Thursday, July 14, 2016

Downton Abbey Birthday Party

"Lady Cyan invites you for high tea and cocktails in the gardens of Downton Abbey at half-past four on the thirteenth of July, two-thousand sixteen.  Appropriate formal dress is expected."


Our footmen carried comfortable chairs and tables out of doors for the Lady and her guests.


The high tea menu was a tasty selection of short bread, digestives, and scones. The scones were fresh baked and flavored with Earl Grey tea and fresh dried lavender.  Local honey and lemon curd were added.  Earl Grey and English Lavender Vanilla teas were served.


The ladies were set up comfortably for tea and card games to pass the time while Miss Patmore worked hard in the kitchen, making everything perfect for their celebratory meal.










 Although the gong was rung, the same dress was worn for tea as well as dinner.  Lately at Downton, the formalities have been relaxed. 


The footmen stood at the ready to serve the meal.

The meal was a formal affair, despite being outside.  Carson could not let the light and festive mood slacken the correct notion of propriety.






DINNER MENU

Appetizer
Cucumber Sandwiches

Soup
Cream of Leek and Potato

Fish Course
Salmon Pate
Buttermilk Toast Rounds

Meat Course
Glazed Ham 
Grilled Cauliflower
Hollandaise

Dessert
Raspberry Parfett 
Vanilla Bean Cake w/Raspberry Frosting

"Wine"
Red - Black Cherry and White Grape juice
White - Pina Colada Juice and 7up








At this point, one of the tenant farmers released his farm animals and they were running loose around the formal guests.  The footmen had quite a time rounding them back up without being noticed by the formal party.


Cake and gifts were received with hearty thanks, but nothing improper, from the Lady Cyan.  

___________________________________________________________________

In all seriousness, this party was an absolute blast!  As was sharing the show Downton Abbey with my daughter, which inspired this party to celebrate her 15th birthday.  We were wonderfully whisked away to 1920's England for the evening of games, formal dinner, and tea, all in high-class style.  The girls all stayed in character for over two hours.  For us moms, the conversations were our favorites.    

Girl 1: "Lady Cyan, I heard your mother is from.... America??"
Lady Cyan: "Oh yes!  And my father too, actually.  It has been... interesting."


Girl 2: "I have spent my summer at the Kings Court."
Girl 3: "Were there any special gentlemen?"
Girl 2: "I have MANY special gentlemen."
*collective sigh*
Girl 2: "Lady Cyan, how have you spent your summer?"
Lady Cyan: "Well, mostly..." *rolls eyes* "I've been shut in.  BUT, I have been secretly meeting this one boy, ahem, 'gentleman'.  Really, we haven't done anything improper... yet."
Girl 2: *Gasp* "Yet?!?"



Hope you enjoyed it!  It sure was fun to create.  It was a lot of hard work, but wow, it turned out incredible and fun!


Happy birthday, to my beautiful girl!

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5 comments

Koelle said...

So, so fun Val! Great job again! I think your birthday posts are some of my favorite. I just love your attention to detail. You are a woman after my own heart. :)

Lisa and family said...

Perfect! I love all the details and the conversation.

Val in the Rose Garden said...

Thank you! That is super sweet! I do love doing it. This time, the cake was my favorite. I picked those wild sweet peas on a walk with my friend that morning. Sweet memories Togo with beautiful and necessary decor. You know? I just love little things like that!

Val in the Rose Garden said...

Thanks so much! I just LOVED listening to the in character conversations. So adorable!!! The details were what I was striving for and honestly, overall it was the most beautiful party I've ever thrown. Even the weather cooperated! ☺️

Emma said...

Here I can see beautiful Dresses.This dress is absolutely stunning !
 
This dress is a beautiful color, fits as expected.The color of the dress is beautifully accented.It looks even hotter on any occasion.

A formal/party dress is a very famous Dress in the world.


Find a great collection of Formal Dress

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