Watermelon Etiquette

Perhaps Emily would have pointed out that there are melon forks (fork/knife combinations) and melon spoons (spoon/fork combinations) which were designed specifically for dealing with the seeds of these seasonal delicacies. – Pictured above are antique melon spoons by The Holmes & Edwards Silver Co.

 

A PROBLEM THAT SUMMER BRINGS US

Now that the watermelon season is here again, one is reminded that we never learned Mrs. Emily Post’s rules of watermelon etiquette. Should we use a spoon, fork, or knife and fork? Some prefer to eat over the kitchen sink, a handy receptacle for all seeds; probably not correct etiquette? And then again, what is the right procedure for gathering up the elusive seeds which manage to slip out and around on the linoleum? After all, the handiest way is to take it on a picnic.—From Ceres Courier, 1933

🍽Etiquette Enthusiast, Maura J Graber, is the Site Editor for the Etiquipedia© Etiquette Encyclopedia

Etiquette for Kiwano Melons

Left, a Kiwano Melon. 

Below– A Holmes and Edward’s Melon Spoon and an advertisement for the utensil.

  

Antique melon spoons are ideal for eating small melons, like kiwano or pepino melons, while long, antique melon forks are ideal for eating slices of cantaloupe and watermelon. 

If you don’t have antique melon spoons for smaller melons, here is how to eat ripe kiwano melons when they’re ready to be sliced open and enjoyed:

A fully ripened kiwano has an orange rind with prominent spikes. Pick one that is firm with just a bit of give, but without any visible bruises or damaged spikes.

To eat plain, cut the fruit in half. Gently squeeze one half until the seeds pop out. The seeds aren’t harmful to eat (and actually contain the antioxidant vitamin E), but many people prefer to hold the seeds between their teeth while they enjoy the green flesh

If that doesn’t sound appealing, you can also simply scoop out the inner fruit and toss it in fruit salads or use as a colorful garnish.

Feeling truly brave? Slice off the spikes on the rind and enjoy whole! — Parade, June 2022

🍽️ Etiquette Enthusiast, Maura J. Graber, is the Site Editor for the Etiquipedia© Etiquette Encyclopedia

Gilded Age Specialty Utensils

Etiquette class students of mine have always been terribly confused as to why everyday fruits and vegetables, like tomatoes and cucumbers, would have utensils made specifically for them. I have to explain that these were perishable and without refrigeration, would spoil quickly. Perishable vegetables and fruits were also quite expensive. Showing them off by using beautiful utensils to serve them was another way of gilded age “one-upmanship” and showing off one’s wealth. The photo and the information below, is from the book, “What Have We Here?: The Etiquette and Essentials of Lives Once Lived, from the Georgian Era through the Gilded Age and Beyond...” from Etiquipedia Site Editor, Maura J. Graber

What have we here?

Gilded Age, sterling cucumber and tomato servers. The smaller, cucumber servers (and in some patterns these were sold as “cheese servers”), have little “teeth” that tomato servers normally don’t have. These servers fell out of fashion as refrigerators became more common in people’s homes. Perishable foods were no longer a tremendous concern. The round servers which once served up tomato slices were found to be perfect, however, for serving slices of canned, jellied cranberry sauce at holiday dinners, and soon they were being marketed as “cranberry servers.” — From What Have We Here?: The Etiquette and Essentials of Lives Once Lived, from the Georgian Era through the Gilded Age and Beyond..., 2021

Etiquette Enthusiast, Maura J. Graber, is the Site Editor for the Etiquipedia© Etiquette Encyclopedia

What Have We Here? 18th–20th C. Etiquette

What Have We Here?: The Etiquette and Essentials of Lives Once Lived, from the Georgian Era through the Gilded Age and Beyond...

I have spoken about writing this book for the last few years, and finally the book is now here, available on Amazon. It was a labor of love and I enjoyed every moment of photographing the items I carefully chose to write about, many of which are on the front cover.

There is a lot of information on Gilded Age etiquette (in anticipation of the upcoming Julian Fellowes’ program now filming for HBO in New York) along with Georgian Era and Regency Era etiquette, etc… 

The crazy thing is that it took me several weeks to receive my author copies, but during my wait, people around the world were posting the most wonderful reviews on Instagram! Especially in Italy, where I have made several new friends.

Of course there are plenty of utensils in the book. Favorites are Edwardian era cayenne pepper spoons, like this sterling example below, from 1905.
                   

Gilded Age chocolate spoons with a chocolate muddler, demitasse-sized trembleuse and pots de creme cups.Many other items which are not utensils, but were part of everyday lives, are shown coming from the 1700’s through the early 1900’s. And, of course, there is a lot of etiquette included throughout, including place settings and proper use of glasses and dishes.

The Graber Olive House and beautiful late Spring weather offered a perfect backdrop for much of my photography.

Etiquette for gloves and glove stretchers like this Bailey & Co., sterling silver glove stretcher in the form of a duck, is one of my favorite items. Gloves and glove etiquette figure prominently in the book. And the section on napkins and gloves in the Gilded Age with the appropriately named, “napkin burrito,” is a must read and see!I want to thank all of the readers who have already purchased the book. Your incredible reviews online and Instagram have meant more than you know and make what I do all the more worthwhile.

🍽Etiquette Enthusiast, Maura J. Graber of The RSVP Institute of Etiquette, is the Site Editor for the Etiquipedia© Etiquette Encyclopedia

New Fashions Gilded Age Tableware

Other novelties mentioned are flower cups for individual salt-cellars. Liquor sets are prominent either in Russian enamel or repoussé work. The decanters are very low bodied. The glasses are set in perforated silver, enameled or raised. Coalport after dinner and tea sets decorated in representation of jewels such as turquoise and pearls on backgrounds of pale blue, pale pink, gold and ivory are among the many attractive things.— Above, an antique Coalport cup in a sterling silver holder graced with cherubs, atop its saucer.
— Photo source Etiquipedia private library  
 

New for 1892

A bonbon dish of cut glass, with a sterling silver handle. The brightly chased silver beautifully enhances the brilliant stars and roses that form the cutting.

Among charming fashionable wares now to be seen is that combining cut glass with silver mountings in the accompanying illustration from Jewelers’ Circular is shown a bonbon dish of cut glass, with a sterling silver handle. The brightly chased silver beautifully enhances the brilliant stars and roses that form the cutting. Beautiful clear crystal vases are shaped like the cornucopias of a Christmas tree and wreathed with silver flowers which terminate in a standard. 

Other novelties mentioned are flower cups for individual salt-cellars. Liquor sets are prominent either in Russian enamel or repoussé work. The decanters are very low bodied. The glasses are set in perforated silver, enameled or raised. Coalport after dinner and tea sets decorated in representation of jewels such as turquoise and pearls on backgrounds of pale blue, pale pink, gold and ivory are among the many attractive things. 

Dresden handles are applied to gilt knives and spoons of every sort, and are among the things regarded as desirable by every woman who takes an interest in her table. The rival of Dresden china handles is Russian enamel. Silver vegetable dishes and their platters and salvers generally have plain surfaces, excepting the edges, that are in high rich raised work. The covers of vegetable dishes have on their highest curve a narrow band of this raised work. — Red Bluff Daily, 1892

Etiquette Enthusiast, Maura J. Graber, is the Site Editor for the Etiquipedia© Etiquette Encyclopedia

Celery on Gilded Age Tables

Celery vases in silver and glass, or just glass, were popular for only about 20 years, from the 1860’s to 1880’s, then they vanished from most tables, only to be replaced by cut glass, low dishes. By 1892, they were no longer considered special enough to have their own special presentation receptacles. 

The problem of how to serve celery has been solved, at least temporarily, in the prevailing fashion of laying two or three choice stalks at the side of each plate. Nobody regretted the retirement of the tall celery vases, but the flat dishes were about equally awkward and inconvenient. The present idea is sensible and satisfactory and should be preserved. — The New York Times, 1892

                                              

Etiquette Enthusiast, Maura J. Graber, is the Site Editor for the Etiquipedia© Etiquette Encyclopedia