Tea Sets & Afternoon Tea

Everything for afternoon tea — bone china and porcelain services, cast iron teapots, tiered cake stands, and paper tea-party tableware for a crowd.

What does a complete afternoon tea need?

A pot, cups with saucers, a milk jug, a sugar bowl and something with height for the food. The last one is the piece people leave out: without a tiered stand or a footed plate the food sits flat while the tea has ceremony, and the two do not read as one occasion.

How many places should a set have?

Six. Afternoon tea is a seated, slow occasion, and a service for twelve turns it into something to be catered rather than something you can do on a Sunday. If you need to serve twenty-four or more, paper tea-party tableware is the honest answer rather than hired china.

Bone china, porcelain or cast iron?

Bone china is the thinnest and lightest and the traditional choice for the cups. Porcelain is more robust and better for a set you will actually use weekly. Cast iron is for the pot rather than the cups — it holds heat far longer, so a pot stays drinkable through a second and third round.