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A Bridal Tea

I hosted a bridal tea for my best friend Andrea last Sunday. It was the first tea that I've ever hosted. I had three teas when I got married (one from my church in Florence, one from Greyson's church in Hartsville and one given by my bridesmaids in Murfreesboro). I've learned that bridal teas are not as popular here as they are at home in Florence. I've found myself having to explain the difference between a tea and a shower to a lot of people the last couple of years. Here are the main differences in a nut shell.
1. For showers there is normally a set arrival time but at a tea it is flow event. Teas are usually an hour and half to two hours. That is why tea invitations have a start time and end time listed and showers mostly have just a start time.


2. The honoree doesn't open her own gifts at a tea. The hostesses unwrap the gifts as they come in (typically in another room) and records the gift and who it is from and then takes the gifts in the main room and displays them on a table.

3. My favorite difference. There are no games at teas! Sorry gals, there is no toilet paper bride or how well do you know your groom games. I know, I am no fun. Your time at a tea is just spent visiting with guests and eating.

So now about Andrea's tea.

I absolutely loved her invitation. Ignore the black line, I had to black out my address. 

Now my favorite part... THE FOOD. Her menu was as follows.


I worried myself to death about coming up with the perfect menu and the perfect recipes. I am not sure if it was perfect but it was pretty close in my "humble" opinion. A huge shout out to my mom for coming up early to help me prepare all the food. 

In typical Amy fashion I used several recipe specs to come up with my very own and great chicken salad recipe.

Ingredients:
1/2 cup light or regular mayonnaise
1/2 cup light or regular sour cream
1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon pepper
2 pounds skinned and boned chicken breasts, cooked and chopped
3 cups red and white seedless grapes, halved
1 cup chopped pecans, toasted
½ cup celery finely sliced

Directions:
Stir all ingredients together adding the grapes last. Refrigerate at least one hour before serving. We scooped the chicken salad into little puff pastries. 

I also found this amazing recipe for chess squares. They were a hit at the party. We actually followed this recipe exactly how it is listed. 

The last recipe I want to share with you is Almond Tea. I fell in love with this stuff at my bridal tea in Hartsville. I think it is a must to any bridal tea. 
Almond Tea
Ingredients:
2 cups sugar or Splenda (I’ve used both)
1 gallon water
8 tea bags
2 TBSP almond extract

Directions:

Brew tea, add sugar to warm tea to dissolve and add almond extract
 

There you have it folks. It was a great tea for my best friend. Let me know if you decide to host a tea of your own. 

Cranking Out More Designs

I am having a blast designing invitations and custom prints for friends and family, in addition to making more samples. Here are a few of my latest projects. Please remember custom designs just start at $5! Please contact me for more details.