How to Host a Modern Valentine's Day Tea Party

Valentine's Day can be a strange holiday. It's often tailored cutesy for kids or romantic for couples. But why limit holiday fun to those traditional categories? There's tons of people involved in your life, and Valentine's Day is a great time to show them appreciation and love, too. 
  
Flip the Valentine's script this year and throw a modern Valentine's Day tea party for friends or family. Here's your game plan.

DÉCOR 
Pick a traditional Valentine color as your accent color. (We used deep red; browse your stash of Christmas or 4th of July supplies for red items you already own.) Then mix and match white, silver, and black for a modern look. 
  
Sprinkles & Confetti products:

• Cake stands - Whether white, fuschia, light pink, or red, you'll use these classic colors for holidays and birthdays for years to come. 

• Paper plates - Take your pick from our Valentine's Day collection. Here are some of our favorite plates: red heart, metallic pink heart, red striped, red XOXO, and heart confetti.

• Heart platter - Grab this reusable plastic platter to display Valentine's sweets.

• Red forks - Use any extra forks throughout the year for holidays and birthdays.

• Patterned napkins - Pick black and white napkins for that modern look, stick with red cocktail napkins for extra festive color, or combine all three colors with a striped heart napkin. 

• Black tablecloth - A modern table backdrop in paper or plastic makes Valentine's colors and décor pop.

Other items:

• White tea lights - White adds color, and candle flames add ambiance. Sprinkle lit tealights throughout your tablescape for an inexpensive but special party touch. (Order on Amazon, or shop Target for the oversized tealights shown in these pictures.)

• Plate chargers - Layer neutral silver chargers with disposable themed plates for a classy table display. (Ours are from Walmart.)

• Teapot - Keep an ample supply of hot water, and refill throughout the party as needed.

• Teacups or mugs - Here's a great excuse to whip out those wedding china cups. Or, stick with whatever mix of mugs and thermoses you have on hand. Don’t overthink it!

GUESTS
Valentine's Day tea is the perfect casual event to mix crowds. Invite your new neighbors, family friends, and people you'd like to know better. Or, use it as an opportunity to bond with your sisters-in-law or close friends circle. 
  
Either way, keep this list to 10 guests or fewer. This party type is great for conversation, so less is more. 

PARTY TIMING
Valentine's Day tea works well as a late morning or early afternoon party. Keep it to a casual two hours; people are more likely to show up if they don't have to give up their entire day. 
  
Feel free to host this party anytime during February. In fact, you'll likely have better attendance on any day but Valentine's Day itself.

DRINKS
A tea theme makes planning drinks easy - have plenty of tea on hand! Individual tea bags in a mix of fruity black, green, white and herbal teas work best for a crowd so they can customize their own cups. Keep a bowl of rock or table sugar nearby to sweeten drinks as needed.
 
Look for loose leaf tea (versus ground tea) for the fullest flavor. Mighty Leaf, Tazo, and Rishi are several readily accessible brands in grocery stores. Home Goods and TJ Maxx also often have bags of loose leaf teas for a steal in their snacks section.
 
Not everybody is a tea drinker? No worries - this is a party, after all, so keep a couple of bottles of wine on hand for a casual holiday happy hour.  

FOOD
Keep this event simple with sips and store-bought snacks - no need to serve a full meal. Execution ideas:

• Stack white and pink mini cupcakes on a cake stand for an easy, festive look. Superstores and grocery stores often carry holiday-themed sweets. (We grabbed the cupcakes in the pictures from Target).

• Tea sandwiches are on-theme and simple. Layer white bread, herbed cream cheese spread, cucumbers, and turkey deli meat. Pre-assemble and display on the cake stand, or set out the ingredients and let people make their own.

• Cookies are a natural fit for Valentine's Day tea sweets. Make your own dough, decorate store-bought sugar cookies with red frosting as a party activity, or grab a tub of Pirouettes for a delicious but simple tea snack.

• Grab a bag of pink and white Ghirardelli chocolate squares or pink and red Favereds Starbursts for an extra color pop on your table with minimal effort.

Single or married, kids or kidsless, Valentine-lover or not - at Sprinkles & Confetti, we believe every holiday is an excuse to celebrate. Browse our entire collection of stylish Valentine's Day party supplies and décor for inspiration, and let us help you have a joyous Valentine's Day.

FOLLOW US FOR MORE PARTY INSPIRATION!