Set the Table, Start the Story
It starts with the tray. Your child carries it to the table, arranges two cups on their saucers, and decides who is sitting where. Before a drop of pretend tea has been poured, they are planning, sequencing and playing host. The set includes a round tray, a teapot with a removable lid, a milk jug, 2 cups, 2 saucers, 2 teaspoons, a cupcake and a teabag. The bird motif on the saucers and teapot, and the earthy colours, give it a grown-up look that fits beside a play kitchen or on a bookshelf.
Pouring, Stirring and Passing
Around 3 years, children move from banging things together to acting out routines they have seen. Tipping the teapot over a cup, dropping in the teabag and stirring with a teaspoon all use a controlled wrist turn. It is the same movement they need to pour a drink or twist a lid. Lifting a cup to its saucer without a clatter takes steady hands, and the solid wood pieces have a satisfying weight that rewards a careful grip. With two settings, the play turns social. Children offer a cup, ask 'milk or no milk?' and take turns being host and guest. These small exchanges build the language and manners they will use at preschool. Sharing and turn-taking come naturally when someone is waiting for their cupcake.
Built for Everyday Play
The pieces are made from rubberwood and finished in non-toxic paint. The cupcake, teabag and teaspoons are small, so this set is for children aged 3 years and over. It is quiet enough for a house with a sleeping sibling, and it needs no batteries. Wipe clean with a damp cloth and keep it indoors, away from direct sunlight. It grows with them. A three-year-old pours and stirs. A five-year-old runs a café, takes orders and writes the menu. Add soft toys and a dolls house family and the tea party moves anywhere in the house.