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| Top image via Pinterest / Loren silver tea cup, saucer, and plate / Gold Florentine charger, Gold Scroll Dinner plate and B&B, Gold Leaf salad plate and tea cup, Gold Bead B&B charger, Gold Lyons flatware // All POSH Couture Rentals |
Tea Time Etiquette
An excerpt from Tea Time Etiquette and the History of Afternoon Tea
- Greeting/handshake
- After sitting down — put purse on lap or behind you against chair back
- Napkin placement — unfold napkin on your lap, if you must leave temporarily place napkin on chair.
- Sugar/lemon — sugar is placed in cup first, then thinly sliced lemon and never milk and lemon together. Milk goes in after tea — much debate over it, but according to Washington School of Protocol, milk goes in last. The habit of putting milk in tea came from the French. “To put milk in your tea before sugar is to cross the path of love, perhaps never to marry.” (Tea superstition)
- The correct order when eating on a tea tray is to eat savories first, scones next and sweets last. We have changed our order somewhat. We like guests to eat the scones first while they are hot, then move to savories, then sweets.
- Scones — split horizontally with knife, curd and cream is placed on plate. Use the knife to put cream/curd on each bite. Eat with fingers neatly.
- Proper placement of spoon — the spoon always goes behind cup, also don’t leave the spoon in the cup.
- Proper holding of cup — do not put your pinky “up”, this is not correct. A guest should look into the teacup when drinking — never over it. Since ancient Rome, a cultured person ate with 3 fingers, a commoner with five. Thus, the birth of the raised pinkie as a sign of elitism. This 3 fingers etiquette rule is still correct when picking up food with the fingers and handling various pieces of flatware. This pinky “up” descended from a misinterpretation of the 3 fingers vs 5 fingers dining etiquette in the 11th century.
