young ladies. Happy birthday to her. I loved all the pretty photos you shared with us.

    Wishing you a wonderful day,
    Brenda

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  19. Your lovely tea party has inspired me... I must find a friend or two and just have a real tea party! I was drooling over all your yummy goodies that you found at the pastry shop, oh my! What a delightful thing to do for your daughter. Both girls are so beautiful, and I do love Sam's lovely lace dress, gorgeous! That bedspread repurposed as a tablecloth is amazing! How indeed with all the work they had to do, did they ever find time to do such intricate amazing work?

    I laughed at the "semi-sugar induced coma"... how nice to have a fire to sit down and just chat and visit!

    Hugs to you today, this post brought a smile to my face today, and inspiration to my heart :)

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  20. Simply lovely! Everything looks scrumptious!

    Chippy White Cottage Blessings,
    Rebecca

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  21. Letting you know now, Deborah - my birthday is in August. LOL What a fabulous birthday luncheon you hosted for your daughter! It is all so beautiful.

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  22. A pretty tablescape in shades of pink, from the hot pink crown and petite pastries to the place cards, candle holders and pink lemonade. What a lovely gathering of goodies for the girls! Your Royal Doulton china is beautiful. I have the Juliet pattern for 8, a wedding gift from my sweet Aunt Jane, also my favourite!

    Poppy

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  23. Dearest Deborah,
    Oh my; you paid such a sweet homage to your dear Grandmother who no doubt is smiling down from heaven. Seeing her artful work of filet lace crocheted (hundreds of hours, estimating by its size!) being put to use so gracefully and creating thus a very romantic and elegant tea table!
    Your daughter looks happy and beautiful and who would not with such a devoting Mom and best friend at her side?!
    Love your selections and never mind the high sugar content, how can you avoid that for any celebration?...
    Those 75-year old linen dragon fly embroidered cocktail napkins are so very elegant! Presuming that's their right name for a 10 x 10 inch size. Hold on to those!
    Sending you hugs and best wishes. Yes, I did finish my 2nd crocheted curtain and on the 16th of March those 50 hours of labor were up and hanging! Neatly pressed after I'd laundered them. So happy that I managed to get that out of the way. Had to practice my singing that evening and the next morning as our choir did perform for a crowd of some 600 at the St. Patrick's Day Joint Civic Luncheon. That too went very well and now I'm on to practicing a lot more for steps and singing for our performance at the local theatre on May 6th and 7th. That is coming fast towards us...
    Hope you are feeling well.
    Mariette

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  24. What a beautiful tea, Deborah! Your daughter (and her friend) are beautiful, too! They must have been so delighted - everything is so sweet, down to the smallest detail. Your grandmother's crochet is a wonderful treasure and Lady Carlisle is my Mother's tea set that she gave to me so I have a special fondness for that pattern. I love all the coordinating dishes you have, too. The food is almost too pretty to eat! I said, 'almost' :) I'll have a lemon square, thank you! Happy Birthday to your sweet girl! Hugs xo Karen

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