Afternoon British Tea

Outdoor dining is just one of the joys of summer, so when my friend Sandy invited a group of us over for afternoon tea on her front porch, I was delighted to join her in preparing a British Tea, one of my favourite hobbies. I have many fond memories of my time in England, and one of my dearest memories was taking afternoon cream tea with my friend Karen, as well as with my daughter Jennifer. Not only was the tea wonderful, the scones served with clotted cream and strawberry preserves were such a treat, all served in adorable and quaint tea rooms.

"There are few hours in life more agreeable than the hour dedicated to the ceremony known as afternoon tea." ~Henry James
The Portrait of a Lady


This was the setting of our afternoon tea. Although the lovely porch overlooked beautiful farm fields, it could also have been in Savanah, GA, as it had a southern feel with the warm breeze, the white wicker furniture and the gorgeous flowers.


Inside Sandy and I set up the Cream Tea on two tiered plate stands for 7 guests plus the two of us. We served cucumber as well as egg salad sandwiches, scones both plain and with currants, as well as strawberry jam and devonshire clotted cream.
Sweets or dainties were set on the top serving plates.
Sandy served a lovely glass of fresh fruit following the first course which was so refreshing.



We served an assortment of teas including Earl Grey, the most common tea served in tea rooms across England.



Sandy used her Royal Albert Old Country Roses set of tea pot, cream and sugar as well as her tea cups and saucers.





Lovely garden florals were arranged using some of Sandy's milk glass containers in her collection.




Gladiolus and Rose of Sharon in a lovely white vase:





Her glads were beautiful as the flowers were just starting to open:

We enjoyed a lovely afternoon on her front porch and were so thankful for the beautiful weather as well as having made time out of our busy schedules to spend a leisurely afternoon together sharing and forging stronger friendships.
Each of the ladies went home with a little party favour along with a copy of the scone recipe found here.

On behalf of all the ladies who attended, I am sure we all agree that the afternoon was wonderful and we are grateful to our hostess! Thank you Sandy! It was my pleasure to co-host with you!

"Remember, the greatest gift is not found in a store nor under a tree, but in the hearts of true friends. "~ Cindy Lew

A great website for hosting your own Afternoon Tea can be found here.