Last Saturday I went back 150 years and for a little while I pretended that the year was 1868...............After going to Her Majestea's Salon tea garden it was really laid on my heart to do a Victorian tea party there,the place was perfect, the ambiance was great and on their menu they actually serve a high tea, perfect. To "advertise" the tea, I had a few minutes to talk in church before the church services, and to make it interesting I created, and wore a hat and in my best poshest English accent invited all the ladies to attend........ in fact when I had finished some people clapped, I think they forgot where they were, did the minister laugh, I think I missed my calling perhaps I should have been on stage.
It was an absolutely perfect day and one of the great things for me was there was no preparation and when it was over there was no cleaning up and NO DISHES. We sold tickets to 29 ladies and they were asked to dress up Victorian style but the minimum requirement for entrance was a hat , no one would be allowed in without a hat.
The place looked absolutely beautiful, the tables were stunning and the food looked and tasted fantastic.
I was the MC and was a cousin to "Vicky" ( Queen Victoria) I had done some googling on what was happening during that time, what life was like, and did a whole comedy skit on the current happenings, the casting of Big Ben, the first steam train in London, the Imperial Penny Post, I was a personal friend of Frank Turner and William Wordsworth was a secret admirer and he wrote most of his love poems with me in mind.............. it was a challenge to maintain the British accent and remember the skit, but it turned out great and everyone had a good laugh, I still haven't decided if they were laughing at me or with me.
With "Vicky' being a cousin I threatened anyone who laughed at my "hat hair" when I took my hat off with a beheading, it did not work, I love hats but just cannot wear them.
Noreen Hart, a member of the church and a phsycolgist gave a talk on love, really thought provoking stuff, during the whole talk she linked song titles such as , "I think I love you" "Love changes everything" "Never ending love" and movie lines like Love Stories famous, "Love means never having to say your sorry" in to the real world,in to real relationships and ended with the fact that love is a verb, it is a doing word, it is something we need to work on, all day everyday in order for it to be a success, it was really very apporpriate since it was just a few days before Valentines day.
I had everyone write a love note which they would like to receive from our Heavenly Father and then when everyone left they were each given someone elses note as inspiration, it was amazing how many people received the message that they needed.
As we were leaving I got my idea for the next tea................ I just love the way God works never a dull moment.................. we truly serve an awesome God
This is just brilliant Karen. Perfect idea... and the achievements that you guys made was even better... :-)
ReplyDeleteThis is awesome! Not only did you make it entertaining, historical, funny, but then so beautifully personal with the messages of love. I do believe these fine ladies got their monies' worth... :)
ReplyDeleteKaren, I am sitting her with my mouth open...wow! That is just awesome! You should be a project manager for Donald Trump, (if you know who he is...sorry, that's all I can think of!). You dreamt up a wonderful idea, researched it all, dressed the part, acted it out and planned the venue...amazing! The setting was just beautiful and the hats were the perfect touch! I would have loved to be a fly on the wall and have watched it all....especially to hear your British accent! Can't wait to hear what you're dreaming up next! What an imagination you have!
ReplyDeleteThank you for putting baby Caden on the prayer list...he is having lots of problems and needs them...again, thank you!
Good to hear what you are up to...glad to see you blogging again!
What a fun idea and you really went the extra mile to make it super fantastic. Cheerio to you! (that's my best accent, sorry!) I bet that will not be forgotten by those lovely ladies and next event you'll have to move to a bigger building just to hold everyone. Your hat looked very pretty too. I (and Donna) sure understand hat hair...we have it everyday! It's funny to watch us all take our surgery caps off at the end of the day, stare at ourselves in the mirror and then mumble about how bad we look! You asked about the ice melting and flooding. We had a nice warm up this past week and most of the snow and ice are just memory...we did not have any flooding here, but some parts of Ohio had flood warnings out yesterday. But don't be sad, we're suppose to get some more next week...I'm just looking forward to Spring!
ReplyDeleteHoney this is just the most wonderful post. I loved reading about your day with the lovely ladies and what a fun time you all had.
ReplyDeleteYou really know how to entertain and I love the pictures especially of you. Who says you can't wear a hat I think your lovely.
It seems you are always finding ways to make everyone around you happy and aware of all the beauty there is in life. No wonder we all love you so. Just wish there were less miles between us I would of loved to have been there too.
Your a sweetheart
Love
Maggie
Wow, you did an amazing job putting that together!!
ReplyDeleteIt looks like everyone was having a wonderful time. I'm sure the comedy skit was great!
No preparation, no cleanup...sounds good to me. :)
Looks like you had a wonderful time together. :) There is a place here that does High Noon Tea. One of the oldest homes in Spokane. They serve you and then tell the story of the home and give you a tour. I went with a few friends for fun a couple of years back. So fascinating to learn about Spokane's history and what life was like back then.
ReplyDeleteEnjoy the rest of your weekend,
Melissa
WOW! That sounds like a really fun afternoon! I would love to go to a Victorian Tea Party! Neat! I love the inspiring messages too. Beautiful!
ReplyDeleteI love Victorian , love the tea party and thanks for following me. Now I am a new follower of your blog
ReplyDeleteI'm sure they were laughing with you. What wonderful fun. I would have had a very difficult time with the accent. Once I played Mrs. Boyle, in Agatha Christie's The Mousetrap. It was for a community theatre in Gunnison, Colorado. The accent gave me fits. I had to tone down my Western twang and assume the British lack of r's. I'm sure I would have loved to have attended yours.
ReplyDeleteOh the tea sounded just lovely. I wish I could have been there. and to hear a talk about love...how perfect.. the fact that love is a verb! I often think of what life was like back then. I have my father's great aunt's b. 1874 (Scottish)silver coffee urn, sugar and cream, silverware, and hand embroidered table cloth...certainly a simpler time...yes, life is what you make it.
ReplyDeleteTake time to have tea with your daughter's and grand daughters. they will love you for it!
Jennifer aka Gigi
That sounds like a wonderful time! Off with their heads! I mean hats!!!
ReplyDeleteWhat a great idea! You sound like such a fun hostess! I know that if you were in my Women's Ministry group, we would have a grand time! I think we'd have more fun than those attending the event, though! ;)
ReplyDeleteI just love reading about the events you plan! You have a gift!
How are you my sweet friend? Just thinking about u so wanted to come by and say hello. Hope you have a wonderful week and God Blesses you in many ways
ReplyDeleteLove
Maggie