Tower of London Treats

Welcome to a week of projects, decorations and recipes to give you ideas for your own

 Gothic Victorian Birthday Tea!

 We've gathered a menu, favors, and ambiance to help you create your own

British buffet with a sense of humor on a shoestring.

If you don't have an English Market nearby, never fear!

Get ready to raid your china cabinet, linen hoard, The Dollar Tree,

your local grocery store and Big Lots for goodies and supplies

that wowed and got raves from the world's toughest critics:

TEENAGERS. 

 First up, tea time is known for assortments of small sweets sized to sample

an array of goodies.

I wanted to display these in an elegant manner to make them more special without

shelling out a King's Ransom for new serving ware. A trip to The Dollar Tree

is all you'll need for this. Nab the following:

1 ten inch cut glass dinner plate

1 seven inch cut glass salad plate

1 seven inch cut glass soup bowl

1 cut glass goblet

2 crystal taper candle holders

1 plastic battle ax

Black feather ravens as desired

By now, if you're a regular reader, you SHOULD own some Goop silicone adhesive.

Haul it out!

First, remove all stickers and wash and dry the pieces.

No, not the ravens.

 Using your clear, flexible, waterproof adhesive

(still not a sponsor, go figure),

glue a candlestick to the top center of the large plate.

 Run a bead of Goop around the top of the candlestick...

 ...and stack the salad plate on that.

 Add the next candlestick with more glue.

 Slather the top of the second candlestick...

HEY!!! Pipe down back there and pay attention!

 Set the bowl on this.

Check and make sure the whole mess is centered so far.
Someone around here should be centered.

 You COULD stop here, but why?
Then you'd have a big, ornate, empty wine glass just sitting there,
and I can't think of anything you could do with an empty wine gl...
good Lord, what is WRONG with me?!?!?

Anyway, Goop up the base of the goblet...

 ...and just nestle that sucker right in the bowl.

 We have sixteen full inches of vertical food possible here!

 Allow this to dry for a few hours, or overnight.

 The finished product, weighing in at a whopping $6, holds its own

next to my lead crystal hurricanes nicely

 Cue some ravens straight out of tragic lost love poetry.

Add a little Gothic drama, and it's ON!
Spend a small fortune on fancy crystal tiered servers?
Nevermore...

Fill the goblet with nuts, dip, or small candies, like Jelly Babies,

a Doctor Who staple.

 Strawberry and Key Lime cookies, $2.00 per bag at Big Lots, are sufficiently ritzy,

and the bowl keeps the powdered sugar from straying too far.

 At $1.00 per box from Big Lots, Marshmallow Puffs in chocolate

and coconut seem to like hanging out on the salad plate.

And these are perfectly dainty at the size of a quarter each.

Instead of shelling out $11 for proper shortbread cookies at the British Market,

we served a mix of the same kind of cookie with the bonus of some of the variety

sporting chocolate! Another Big Lots bargain, the entire bag was $2.49.

I couldn't have baked them for that!

A splendid presentation and diversity of sweets that elicited oooooo's and 

ahhhhhhhhhh's aplenty.

But after the party, is this just a storage nightmare?

 Nope, it's a storage solution!

Fill the glass with cosmetic sponges, and dangle your shoulder dusters 

tangle free from the rim!

What makes accessorizing easier than a bowl full of bangles?

 Trendy baubles are easy to find all laid out and neat.

 And how's this for keeping the perfect shade of glitter for your fingertips at your fingertips?

 

Pop this next ti the sink for sponges, scouring pads and dish tabs

stashed in an unexpected way,

 save space on your bathroom vanity by going vertical with soaps

and bath salts, or put it in the entryway for keys, wallets, and sunglasses.

When the next get together rolls around, swipe it back!

Heck, I think I need a couple more!

Where could you use this after the guests have left?

What?

Oh, the battle ax?

Let's call that "foreshadowing," shall we?