Gilded Age Garden Party Etiquette

Lawn tennis, croquet, archery and, for those disinclined to active exertion, card tables, furnish sources of amusement at these picturesque assemblies. Sometimes a platform for dancing is provided, and a band of music is another pleasant feature of entertainment.

SOCIAL ETIQUETTE

Manners and Customs Practiced in Pollte Society

People in pretty country or suburban places can hardly devise a happier form of entertaining than the garden party. There may be a little awkwardness at first where people are unused to these parties. Without the accustomed shelter of a house, guests may feel a little forlorn and wander dismally about for a time, but a hostess of tact soon suggests forming parties for whatever sports or games are provided, and after the first stiffness is over any one can find congenial entertainment of some sort.

The garden party proper is held entirely in the open air. The hostess receives upon the lawn, wearing her hat or bonnet, and lady guests always wear bonnets. Upon arriving at the house guests are shown upstairs to lay aside wraps and brush off dust, if they wish to, and are then shown to where the hostess is receiving. It is proper for a lady to ask for an invitation for a friend to a party that is to be entirely out of doors, as there will always be plenty of room. 

Still no lady should take offense if such a request is not granted, as a hostess may have excellent reasons for refusing. Lawn tennis, croquet, archery and, for those disinclined to active exertion, card tables, furnish sources of amusement at these picturesque assemblies. Sometimes a platform for dancing is provided, and a band of music is another pleasant feature of entertainment.

These parties are sometimes conducted on the principle of an afternoon tea. The hostess receives in the house, the guests then wander through the grounds and return to the house for refreshments when fatigued. This is a modification of the garden party which meets with approbation from the timid, the elderly and the rheumatic, and is less troublesome to the entertainer than serving refreshments on the lawn. Where grounds are ample and handsome, the garden party proper, however, is a beautiful and enjoyable affair. – The Humboldt Times, 1887

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Failing Graden Party Etiquette

Some of the guests at the tea remembered the duty they owed their hostesses. They knew enough to step up at the end of the party and express their appreciation of the afternoon. Some guests were so rude that they just walked away with never a “thank you” nor “good-bye.” 

The trustees and the school board were giving a garden party for the graduating class. On the lawn in the school yard a large umbrella had been erected and under it was placed the tea table. It held the punch bowl and the urn with the hot tea. Most of the faculty wives took tea, but the graduating class all gravitated to the punch bowl. 

On another table were plates of sandwiches. Little pennants, painted in the class colors, were put on skewers and inserted in a pile of sandwiches and bore the name of the sandwich on the plate. It was easy to choose the minced ham or the cool green cucumber or the orange marmalade, because the name was right there. In addition there were salted nuts and small hard candies, no bonbons and no cakes.

Some of the guests at the tea remembered the duty they owed their hostesses. They knew enough to step up at the end of the party and express their appreciation of the afternoon. Some guests were so rude that they just walked away with never a “thank you” nor “good-bye.” The faculty decided that a course in etiquette would be a most desirable one to have in the curriculum next year. 

There was no entertainment planned for this garden party. The guests strolled here and there saying those usual nothings which parting classmates find to say one to another. Had it rained the faculty were prepared to set up the tea tables in the gymnasium. If that were necessary they planned to have the orchestra play for dancing. But the weather was with them and the party was a great success. – “Nancy Page” for San Pedro Pilot, 1929

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

Edwardian Era Dress Etiquette

Flowers and frills are out of place in an office or about the streets in the morning. A tailored coat and skirt, with a plain hat and a neat shirt blouse always look well and convey the impression that you are a good woman of business.

The Etiquette of Dress

“I DON'T know what to put on for this occasion. I wish I knew what the other people will be wearing!” says many a puzzled girl as she overhauls her wardrobe with a view to making herself look as nice as possible for some social or business event. 

For dinner at a private house it is correct to wear evening dress, unless your hostess has given you a hint to the contrary. Perhaps she has said in her invitation, “Don’t dress,” and in that case you will wear a pretty, light blouse, or a dainty afternoon frock. But if she has said nothing, you should wear evening dress and gloves, unless you happen to know that the dinner is quite a family matter, in which case the gloves may be dispensed with. 

For a theater or concert, you should wear a stylish gown, cut high or low, as you wish, an evening cloak, gloves and no hat. Hats are occasionally worn in theaters, but unless they are very elaborate ones, they do not look well, and in any case they are apt to prove troublesome. The same costume is correct for a bridge party, an evening “at home” or a dinner at a restaurant. 

For a dance, wear the prettiest low-necked evening dress that you possess, with jewels or flowers. For a wedding an up-to-date afternoon toilette, with a long skirt and a pretty hat, is the correct thing. The same costume is correct for an afternoon “at home,” an afternoon bridge party or a garden party. For a call, a nice walking suit looks best. A rather elaborate coat and skirt, with a stylish hat and a dainty blouse, is always safe to choose. When paying a first call be particular about your dress or your hostess, who does not know you, is likely to think that you regard her as unworthy of consideration. 

For a morning call or business interview let all your dress be as neat and plain as possible. Flowers and frills are out of place in an office or about the streets in the morning. A tailored coat and skirt, with a plain hat and a neat shirt blouse always look well and convey the impression that you are a good woman of business. — Los Angeles Herald, 1911

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