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It's a forgotten art in many areas, but teatime used to be a tradition. All ladies knew that at a certain point in the day they were to look lovely and host, or be hosted, for tea.

While the furniture that is meant to go with this event is still readily available, like accent tables, few know the rules that go with teatime. If you have set up part of your home d'cor to be reminiscent of a time when teatime was appreciated, why not learn the tradition, and bring it back into use.

Low Tea Vs. High Tea

There are actually two kinds of teatime, low tea and high tea. Each are at different times of day, and are paired with different food offerings.

Low Tea

Low tea is teatime traditionally held in the afternoon, and is always concluded before dinnertime. To set up a low tea environment you would need to pull out all your teatime accent tables. One of the accent tables should be holding the teapot, and condiments for the drink. The other accent tables should hold dainty plates and the snacks that are meant to go with the low tea you are offering.

If you want to make a real event out of teatime, the accent tables should be filled with tea sandwiches, scones, deserts and all sorts of sweets. Traditional tea sandwiches take a bit of preparation time, and have to be cut small. The easiest way to make them is to make sandwiches on thinly sliced bread, remove the crust, and then cut them into four small squares or triangles. Common flavors of these sandwiches include spreads that are based with cream cheese or soft butters and spiced well with garlic, mustard, pepper, onions, and other ingredients that give them flavor. These sandwiches are called savories, so they must be tasty.

If you are not up to the full fare you may want to offer a cream tea or light tea for the low teatime. A cream tea will see your accent tables filled with scones and jam. A light tea will have scones and other sweets available.

High Tea

High tea is more of a meal than it is a time to have a spot of tea. There are three courses to a high tea event, so get your accent tables ready for a workout.

High tea is held at dinnertime, and essentially offers a meal, in pieces, on fine china, while those in attendance can also enjoy their tea and a social atmosphere. When creating your High Tea event, you should prepare a large selection of savories as well as other appetizers to start to satiate the appetite of your guests. Remember this is not just a small snack, but it is expected to be a substantial meal to accompany the teatime, don't underestimate the number of savories you need. Next, fill your accent tables with scones, jam and cream. After that course is complete, the tables should be overrun with enjoyable sweets such as cookies and cakes.