Vintage Barefoot Wedding – Part 3: Drinks stations

Is there anything in the whole world prettier than a tea cup? Sigh.

Right from the outset I knew I wanted tea cups to be a significant feature of this wedding. My beautiful Daughter-in-love is a huge fan of tea and loves to drink from a tea cup, so I had the perfect excuse and justification to hunt and gather some fine English pretties. Score.

Part of my vision for the reception was to create a homely atmosphere, where guests felt like they were having afternoon tea in our home. I wanted them to feel so comfortable that they would linger and enjoy all of the treats at their fingertips. It was important to me that real tea cups and coffee cups were used. Tea just doesn’t taste like tea when it’s sipped from a styro or cardboard cup. The presentation of the cups was also something I gave a lot of thought to. I picked up an old vintage dresser from a farm sale for $40, which I have used  many times as a drink station. It’s perfect. I also found a more retro dresser in the op shop, which matched my lovely vintage coffee sets. Using a liquid chalk pen, I wrote “You’re my cup of tea” and “Coffee is always a good idea” onto the dresser mirrors. All of these finishing touches added to the vintage charm of our wedding.

Let me show you the tea, coffee, hot chocolate and drinks stations.

My favourite tea is Love Chai Tea, so I used a selection of their pyramid tea bags for the tea station. Their French earl Grey is without a doubt my favourite and incidentally makes the best cupcakes. I love my vintage enamelware and this cute tin was perfect for used tea bags.

Another goal for the reception was to have tea and coffee available as soon as the guests arrived after the ceremony. I spoiled them a little by adding a hot chocolate bar to the beverage stations, complete with chocolate spoons and a gorgeous wooden suitcase filled with homemade cookies to snack on throughout the evening.

I love the idea of guests having one glass that they use all night, so I decorated over a hundred mason jars and bottles with sweet cardboard heart tags on which guests wrote their names. The bride and groom had their own special vintage glasses to use. Stripey yellow straws and fabric buntings matched the vintage theme beautifully. As presentation is so important to me, I set up all of the mason jars onto a white buffet and hutch, decorating it with yellow fabric garlands.

As you look through all of these photos, I hope you can feel the love that I put into each and every detail of the drinks stations at this very special wedding. I also hope that you are inspired to choose a theme and have fun creating your own unique event or party. xx