I’ve always loved drinking tea but I fell in love with “afternoon tea” after my trip to England. I really wanted to throw a tea party for my Californian friends, but I didn’t have a dessert stand. I didn’t know where to get one around here either and if I did find one, I’m sure I would have spent more money than I wanted to. Fortunately, I came across this tutorial by Centsational Girl, where I got the idea to use plates and glasses to create a dessert stand. I decided to do things a little differently.

The 3 plates and 2 drinking glasses were all thrifted, ranging from 50¢-$1.00 each. I’m pretty sure they cost me $4-5 total. The sealant was $6 (I have plenty left after this project).

SUPPLIES
3 plates (large, medium, and a small), 2 glasses with necks, household adhesive sealant (100% silicone, the type used for aquariums)

PRE-DIY PREP
• Thrift stores often have a mismatched variety, so go to there to get your plates and glasses! Take your time, play with the shapes and sizes of the plates and glasses together— that way you’ll see if they work together before you purchase them.
• Consider the glass quality, make sure it’s not too thin and there are no cracks.
• Wash your plates and glasses.

READY, SET, GO!

STEP 1. Set aside the largest plate because nothing needs to be done to it (except washing). Place the biggest glass and medium plate together. With a pencil, you can lightly draw a circle on the plate around where the rim of the glass is, so you know where to place the adhesive. This step isn’t necessary though, you can just “eye” it.

STEP 2. Put some adhesive sealant on the bottom of the plate. Attach the glass to the plate. You can wipe off the excess adhesive with a towel. Be careful, this adhesive is a pain to wash off.

STEP 3. Repeat step 2 with the smaller glass and smallest plate.

STEP 4. Let the adhesive dry overnight. I stacked a couple of books on top of my dessert stands, just to subtly press the adhesives, glasses, and plates together. I decided against glueing them ALL together because it would be difficult to wash and store them away. 

STEP 5. You’re done! Stack the two dessert stand together on top of the largest plate. Wash the dessert stands and throw a tea party. Enjoy!