THEY say tea always tastes better out of bone china, and all the ladies at the celebration of art and tea agree.

Sue Keong and Jill Birtwistle were not expecting to fill Art on King with 18 tea-keen ladies, but they touched the niche of the Warwick ladies who love high tea and all things crafty.

The ladies talked about the art of tea cups, from the precision the cups are made to be held by the handle to the transparency of bone china. Some of them enjoyed the high tea and the display of fine china, while others painted the tea cups they brought.

Sheridan Webb brought along her mother and a friend to share appreciation of art and the company of like-minded people.

"I like to admire other people's artworks. Some of the tea cups have some very delicate paintings," Mrs Webb said.

"It's about sharing the love of antiques, high tea and art. I like the idea that I can talk about a cup and saucer here."

Sherylyn Rolston was in for the painting and a bit of everything.

"I'm a member of the Warwick Art Group, so I came here for the watercolour and the tea," Mrs Rolston said. "And the friends," she added.

Mrs Keong said she and Jill wanted to make something to display the art of tea cups and saucers that are rarely seen.

"We realised that a lot of this china gets stored away and it doesn't get to see the light of day," she said.

"So we realised we have to make things happen, to create this opportunity for like-minded people to get together and used their stored china."

Clare Cotton certainly took hold of the opportunity as she drank out of the tea set that she holds dearly.

"This was a wedding present from 1936. It's the last cup I have left, and there is a little chip," she said.