Tea party brings out the princess in girls of all ages

Gloves on. Pinkies up. About a dozen young ladies sipped punch and nibbled pizza as photographers clicked away.

It was the website shoot for a home business launching soon in the Modesto area, Julie Bz Teas, a second career for grandmother Julie Brughelli. She hired a friend to take professional photos on Saturday for the website of her tea party service, and a professional princess from Princess Party Fun to make a grand appearance.

The location was a friend’s backyard. A friend in the retail business staged the tables, and the trays of food and pots of tea were homemade. Attendees were friends, relatives and their photogenic daughters, granddaughters and great-granddaughters.

“She couldn’t wait!” said Pam Goldstein as 7-year-old granddaughter Mylee Mineni showed off her party wear. “She played (soft)ball this morning and now she’s a princess this afternoon,” Goldstein said with a laugh.

Friends chatting as they drank tea and tasted appetizers said they had much more modest tea parties for their own children. “On the back porch with water!” said grandmother Peggy Enos.

“We made mud pies,” said Dorothy Parker with a chuckle. Her granddaughter Kayli sat behind her, resplendent in a green-flowered party dress and red cowboy boots, happily waving a sparkling star-shaped wand.

Brughelli’s place settings included dozens from among her collection of 300 bone china cups, with saucers and plates in an eclectic mix of patterns for adults and slightly tougher china for the little ones. About 50 china teapots fill out the collection she’s amassed from thrift stores, hand-me-downs and yard sales over the past two years, she said.

This entrance into entrepreneurship comes after a career working for a local grocery store, a chance to earn some pocket money and keep busy. “It makes me happy to make them happy. It truly does,” Brughelli said.

This story was originally published April 11, 2015 at 6:10 PM with the headline "Tea party brings out the princess in girls of all ages."