Who wants thick off-white generic hotel crockery at their wedding reception?! Instead amaze your wedding guests with the beauty of vintage china, it adds such a wonderful touch of individuality and beauty to a reception; creating a memorable calidoscope of colour.
It's actually quite surprising how many people haven't heard of, or even considered hiring and incorporating vintage china into their wedding reception, not only is it beautiful to look at, it will make tables pop with colour. It doesn't matter what budget is available either, the tables will look beautiful, what ever you can afford to spend on them. And you don't need to go the whole hog, you may just wish to create a focal point, like a tea station, a dessert or buffet table using some vintage china to display, serve the catering on and the tea from. Vintage china is so beautifully versatile.
Most couples though, book vintage china because they want to have a classic Afternoon Tea served, the two naturally go hand-in-hand, it's a great alternative to a full sit down dinner, prettier and considerably cheaper too!! I also think during the summer months particularly, having an afternoon tea reception is less heavy and seems almost more of the 'British' thing to do. If you'd prefer to have a buffet you can present it beautifully on 3 tier cake and pedestal stands. Serve tea and coffee from bone china pots and stack bone china tea plates for guests. The options with vintage china are endless.
'Going vintage' is a great way to dress up or down your reception tables. depending on the china chosen. I've had clients who want it quite formal, posh in a way, mainly because their venue is a hotel, others want a more relaxed experience with a church or village hall decorated with bunting and paper lanterns. What ever your venue or vibe, vintage china is perfect, you just fit the china patterns around your look, it's as easy as that!!
I've recently had a bride and groom who held their wedding reception in the local village hall, they went for a street party feel, decorating their tables with jars full of English country garden flowers and bunting draped from the rafters. (view at: gallery) To create their look I used gorgeous relaxed floral patterns for the teacups, saucers and tea plates, with ditsy rose and floral 3 tier stands, it looked beautiful; and created an effortless and timeless look for them.
If you want to dress up the tables to add definition, it's a simple trick achieved by layering the place settings with different sized plates, it's a simple, yet effective way to really provide some emphasis. To do this use either an 8" salad plate and or a 10" dinner plate. You may well be thinking it's a waste of money to do this, it's not, I frequently use an 8" plate when savoury items like quiche and sausage rolls are being served, and why not use them for the finger sandwiches too, leaving the tea plates free for the scones, cakes and other sweet treats. Not only is this method of layering aesthetically beautiful, it's practical too.
You can see from the image below how wonderfully layering works, it's just a case of selecting the right plates. And to give a little extra definition, the napkin has been placed as part of the layering. Who'd have thought using a plain ditsy rose 8" plate with an elegant Royal Doulton dinner plate could work so well, particularly when you add in the beautiful Tuscan teacup, saucer and tea plate; it's a magical combination and a totally bespoke look.
If you'd love to make your wedding reception even more memorable and the talk of your friends and family, get in contact and we can discuss how vintage china can make your reception beautifully unique.
Socials
Facebook: @thevintageteaservice
Instagram: @thevintageteaservice
Image contributors (Instagram handles):
Concept, Cakes, Marshmallows & Biscuits: @sallyjeanweddingcakes
Planning & Styling: @sarahborrowsweddings
Florals: @seedandwild
Photography: @Ailsareevephotography (wedding images)
Venue: @castertongrange
Crockery, glassware & napkins: @thevintageteaservice
Cutlery: @whitehouse_crockery
Dresses, veils & accessories: @edenweddingboutique
Hair Stylist: @wolfestudios_uk
Stationery & ribbons: @northernmadeco
Model: @anitacannon12
Makeup: @makeup_by_emma_askew
Styling Props: @narrativehire
Childrensware: @poppy_and_fred_childrenswear
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Your tablescapes are a real inspiration. I love seeing the beautiful colors in a variety of different china patterns. I strongly believe vintage china is making a comeback. It's loved by people of all ages.
A brillian5article I really enjoyed it