When I design parties I want them to be awesome. I mean who ever starts out planning thinking….”Hmmm, I hope that I can make this event mediocre.” But there's a lot that goes into creating an event and there are always so many more things I could have done. At some point, however, I have to draw the line and be okay with what I can accomplish in the time I have. I like to make it nice, but I also want to be realistic and not spend a fortune.
I designed this Alice in Wonderland Tea Party for my daughter’s 6th birthday and you can find all the finished party pics in my Alice in Wonderland Tea Party post. People always want to know where I get my supplies and how I put it together. I've done my best to break it down with all my Alice in Wonderland tea party sources and show you how easy it is for you to get this same look for your next party with loads of stuff second hand or from the dollar store.
Alice in Wonderland Tea Party Sources
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Invitations:
It all started with the invitations. I purchased invites from Lemonade Moments but was inspired to wrap each piece in a small doily by an invite from Anders Ruff. I added these great keys for a personal touch and our final product was so much fun. Several kids made sure to bring their keys to the party. I wish I had created a special lock at the entrance to add to the drama. I tied the keys on for fun, never taking into account the power of a 6-year-old imagination! Lesson learned.
Room décor:
Watch chandelier: I printed white and black pocket watch images {free printable} from The Graphics Fairy and tied them to the solid ring of an embroidery hoop with fishing line. {It's my favorite base for any kind of mobile)
White and blue pom garlands: Dollar store. These take a minute to fluff so do them AHEAD of time! They also get heavy so make sure they are attached firmly.
Tablescape:
Mad Hatter topsy turvy teapot stack: Inspired by an image at Deer Pearl Flowers
- Dishes: second hand stores
- Flowers: Dollar store
- Foam Tape: Home Depot
- Sheet Moss: Amazon
Doily table runner: Inspired by Love That Party – Source for great doilies at a great price: Amazon – 32 doilies in 3 sizes for less than half of some other brands {When I used it as an “Add-on” to my order}.
Character centerpieces: Inspired by a featured party at Catch My Party
- Apothecary vases: Amazon – I’ve collected mine over the years but if you are just starting out, these smaller vases are a fantastic option at a great price. Smaller size 8.5” to 11” tall.
- Or if you are looking for something a little larger, 12” to 16” tall, I’d recommend these vases.
“Cheshire Cat” and “White Rabbit” wheat grass:
- Ceramic planters: second hand store {February is a great month to find Easter & Spring items}
- Filled with potting soil: Home Depot
- Topped with Wheat berries: Amazon – I get the big bag because you get a whole lot more for an extra couple of bucks. If you don’t plan to grow wheat grass again, there are smaller bags available. But if you fall in love with the vibrant colors of wheat grass you just might want to grow it all the time! To make it easy here's a post on How I love to Grow Wheatgrass.
Place settings:
- Truly Alice Mad Hatter Tea Party Dessert Plates: Amazon – Beware that these are tiny dessert plates. Perfect for children and oh so cute!
- Truly Alice Mad Hatter Tea Party 9” Plates: Amazon – These plates are large enough for a luncheon or dessert buffet.
- Truly Alice Mad Hatter Tea Party Paper cup & saucer: Amazon – This was the perfect balance between glass tea cups, that I was afraid might break, and plain paper cups which aren't quite as fun.
- Truly Alice Mad Hatter Tea Party Napkins: Amazon
- Glittered Pink Plastic cutlery: from Target is no longer available – I found a great alternative with this Glittered Gold Cutlery: Amazon
- Turquoise Blue Plastic cutlery: Zurchers – I set the table with different colored cutlery. I'd like to say it's because I wanted some variety but in reality I ran out of the pink glitter option!
- Creative Converting patterned paper ice cream cups: from Target are no longer available – I found a great alternative
- Turquoise Jumbo Baking cups: Amazon – These aren't thick enough to hold ice cream but they'd be perfect for holding a cupcake during decorating and make it much easier to transport.
- Style tip: You can save money by using solid color cups and adding fancy straws to give it a little something special. I'd combine both patterns of Blue striped straws: Amazon and Black and Red Playing Cards Paper Straws: Amazon for a really fun straw display.
DIY – Queen of Hearts art
Mantel Décor:
- Mad Hatter quote: I found it at Red Bubble and was designed by Contrast Studios
- White Rabbit image: Zazzle
- Queen of Hearts playing card art: Inspiration from a Catch My Party feature. But you can find the Halfpint Design tutorial on how to make it here: Queen of Hearts Art DIY
- Tea pots: second hand stores
- Clock: personal
- Playing card garlands: idea from Country Living – These are pretty simple to DIY without any instructions – just some playing cards {Dollar store} and bakers twine {Target or Zurchers or Amazon}
Barnwood hutch décor:
Barnwood hutch décor:- Alice image {free printable}: We're all Mad Here from Ally Jean Blog
- Tea Time banner {free printable}: Happy Homebird
- Black watch {free printable}: The Graphics Fairy
- Colored glass bottles: Dollar store
Favors:
- Brown paper gift bags: Dollar store
- Scrapbook labels: My Minds Eye, Find your Wings and Fly
- Thank you tags {free printable}: Graffical Muse
Favor bag contents:
- Little heart notebooks: Dollar store {February is a great time to stock up on anything heart shaped!}
- Bejeweled pens: Dollar store
- Heart shaped slinkies: Dollar store
- Glittered bouncy ball: Dollar store
- Gummy mushrooms: IKEA
Food buffet:
- Paper flowers: Even though you don’t see much of them in the party photos these “Golden Afternoon” Disney flowers were one of my favorite things! {free printable}: Disney – *Warning- these are a BEAR to cut!
- Red & clear vases: Dollar store
- Eat me and Drink me tags {free printable}: BNute
- Glass carafe: IKEA
- Bottle with stopper: World Market
- Rose birthday cake: Smashcakes, Allie Adams Koppe
Activity Supplies:
Mad Hatter Hat Making
- Mad Hatter Millinery Sign: I created this sign by editing an image from the original Sir John Tenniel illustrations of the classic Alice in Wonderland.
- The “Things we said” font: Dafont
- Girls Easter Hats: Dollar store
- Boys faux felt bowlers: Zurchers
- Butterflies & Birds: Dollar store
- Feathers: Amazon – I have an abundance of feathers in my arsenal so this was pretty easy for me, but if you are just beginning your collection, peacock feathers, some white feathers, and a few pheasant feathers are the best place to start.
- Scrap Ribbon: whatever you have on hand that remotely fits the theme. I cut some in shorter lengths and left others long. It was fun to see how the guests used it.
- Glue dots: Amazon – this is the best price I found when I used it as an Add-on to my order. These things are amazing and have made my house so much cleaner! No more glue spills or glue stick mess all over the project. Glue dots are super easy even for a 6 year old to use. They aren’t permanent however, so your child can still pick all the decorations off if they want to. For a situation like an Easter hat that you're actually going to wear, I recommend an adult using a glue gun to firmly affix it all in place. {Otherwise your daughter will be sitting in church pulling the flowers off her hat! Ahem…not that I have any experience with that.}
- 3-Tiered Kvittera serving platter: IKEA – I used this stand to set out and organize all the embellishment options. I love this tiered tray and use it in lots of different ways.
Photo booth:
- Shower curtain backdrop: second hand {I know that’s slightly gross but it had ZERO smell when I purchased it and I washed it in vinegar anyway!}
- Mini globe: Amazon – I think this is the cutest little globe! I got it as an accent piece for my library bookcase but I find myself using it all the time to show the kids different places on the map that they discuss in school.
- Silver tea pot: this was given to me by my sweet mother-in-law. If you aren't so lucky, check around at second hand stores. If you'd like to add one to your tea party collection you can get a beautiful one on Amazon.
- Remaining Vignette: Personal items
Cupcake decorating:
- Patterned Wooden spoons: Zurchers
- Tiny portion cups: Zurchers
- Metal Omvaxlande serving tray: IKEA
- Premixed frosting with plastic icing tips: Wilton – Michaels
- Colored white chocolate “pens”: Michaels
- Preportioned frosting in zippered bags
Tea for a Children's Party
You've got to have tea for a tea party but I wasn't sure how well it would go over with my 6 year old audience until I discovered Plum Deluxe herbal teas. Their chocolate hazelnut dessert tea is fantastic for young and old alike. Smells like Nutella but with zero caffeine, won't have them bouncing off the walls! After falling in love with a few of their herbal tea selections I signed up for their Tea of the Month Club and have really enjoyed all the unique flavor combinations. {They have regular tea options too of course!}
Tea Party Sources all Wrapped up!
I've tried hard to create a comprehensive Alice in Wonderland tea party sources list for everything I used. If you do happen to see something I haven't mentioned when looking at the full sized finished party pics, please let me know and I'll add it in. If you missed the party pics you can see them on our Alice in Wonderland Tea Party post.
Deciding on a theme and tracking down the perfect party elements are often quite time consuming. I'll try to list all available sources for each party I design and hopefully cut down on the time YOU will have to take planning your next event. So really…I work for you! Are there any themes you want me to explore for you? Drop me a comment and let me know what you'd like to see.
Additional Reading For More Tea Party Ideas:
- Alice in Wonderland Tea Party Birthday
- Queen of Hearts Art – Playing Card DIY
- Queen of Hearts Valentine's Party Ideas
Until next time my friend,
Wow Bri – you did a fantastic job letting us know the source of your supplies. A terrific party for sure. Can’t wait until I see what you do next. Thank you very much.
I’m so glad you enjoyed our tea party! Since then I’ve hosted a dozen more and I hope that you continue to find the party and holiday ideas helpful. Thank you so much for stopping in!