Mad Hatters Tea Party

Having a mad hatters tea party is a great theme for those of us who like to look at life with a whimsical or slightly "mad" outlook. We all tend to have our moments of feeling confused and that everyone around us is crazy.

Is there a person anywhere who hasn't heard, read or watched the movie,
Alice in Wonderland? According to some amazing facts in the back of Puffin Books classic, this work of fiction is one of the most widely translated piece of literature next to the Bible and the works of Shakespeare. So I guess that shows the fascination we all have for letting our imaginations run free and for letting our mind wonder down the rabbit hole.  

Why not celebrate that bit of eccentricity in all of us by having your very own
Mad Hatter tea party? Perhaps the March Hare will also show up, I hear he's a
little mad, too! Now, get right to it, there's no time to waste! 

Hosting a Mad Hatters Tea Party

So, how should you start planning this fun party
idea? First, I suggest you send invitations to those you know who perhaps like to live life a little on the edge or are still young at heart. It will make for a more unreserved and fun affair. You can have an afternoon teatime or hold it at 6:00 pm, when the Hatter and Hare did.

To really get in the mood you can have your guests dress up in costumes as one of the characters of the book. Or for a smaller budget, everyone wear a Mad Hatter hat.

For your decorations you could place a large Mad Hatters Hat in the center of your table with an antique watch and rabbits circling it.

To start your teatime off, it would be a good idea to read out loud, the chapter titled
"A Mad Tea-Party". It is short and would help to refresh and explain a lot of the activities and menu for the party.

A light cream teatime is what the Hatter served for his afternoon repast. Perhaps that's because he didn't have much time to make anything, as it was always teatime according to his pocket watch.

Mad Hatters Tea Party Menu

Comfit (nuts, seeds, or dried fruit coated with sugar candy)
Cream Scones with Treacle (can use golden syrup or molasses)
Tea Cakes or Cupcakes (decorate cake to look like a watch with the
hands pointing to 6:00, which was teatime for the March hare and the hatter)
Black Tea

 

Mad Hatters Games

Motion Madness
The Hatter set his table with many settings, even though there were only three guests. This is because it was always teatime and he would move to the next place setting when his teacup got dirty. A good game in reference to this would be to play musical chairs, only instead of music stopping, have someone with their back turned and occasionally yell out, "Clean Cup", then everyone scramble for a seat. Another irritating but fun idea could be when everyone is at the table, the hostess occasionally yells out "Clean Cup", and everyone has to move to a new place and a new tea is poured.

Play M Pictionary
Make a list of words that start with the letter M. Divide into teams and the first team to guess the most words at the end of a set time, wins.

Riddle Me
Have everyone bring a riddle to the party (as well as the answer) like the Dormouse did. Take turns asking your riddle at different times throughout teatime and see if anyone can figure it out.

How Rude!
There is a lot of rudeness at the Mad Hatters tea party. I think they could use a lesson in proper etiquette, don't you? Write on slips of paper, some proper and improper things to do at teatime and have your guests choose a slip and act it out. (See our etiquette page).

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Look at our Alice in Wonderland Party too!

 

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