Galentine’s Day Tea Party – February 13th

We all love our men but where do we go when the slogs of our today, tomorrow and yesterday burden us – a burden that is too sensitive and heavy for the “man”kind? The answer is: to our own kind, to those who share and understand the hormones and the plight of it all – our girlfriends, sisters, mothers, female colleagues. That is where the gentleness we need is extended and understood. While the males in our lives strive to provide us all we need as their ladies, the tactful care that makes us thrive in a female company is quite unmatched. Since we need both the companies, why not relax and declutter ourselves in our girls’ party on February 13th, right before we celebrate the V day with our valentine?

I guess that was the reasoning behind the Galentine’s Day; a comedic gesture, coined fairly recently in a sitcom, Parks and Recreation. While it may not have the legacy of time to its credit but the “unofficial holiday” sure is fast becoming a popular one and by all means, plausible! Thanks to Leslie Knope who introduced this much needed concept of “ladies celebrating ladies” every February 13^th with her soul sistas. She does it brunch style with waffles and coffee. When ladies are together, many things can be deemed fun, I am putting forth what fares well with me – sweets and tea presented in best of suavity and charm! Scroll down for your viewing pleasures ~

So ladies – awesome as it is to get ready for Valentine, but the take away from this fun styled shoot is to appreciate and recognize the full worth of womanship. And to do this  in this low tea fete styled exclusively for Gallentine’s Day just makes it all the more feminine! Gather the girl-gang for some talking therapy! Fancy up, garb yourself in florals, don some heals and let your guard down!  It is time for girl only soiree, Ladies Celebrating Ladies ~ oh and while you enjoy with the ladies, don’t forget to add sugar!

Credits: Pale pinks and rose make an appeal that no other does for ladies’ tea. I wanted the table to be a mix of elegance and a little bit of rustiquity. Although many colors go well with the rustic elements, pink in this shoot had to be consciously picked. It was a great collaboration, hands down! I sent my vendor friends the color palette and idea pictures and everything delivered complemented my thought to the last! I used vintage china, silverware, linen and paper decor and the whole affair was beautified with scrumptious delicious cakes and desserts. I have worked with Sally Bakes Me Pretty before and had a great experience so called her with my eyes closed. Here is our work together from last June! Mehr’s Cake Croner partnered with us for desserts and cakes. Baking cakes and making desserts since 2009, Mehr’s Cake Corner provides the great combination of passion and proper training it takes to produce the delicacies so perfect. The sandwiches are heart of any tea party – these ones done perfectly for tea and this shoot were provided by Tea-licious by Maria. With passion of cooking and trying yummy recipes, the business focuses mostly on tea items and mini desserts (perfect pairing for tea!). She also holds kids summer cooking and painting classes. While I used silk flowers mostly, there were some nice touches of crepe and paper flowers made on such short notice by Qute Blooms by Qudsia Maqbool – thanks for doing this!

The Shoot: Something particular about this shoot – it is presented (with some liberty to its version) in a style of low tea! Considered very formal and elitish in many parts of the world, low tea is quite an overlooked style of hosting in many others. Generally in the US tea party is synonymous to high or buffet tea. I will keep the detailed discussion about differences in low and high tea for another post but for now, I just want to let you know that drinking tea low style actually is more relaxing and prolongs the time together since couches are more of our comfort zone than the dining chairs. It also does not break the flow of the party while transitioning from dining to living areas. So if you think about serving tea next time, here is an inspiration to style up your low tea table for intimate friends – friends that you want to spend long time with!

Happy planning!