Monday 3 May 2010

A Very English Affair...

For those of you that follow my blog (and if you don't, why don't you follow my blog?... you will just have to fill in some of the blanks or read back a bit.... LOL) you will recall that we English girls (I use the term 'girls' very loosely as you will note from photos) decided to put on an afternoon tea party to entertain the ladies (I use the term 'ladies' fairly loosely too!) in the compound.  OK... I will admit at this point that when the idea first came into being it seemed like the easy alternative to doing a proper cooking demonstration on English/British foods... well how was I supposed to know that the idea would grow and blossom into the full scale event that it did???  Oh but didn't we have fun... and I think the ladies did too!!
we transformed the compound restaurant (well, a section of it actually) into an English Tea Garden that the Queen herself would have been proud to visit and partake of a slice of gingerbread and a nice cup of tea.
I will state from the outset that this would not have been possible without my fav shop of all time... Big World!!  We bought heaps of roses for the tables and made net ties for the chairs with a rose in each...
Ping even made curtains for the event to give the effect of a country tea room.
We bought white cotton tablecloths (a Big World special at £2 each) and hung Union Jacks around the walls.
we made menus and tag books for each table, the tag books gave etiquette and rules on how to behave at an afternoon tea party.  As there was only one book for each table we decided that the fairest way to distribute them was to put a star on the bottom of one saucer for each table and the person who had the star got to take the tag book home with them.
Suzanne looking well pleased with her good fortune!!
This is a photo of the tag books... I forgot to photograph them properly before the big day... oops, sorry!
Maybe I can borrow one back...
We spent all morning dressing the room and making sandwiches and scones and shortbread and Victoria sponge and chocolate cake and cream puffs and banana bread and mini cupcakes.... and .... and...
and some bright spark (who moi?) found in, yes, Big World, sets of pink aprons and decided we may as well go whole hog and dress up as waitresses too!!
I think we missed our chosen careers!! LOL
and some altering went on.... the hats were originally large doillies!!
LOL, this is Ping who even had the napkin on the arm look going on!!
and I even made shortbread tea pots!!
and you really don't want to know what I paid for that 3 tier cake stand... it did not come from Big World and 3 tier cake stands are not readily available in Saudi Arabia  so come at a premium price!!
A lovely time was had by all... and now I have to get ready for the Naughty Mother's Day Lunch tomorrow... wrapping a gift for the riot of 'stealing' someone's present from them... gosh but its a hard life....

29 comments:

  1. Oh my that looks like it was fantastically fun! TFS
    Helen -- Firenze Cards

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  2. Wow!! how busy have you been!!Looks so fab, love the doiley hats too, well done looks like you all put in so much work!

    I would like to book for tea for two with teacakes please,lolxx

    kazxx

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  3. Wow!! how busy have you been!!Looks so fab, love the doiley hats too, well done looks like you all put in so much work!

    I would like to book for tea for two with teacakes please,lolxx

    kazxx

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  4. Oh Annette, it all looks absolutely wonderful and I'm sure a fab time was had by all. Enjoy your Mother's Day 'gift steal'.

    Toni :o)

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  5. What a fantastic time you must have had. All the detail and effort, it all looks FANTASTIC. Lucky ladies who got the tag books, they are gorgeous. x

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  6. Oh how fab!!!
    That looks like a very proper and pretty affair :D

    Julie xx

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  7. Annette this looks like the best English tea party ever - honestly you had me (and my hubby) in fits of giggles as we read it - loving the dollie hats and the shortbread shaped as tea pots - all genius - everyone looking fantastic in their aprons - in fact everything about it - I'm sure everyone had a fabulous time! Hope you have a fabulous naughty Mother's day time - can't wait to see what you get this time!

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  8. Wow, that looks like you had great fun - and the food looked yum too!

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  9. I am a follower and Iknew this would be a triumph - but girls, you outdid yourdelves! Ah happy days. Hope you get to steal a good 'un!

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  10. Wow, it looks like you worked really hard but what a fantastic day you must have had. It all looks fabulous.

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  11. Looks fantastic Annette.
    Looking forawrd to catching up with you in June when you are home. I often think of you as I drive past Fetterangus on one of my VERY frequent trips to DSs GFs house in Stuartfield!!
    Fiona

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  12. How fabulous does that all look ... sadly I am still waiting for my invite ... I was already following and everything :0)

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  13. Oh this looks such an amazing day! You all did so well, I love those teapot shortbreads, how cute!

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  14. It all looks lovely! You all did a fabulous job! I have never had a proper tea party, but then again, I'm a yankee lol!

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  15. Aaww it looks like you had a brilliant time, how very respectible and proper! xx

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  16. Oh wow that looks a lot of fun!!

    Looking forward to catching up when you are home in June.
    x

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  17. Oooo....right up my street Annette. I just LOVE tea parties - afternoon tea and cakes...dinky sandwiches. What a fun time you had and I really DO want to know how much you paid for your cake stand! Go on...do tell. *Ü* TFS. ~Glen~

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  18. looks like you all had a wonderful time :0)

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  19. You and your team certainly made a great job of the tea party ... what ever happened to Afternoon Tea ..it was the best time ever and it just disappeared. Pink aprons were a brilliant touch.

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  20. what a wondeful day it must have been the only thing missing was Mam' herself.

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  21. What a fab day you all must have had, it all looks wonderful. Did you finish the afternoon off with God Save the Queen ( ha ha )

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  22. Lovely piccies looks like you had a great day, luv the way you set it all out, cakes look yummy, sue,x

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  23. I remember you posting that you were doing this tea party - I must say reading this, it went off far better than expected (not that i didn't expect you to pull it off) but i really genuinely enjoyed this post - almost like i experienced it with you... well done - it looks like you all had a really great time.

    Paula x x x

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  24. what a lovely day your girls created...so very fun and such details!

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  25. Wow that looks so much fun I love how you transformed the rooms and yourself and had the gift of a tag book wow hugs alma xx

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  26. Oh it looks fabulous!! You did a beautiful job of everything and it looks like you had a bunch of fun too. Gotta get a map to Big World ( and the place you got the 3 tier stand - I can't seem to find one here). Did you get my email? Hugs xxx

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  27. Oh it looks fabulous!! You did a beautiful job of everything and it looks like you had a bunch of fun too. Gotta get a map to Big World ( and the place you got the 3 tier stand - I can't seem to find one here). Did you get my email? Hugs xxx

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  28. how lovely, it looks great.
    Linbyx

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