Baby Shower Tea Party Theme and Ideas - A Garden Tea Party

My niece's baby shower tea party was a big success. Everyone had a lot of fun and exclaimed over how wonderful everything was presented. The theme was a garden tea party. 

Instead of traditional pink and blue, we used celadon green as the base color, with fun accent colors, like yellow and orange - and yes, a little pink and blue in the mix.

Polka dot wrapping paper and coordinating patterns and colors were found at a gift shop. If you have an attractive gift such as this basket filled with baby goodies, don't cover it up with paper. Use clear cellophane and decorate with bows and baby shoes (or rattles).

Our plan was to have the baby shower tea party outside, but when the day arrived, it brought with it, very hot weather. So we had it inside, instead.

The invitations for our baby shower tea party were hand-made by my sister, whose daughter(Leah) was the guest of honor. You can use our free printable invitations of this unique design. They were sent out about 3 weeks ahead to give plenty of notice. Guests were asked to wear their brightest summer outfit.

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As the guests arrived (and later Leah) they were greeted by a clothes-line waving with baby clothes that Leah wore when she was a baby and inter-spaced with the words " Welcome to Leah's Baby Shower".
* This shower was not a surprise, so it was not a "spoiler".

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The guests were greeted and given a spool of ribbon. They had to pull out the length of ribbon the size they thought Leah's belly had grown to be, cut it, tie the ends in a bow and hang it around their necks. After the mom-to-be arrived, we measured her belly with a ribbon, cut it, and passed it around to find the person who had guessed the closest. They were awarded a prize. (We used decorative flowerpots and wind chimes for prizes.)

Our other baby shower tea party game was baby bingo. Everyone was given a baby bingo paper. Guests filled in each square with a specific baby gift they thought
might be given. When that gift was opened, the square was marked off until someone yelled "bingo!" Use our free printable baby shower game board.

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Our baby shower tea party was buffet-style. It was at dinnertime and as we had many guests, we wanted to make sure there was plenty of food.

 

We placed pictures of Leah as a baby - one or two are labeled as a favorite pic of "Dad's' or "Mom's".

 

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Baby Shower Tea Party Menu

Tea Sandwiches - Chicken salad, Egg salad Cornish Pasties Broccoli Quiche
Waldorf Salad Cucumber and Cheese Crackers Garden Pasta Salad
Pot Popovers Basil-Tomatoes with Mozzarella
Grapes Fresh Pineapple Baby Gherkins
Iced Teas with Ice rings - Raspberry Infused and Unsweetened Ceylon
Tea Cakes

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Nice cafeteria-style trays aid in carrying plates, glasses and silverware.

Glass tea plates and iridescent ice tea glasses contribute to the special affair.

 

With a garden theme, use a few flowerpots for service, such as these…

This shade of green was great for the table. Tied with a polka dot ribbon, all we had to do is slip the clear bowl of pasta into the pot.

           These planters were a fun way to present our tea sandwiches. A cut cardboard insert was placed inside to keep the sandwiches up high and a similar rectangular-shaped platter was placed in front for good dimension.

* Tip - For more appealing presentation use different heights and different shaped serving dishes (the tendency is to use all round). * Also, be sure to label your food at a larger party, so your guests won't have to ask.

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I was able to borrow these containers to use for our iced tea. They made a lovely and easy way to serve the tea.
Ice rings were inserted to keep the tea chilled, as well as being decorative.
If you don't have large containers that you can borrow or rent, then simply use large glass pitchers filled with tea and ice and place them on a tray. One pitcher generally serves about eight glasses. Have enough pitchers so that you only need to refill them once during the initial service. I was able to borrow these containers to use for our iced tea. They made a lovely and easy way to serve the tea.
Ice rings were inserted to keep the tea chilled, as well as being decorative.
If you don't have large containers that you can borrow or rent, then simply use large glass pitchers filled with tea and ice and place them on a tray. One pitcher generally serves about eight glasses. Have enough pitchers so that you only need to refill them once during the initial service.

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The tea cakes for the baby shower tea party carry the garden and polka dot theme and the same fun hues.

Flowers, candles with leaves, and a displayed poem entitled, "Garden Child", all contribute to the garden theme.

This polka dot cake looks like it was made with fondant, but instead was made with butter cream icing. We asked the baker to create a flat, fondant look, including the polka dots. This is more economical ( as fondant costs more), as well as more edable.

I hope this has given you some inspiration for your own baby shower tea party or garden tea party!

Make memories and please send us your party pictures, ideas and recipes.

 

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Tips from the Tea Bee

When your guests arrive and hand you their gift, ask them if they need to leave early. If the answer is yes, then place their gift near the front, so that it will be among the first opened.

If someone has sent a gift but is not attending the party, place that gift at the end of the stack, so that all who are there will be able to see the guest of honor open their gift. (If the recipient receives a lot of gifts, then she can open the ones that have not attended, after the party.)

A nice gesture at a baby shower tea party is to provide the mom-to-be with
thank-you cards, address labels and stamps to make this "etiquette job" much easier. After all, she'll bee plenty busy with a new little one. Click here for more
thank you card tips.

Another idea for a garden theme, is to include in the invitations, a note asking anyone that has a garden, to bring a single cut flower. Put them altogether in one vase and make sure the guest of honor takes them home

 

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