Beat the winter blues with this beautiful winter tea party. We were inspired by snowy days to include a snowflake theme, from the easy decor to the snowflake inspired desserts. This easy menu will help you celebrate the season.
Quick Look
- 🎉Theme: Winter Tea Party
- ❄️Decor: Paper snowflakes, snowflake plates and napkin rings, snow inspired flowers
- 🫖Menu: Classic tea sandwiches, scones with jam and cream, and snow inspired sweets
- 🧑🧑🧒Guests: 1-5
- 💭 Top Tip: Use leftover Christmas treats or pick up sweets at the bakery.
Why You'll Love This Party
- Actually doable -Most of the menu is make-ahead or store-bought, with fresh scones as your showstopper
- Easy and cohesive theme -Snowflakes make every decision easier
- Beats the winter blahs -Creates warmth and beauty when January feels long and gray
- Simple but stunning -Small details like ribbon-tied teacups create big impact without big effort
- Perfect post-holiday gathering - Brings friends together after the busy season
- Built-in snow day plan - Because winter weather happens (tips included!)
Jump to:
Is it just me, or does January feel really, really long? After the holiday excitement fades and the decorations come down, winter can start to feel like something to just endure until spring arrives.
These winter tea party ideas with a snowflake theme are the perfect way to beat the winter blues. A cozy afternoon with friends, a reason to set a pretty table, and the yummiest simple menu make this party the perfect remedy for gray winter days.
If you love tea parties be sure to check out my Valentine's Day tea party , and our Spring Tea Party also. You will also love our guide for how to throw an afternoon tea party for adults here.
Creating a Snowflake Winter Wonderland
What's a winter themed party without some snow? The beauty of this theme is that once you have a clear direction every decision becomes easier. A theme like snow is perfectly winter-appropriate, elegant, and honestly pretty easy to shop for. Everything flowed from there: white palette, natural textures, and touches of gold for warmth.
The Table
I started to set up for our winter afternoon tea with a knit runner down the center of our wood table (which I love in winter because the wood itself adds so much warmth). The texture of the knit against the smooth wood immediately made everything feel cozier. Don't have a knit table runner? A scarf works great too. 🙂
For the centerpiece, I kept it simple but impactful: tea lights in clear votive holders surrounded by faux snow, plus snowflake votive holders, and a few gold ones to add a little warm to our snowy scene. There's something magical about soft candlelight on a gray winter afternoon.
Flowers always add a little life to a table, and I thought these pretty baby's breath flowers that I picked up at the grocery store were the perfect winter party decorations, because they look like snowballs!
Each place setting got snowflake plates layered with simple white linen napkins held by snowflake napkin rings.
The vintage glass teacups were my favorite detail: I tied white ribbon bows on each handle. It took maybe five minutes total, but guests noticed them all afternoon.
Gold cutlery and gold candle holders added just enough warmth to keep all that white and silver from feeling too cold.
The sheepskin rugs draped over the chair backs? That was a last-minute addition that turned out to be genius. They made everything feel extra cozy and luxurious without any effort, and reminded me of passing outdoor cafes in Switzerland on my dream trip there last Christmas. They were everywhere, casually warming up cold seats on a winter day.
I hung paper snowflakes from the chandelier to create that "snowy" effect overhead. These are some ones I bought and I love their detail, but handmade ones would work just as well, or snowflake ornaments.
On the sideboard behind the table, I styled a simple winter vignette: some birch logs leaning against the wall, more paper snowflakes hanging at different heights, and a rustic container with spring bulbs just starting to grow. That last detail felt important to me -a little reminder that spring will come eventually, even when January feels endless.
Most of what I used, I already had or could easily find. The ribbon for the teacups? My craft stash. The snowflake plates and napkin rings? From Christmas' past. The flowers? From the grocery store in simple matching glass vases, I use all the time. Sometimes the prettiest tables come from shopping your own home first.
Winter Tea Party Menu
We kept things classic with our tea party menu, starting with simple tea sandwiches, then scones served with the classic cream and jam, and finishing off with a selection of sweets.
Tea Sandwiches
Egg Salad Croissants: I wanted to serve three different tea sandwiches for our tea party. I went with first a simple egg salad on mini croissants. Look for mini croissants in the grocery store and serve with your favourite egg salad. I made the egg salad the night before, which made sandwich assembly a little quicker and easier on the morning of the tea party.
Cucumber Finger Sandwiches: I also made some classic cucumber finger sandwiches. Look for special square shaped bread if you can find it. It makes it easier to cut the crusts off the bread without too much waste. My local grocery store has it available in their bakery section.
My favourite way to make the cucumber sandwich fingers is with regular cream cheese on one side of the bread, and butter and Miracle Whip on the other. I know everyone isn't a fan of Miracle Whip, because it's a little sweeter and tangier than mayonnaise, but I think it's perfect for these. You could, of course, use mayo if you prefer. And then just layer the thinly sliced cucumber on top and sandwich together. Cut the crusts off the sandwiches, and cut them into three long fingers.
You can make your sandwiches a few hours before serving, just be sure to wrap them up in plastic wrap to keep them from drying out.
Ham and Cheese Finger Sandwiches: I also made some simple ham and cheese finger sandwiches. I buttered my bread, then added some honey ham, thinly sliced Gruyère cheese (good quality cheese really adds a lot to these little sandwiches) and finished off with some honey mustard for a little sweetness. Cut the crusts off these as well and slice into three fingers.
More Ideas: You might also like our turkey with cranberry mayo tea sandwiches, or our chicken salad toast cups.
Scones
You can't have a tea party without scones. And I love these easy food processor scones. They're my go to recipe, that are quick and easy to make and so delicious. If you don't have time to bake, pick them up at your favorite bakery instead.
Top Tip: Make your scones the morning of your party if you can. They are so much better fresh baked. They have a slight crust out the outside, and are soft in the middle when they're fresh, which you tend you lose slightly after storing in an airtight container. Can't make them the morning of the party? Here's a work around. Make them in advance and freeze the unbaked dough on a cookie sheet, until solid and then in a freezer bag to avoid any freezer burn. The morning of the party defrost them and bake fresh.
Serve your scones with classic clotted cream and jam. Look for the clotted cream in the dairy or cheese section of your grocery store, or at a specialty British shop. Can't find real clotted cream? You can substitute whipped cream if necessary.
Sweets
For a sweet ending to our tea party we included a few snow inspired treats. These snowflake sugar cookies were actually leftover from Christmas and the perfect addition to our winter tea party. Make these a few days ahead of time, or make them earlier and freeze, or look for something similar at the bakery. This is our favorite sugar cookie recipe.
We also served some classic cheesecake. This was also a holiday leftover. I cut it into small squares for the tea party, since it's nice to have dainty portions for the occasion. to make it fit our snowy theme, I used some melted white chocolate and piped some simple snowflakes onto parchment paper. To decorate the cheesecake I added some whipped cream, snow sprinkles and our white chocolate snowflakes.
These vanilla cupcakes were also a holiday leftover that I froze. For our party, I just added some snowflake sprinkles and a dusting of gold edible glitter. You could also look for plain vanilla cupcakes at the grocery store or bakery.
Lastly, I wanted to include these white chocolate coconut truffles. They look like little snowballs and were an easy and fun addition that fit our theme perfectly.
Tea
We kept things classic with our tea. I offered classic orange pekoe or Earl Grey. I also had some decaf available and some herbal tea. On a cold winter day, hot tea is the perfect accompaniment. Be sure to have some milk and sugar available as well. You can also serve with honey and lemon.
My Top Tips for a Stress Free Winter Tea Party
- Pick One Theme and Stick to It: Our snowflake theme helped us choose our decor, and our menu and made everything feel pulled together.
- Keep The Kettle Full: Tea parties require tea, especially on a cold winter day. Every time you make a pot of tea, refill and boil your kettle. Then, when you're ready to make your next pot of tea it will only take a minute to reboil the kettle again.
- Keep Sandwiches Fresh: If you're making sandwiches a few hours ahead, cover them tightly with plastic wrap or a damp tea towel. This keeps them from drying out.
- Set Your Table Early: If you can set your table a day or two before, the day of the party feels so much easier. Plus you get to enjoy looking at it. Need the table to make your food the morning of? Get everything together, place settings, platters, and flowers, so you can quickly set it when you're finished prepping the food.
- Have a Snow Day Plan: My biggest tip for anyone living where winter weather is unpredictable is to have a backup plan in case the weather is bad. I always pick a weekend with two possible days and include a "snow date". If ice or snow means you have to cancel on Saturday, you can always move the party to Sunday. Takes so much pressure off everyone and means you're not stressing about the forecast.
Frequently Asked Questions
For a sit-down afternoon tea like this, 2-6 people is perfect. It's intimate enough to have real conversation and small enough that you can easily manage the serving.
2-3 weeks is ideal. This gives people time to plan, especially if you're including a snow date for weather flexibility. A simple text or email works perfectly-no need for fancy paper invites unless that's your thing.
Mix-and-match is charming! In fact, vintage mismatched teacups often look more interesting than a matching set. Look at thrift stores for expensive options. Or use what you have and add small details like the ribbon bows -that's what makes it feel special.
Absolutely! Offer hot chocolate alongside tea, and for picky eaters, keep some of ham and cheese sandwiches plain without mustard, add some peanut butter and jam sandwiches cut out with a snowflake cookie cutter. They'll love feeling fancy with the pretty table setting.
Always have alternatives available. I keep hot chocolate mix, decaf tea, and herbal tea on hand. You could also offer coffee. For a cold option you could have water, sparkling water with lemon, or soda available. The "tea party" is really about the gathering, the actual beverage is flexible.
2-3 hours is typical for afternoon tea. People usually arrive around 1 or 2pm and leave by 4pm. But honestly, if everyone's having a great time, let it go longer!
Not at all! I served one type of black tea throughout and it was perfect. If you want variety, offer 2-3 options (one black, one herbal, one decaf), but don't stress about pairing specific teas with specific foods. Keep it simple.
Afternoon tea traditionally happens between 2-4pm, and was originally to help bridge the gap between lunch and a late dinner. Today though, I find it best if you're serving the full three courses with sandwiches to consider it a late lunch, and let guests know, with a start time around 1pm.
If you've been feeling the January blues and craving a gathering that won't stress you out, I hope this winter tea party shows you it's absolutely doable. Pick one theme, keep the menu strategic, and focus on creating warmth and connection. Sometimes the most meaningful gatherings are the simple ones we create when we need a little light. Winter doesn't have to feel long and gray -we can make our own magic!
More Tea Party Inspiration
If you try anything from this winter tea party or any other ideas on my blog, please let me know how it went in the comments below. Thanks for visiting today!
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