This Christmas, experience the Victorian era by traveling back to the 1800s with The Tea Ladies, Inc.

Sisters Nancy Perzo and Karen Patton formed the Tea Ladies, Inc., a small, local business.

Their passion for the Victorian era allows them to educate and entertain by bringing the Victorian and Edwardian history to life.  

For the ninth year in a row, The Tea Ladies will be presenting Christmas tea and programs at the David Davis Mansion in Bloomington at 6 p.m. on Nov. 26 and 27, as well as at 2 p.m. on Dec. 2. The entrance fee is $28.

 “Every holiday season, the staff and volunteers at the mansion work hard to decorate and stage every room to create a beautiful and incredibly accurate display of the late 19th century Christmas in an affluent Victorian-American home,” Perzo said.

Upon attending, guests will listen to a program about Christmas traditions of the late 1800s.

They will learn about how families prepared for St. Nicholas, what the servants were preparing for Christmas dinner, what ladies would wear to dinner and how the hostesses entertained with parlor games.  

As tea time is an art within itself, the public will be able to see what tea time was really like in the Victorian age.

“Guests’ tea will include tables of cut glass dishes, silver, lovely china Christmas teapots filled with hot, fresh steeped tea and tiered trays of delicious treats,” Patton said.

Following tea time, guests will be given a guided tour of the decorated mansion, experiencing the various themes of each room.

Christmas Tea at the Davis Mansion really is a blast from the past, filled with the elegance and beauty of the 1800s.

Furthermore, the event is a great opportunity to get away from the hustle and bustle of the holiday season.

“We want our guests to leave their tea experience feeling more relaxed and happy to have sit down with friends and chat. This event really is like nothing else in the Bloomington area,” Perzo said.

It’s no secret that college students need to relax as well, and a cup of tea would certainly do the trick.

“I think college students probably need to de-stress more than anyone by this time of year. If students really want to put away their cares, they should leave their cell phones and wrist watches behind,” Patton said.

Step back into the 1800s, enjoy a cup of tea, and take in the beauty of a gracefully decorated mansion. It will certainly make this Christmas season unique. 

 “To share the sights, sounds, smells and tastes of a Victorian Christmas is pretty magical,” Perzo said.