I’ve always loved Lustreware – my grandmother collected it, having bought a crate of random pieces for $5 on the roadside in New Orleans in the 70’s. When I saw this set glinting at me in our local junk shop I jumped on it. Not as cheap as in Grandma’s day but it really has been worth every penny. It lives in a display cabinet in our front room and only comes out on very special occasions like birthdays or when Bea gets a golden certificate from school. I don’t know if they think it’s made of real gold but the girls get SO excited when it’s laid out for tea. I fill the teapot with hot chocolate and serve with cakes and sandwiches. Ok, I get very excited too. Anyway, this year we had another joint party with best friend Lottie (7 years old!) and they decided they would like to have a huge golden tea party. Apparently boys laugh at tea parties so they weren’t invited. They will be meeting up with the boys in the park for a picnic. Pic-nics aren’t funny.
(ps those are hollyhock seeds in the cups not giant fur balls)
The decorations. Parasol from Djeco and pom-poms from Talking Tables, bunting from Cox & Cox.
The favourite party game: jumping for sweets.
The cake! I have to confess that the entire tower was made from undercooked sponge held up by splints. Had to throw that bit away.
A puppet theatre made a great ice cream station. Leonardo di Caprio served.
Belle & Boo donkey and cart from talkingtables.co.uk
The ladies take tea.
The Goody Bags (cartons)
This idea was stolen from Disco Loco, the kids disco in Bethnal Green where they serve take-away cupcakes in egg cartons. We decorated our cartons (took much longer than we thought!) and filled with home-made cakes and treats.
Yes, those mini-eggs have been licked.
