I am obsessed with all things vintage: clothing, furniture, recipes, decorations… The list goes on. What else do I love? Tea. I consider myself quite a tea connoisseur. I may have met my new best friend: Angel Adoree, a lovely woman who owns and operates a party- planning company in England specializing in vintage-themed tea parties. Adoree presents this lifestyle and her celebratory sass in, “The Vintage Tea Party Book”.
“The Vintage Tea Party Book” is not a book which can be easily categorized, as it combines elements of various genres into one: cookbook, party planning guide, coffee table book, and craft book. Adoree divides “The Vintage Tea Party Book” into three main sections focusing on the factors involved in throwing tea parties for breakfast, brunch, and dinner. Each section features recipes, ideas for crafts/decorations, tea party activities, etc; while being supplemented with photos galore.
To extend on this, “The Vintage Tea Party Book” is a visual feast hence giving it coffee table book status. Every focal point was cleverly designed graphically with stunning photos, whimsy fonts, and perfect colors. Think: “Alice in Wonderland” meets steam punk. Not only is the actual content of “The Vintage Tea Party Book” interesting but the presentation is artful.
The main focus of “The Vintage Tea Party Book” is the recipes for the tea gatherings covering both sweet and savory concoctions plus beverages, of course. Adoree’s recipes are elegant and creative; yet, easy-to-make. Her instructions are simple and straight-forward encouraging the readers to attempt the masterpieces for themselves. Many of these are accompanied by photo gems allowing the reader to grasp food styling ideas. On the negative end though, most of the recipes are not vegetarian-friendly, not very healthy (and no nutritional information is available), and some of the ingredients are uncommon. Furthermore, American readers will have difficulties with European measurements, temperatures, and unfamiliar ingredient names.
Adoree infuses the text with humor and quirky prose which opens up her personality and gives “The Vintage Tea Party Book” a friendly and familiar tone. This works so that any fears of attempting the ideas on the pages are minimized.
A complaint with “The Vintage Tea Party Book” is that some of the party ideas are much too basic and obvious being ones that most individuals can think of without the aid of a book. There is just a little bit of creativity and ‘oomph’ missing from “The Vintage Tea Party Book”.
The last quarter of “The Vintage Tea Party Book” impresses with its recipes of tea-based cocktails. The tea/alcohol focus is simple but unlike any other. This flows into a quick conclusion highlighting vintage fashion, hair, and makeup (even with some tips for men); wrapping up the content nicely for those readers searching for overall party ideas.
In conclusion, “The Vintage Tea Party Book” is a vintage/Victorian/steam punk eye feast which although serving primarily as a cook book; also satisfies a coffee table. The content isn’t the best collection of party ideas but meets a well-defined niche in a simplistic manner. “The Vintage Tea Party Book” is recommended for those seeking ideas for creative-themed gatherings or lovers of all things vintage.