There’s something about scones, with clotted cream and jam, that has the ability to turn an average tea break, into something quite special.
Afternoon tea, as a ritual, has been uplifting moods for millennia, and it’s a power that seems to prevail even in the absence of all the usual formalities and opulent surroundings.
In picnic form, served with a river backdrop, Cliveden House proved last year that the luxury of afternoon tea is not only transmissible, but maybe even enhanced by the addition of “blue space”.
The benefits of being by the river (as well as lakes, the sea and even fountains) are well documented, with well known benefits to both body and mind. This time spent near water is thought to bring feelings of restoration and calm, as well as potentially higher levels of happiness and lower levels of anxiety.
On National Afternoon Tea Week, this pivot away from white table clothes and polished cutlery might defy convention, but as a nod to the burgeoning #experiencesoverthings movement, it’s both a treat and a luxury in its own right!