Thursday, December 15, 2011

Mother-Daughter Holiday Tea Party (2011)

Last week, I wrote about the resurrection of our holiday tea party tradition in 2010; you can read about it here.  My then-four-year-old loved every minute of the planning and partying.  So, of course, we had to do it again!

This year, we started with a charming invitation on beautiful paper from Sarah + Abraham which played on the same silhouette theme we used for the older girls' birthday party in May:


(and yes, I realize that a lot is lost by blurring out so much of the text, but you can still appreciate the sweet silhouettes!)

Next, we tweaked tradition with a purple, magenta, and fuchsia color scheme (in which I re-used many of the amethyst elements from my youngest's christening celebration) and invited 42 of my daughters' friends and their moms to the party.  After waiting patiently for our guests to arrive...


...the fun started, and the result was vibrant in every sense:


















We served tea sandwiches, madeleines, scones, quiche, fruit, three kinds of tea (including pink princess tea), pink cocoa, wine for the moms, and many desserts --- cake balls, chocolate covered oreos, macarons, cupcakes, cookies, shortbread, eclairs, cream puffs, and fudge.  There was no carbohydrate shortage.

After over two hours of playing, eating, and lots and lots of squealing, the girls raided the pink and purple candy buffet and filled personalized bags with their favorites --- m&ms, salt water taffy, lollipops, peppermint sticks, Hershey's kissses, chocolate balls, rock candy sticks, ribbon candy, raspberry pretzels, chocolate covered sunflower seeds, and more:












Four days later, we are still on a sugar high.  And we feel blessed to have shared this holiday tradition with so many lovely friends.  We're already looking forward to next year!



Sources
Invitations: Sarah + Abraham
Personalized Muslin Favor Bags: Perideau Designs
Custom Chocolate-Dipped Oreos: Sweeties by Kim
Cake Balls: Austin Cake Balls
Macarons: La Patisserie
Candy: Candy Warehouse & Lammes
Ornament Jars: Crate & Barrel
Apothocary Jars: Michael's; Pottery Barn
Amethyst plates and napkins: Crate & Barrel

Special thanks to Kathie Quinn for sharing her photos!


I'm sharing this post with Between Naps on the Porch, Savvy Southern Style, Sweetology, Martha's Favorites, Silken Purse, and Design Dazzle.

11 comments:

  1. This is amazing! I love the purple.

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  2. gorgeous. Don't know how you found the time or energy this close to Christmas. The girls kook like they are having fun. Merry Christmas

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  3. And believe it or not, it was even more elegant - and more fun - in person!

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  4. Though my children are quite grown, I find this a delightful tradition and glad it's been restarted! Little girls especially love getting dressed up and I think the older ones do as well. Your room lovely divine and everything is so yummy. Kudos on a job well done and on to next year!

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  5. This tea party is AMAZING!! The purple is gorgeous, unexpected, and still very Christmas-y. Your food looks wonderful and what a beautiful bunch of red-heads, including Mom! (I'm jealous...always wanted red hair)

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  6. What a wonderful tea party you planned! Everything looks so wonderful & what cuties you all are!!

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  7. Absolutely incredible! Everyone must have thought they were in Candyland! Absolutely gorgeous! I bet you had a marvelous time! Merry Christmas!
    Cheers
    R

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  8. Pure candyland! How exciting for the little ones. A real feast for the eyes. The purple is stunning.
    Hugs,
    Terri

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  9. What a wonderful party! I love the color and how you set the table. Your daughters look so happy. It must have been heaven for those girls with all the candy. Have a wonderful and blessed Christmas! Martha

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  10. Oh my...beautiful family, lovely party! Such a pretty table and details. MERRY Christmas~

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  11. Ok, this just blew my mind. Everything is lovely. I am so glad I was able to view this post at a time I could enjoy every picture and detail because you can tell you put in a lot of love and work into this grand event. These memories are such treasures.

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