How to Choose a Tea Set

Tea sets are really an essential item for the home that nobody should be without. Even if you live alone, on the occasions when you have guests it is much nicer to serve it from a proper tea set that in mismatched mugs made from tea sets. Or you could buy a special tea for one set as a treat to yourself and make tea time a ritual just for you that can help you to relax at the end of the day or on lazy Sunday mornings.

Some people consider a tea set to be an old fashioned kitchen item, but in fact there are thousands of options of modern tea sets available and once you buy one, you’ll wonder what you ever did without it! Inviting friends over for tea makes for a great informal gathering as an alternative to going out to lunch or having a dinner party in the evening and tea parties are becoming an increasingly popular way to entertain.

You’ll probably want to choose tea sets that match the style of your home and your personality. A traditional porcelain tea set will seem right at home in a traditional country kitchen, but houses designed in a more contemporary way will probably look better with a modern style tea set.

Glass is a great material for modern tea sets and glass tea pots look beautiful when they are brewing tea. You can even use a special blooming or flowering tea which will unfurl in the hot water creating a beautiful flower which can be enjoyed fully when using a glass tea pot. Enjoying tea is an experience for all the senses, not just taste, and when you can see the tea that you are drinking clearly through glass, your enjoyment will be enhanced greatly.

For a simple but classic style that goes with any home then consider white porcelain. There are many white tea sets available in all sorts of styles from traditional to sleek and modern and choosing white means it is easy to buy matching table wear and replace any items that are broken. White tea cups are also great for serving ice cream and other small deserts at a dinner party.

For those who are fascinated by all things from the Far East, you might want to consider choosing Japanese tea pots and matching cups. These beautiful but simple tea pots are perfect for making green tea from and really make you feel like you are somewhere exotic. Japanese tea pots can be either made from glazed or unglazed clay or cast iron. Cups should match the pot and do not have handles.

If traditional is more your style then there are lots of tea sets to choose from. Patterns range to floral designs which would be right at home in an English country cottage to the traditional blue and white china design. You can buy traditionally designed modern tea sets at any department store or you might want to hunt down a vintage tea set for a more eclectic feel.

Finally if you really want to make a big impression on guests, you can’t get more stylish than a silver tea set. Although obviously expensive to buy, these tea sets only increase in value and often become family heirlooms. They look beautiful on display so you can enjoy them on a daily basis, even if they are only ever used for special occasions.

Once you’ve purchased your new tea set, you’ll want to introduce it to the world in style. A tea party is a great way of entertaining and has become popular for birthday parties, baby showers and other special occasions. As well as being very in vogue and fun, it’s easy to throw a tea party and you need very little preparation to do so.

All you will need is a tea set with enough cups to serve all your guests, a selection of good quality teas and some tasty tea party food. You may want to stick with just one traditional type of tea or it can be good fun to offer a selection of fruit and other varieties for your guests to try. In this case it is helpful to have a few different tea pots in which to brew the different teas.

Traditional tea party food consists of small sandwiches, cakes, biscuits and pastries. Cup cakes are also very fashionable at the moment and go really well with tea. You should make sure there is a good selection of different foods available and arrange everything attractively on matching plates. Allow your guests to pick and choose food whenever they like and sit back and enjoy the conversation!