Country House Party Etiquette

“Try the plovers' eggs,” said the MP to the Irish journalist in a London club. So he did, not knowing in what shape or form they would appear before him. They came whole, in their shells and, if the establishment was doing things the Mrs Beeton way, they would have been served boiled hard and delivered to the table in a napkin. Either hot or cold.The journalist looked at his plate and wondered. He was soon shown how, when the politician picked up one, rapped it briskly off his plate, peeled off the shards of eggshell and proceeded to eat - Irish Times, 1996

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Brown and white bread and butter should always be served with them when plovers' eggs are in season. Plovers' eggs are usually served boiled hard, and sent to table in a napkin, either hot or cold. They may also be shelled, and served the same as eggs à la Tripe, with a good Bechamel sauce, or brown gravy, poured over them. They are also used for decorating salads, “the beautiful colour of the white being generally so much admired.” according to Mrs. Beeton

The first evening of a large party in a country house, the guests are usually sent in with due regard to the rank and precedence; on subsequent evenings so much formality is not observed. In some houses the ladies choose one evening, the gentlemen the next, who shall escort them to dinner; in other houses they draw lots.

Either are good plans, as they obviate the necessity of having the same companion for a week, maybe longer, which arrangement is sometimes very pleasant, sometimes very much the reverse.

Extra arrivals each evening would make precedence necessary again, as lots and choosing your partners, if I may so express it, for dinner, would be too unceremonious a way of arranging matters to meet the requirements as to rank, etc., of a very large country house party; and as at each of these reunions there are sure to be some who think a great deal of the respect due to them, it is as well, indeed it is simply a matter of etiquette, to conform to them.

In most country houses, also at London dinner parties, the butler usually brings in a tray with brandy and whisky, seltzer, soda-water, and ice, in case any of the guests wish to partake of anything before leaving.

Finger glasses filled with water, peppermint water, or water with a slice of lemon in it, should always be handed round after prawns, shrimps, or 'crawfish,' so that the guests may dip their fingers in, then wipe them on the serviette, to get rid of the fishy smell.

Brown and white bread and butter should always be served with all these fish, also when plovers' eggs are in season, with them also.

Awnings should always be provided at large dinner parties, and also on all occasions even when an awning is not considered necessary. 'Carriage rollers' should be provided; they are put down by the footmen prior to the dinner party, so that the guests should step upon them on getting out of their carriages, which prevents their feet getting damp, and their dresses dirty. 

Red cloth is only laid down when Royal guests are expected ; an awning then is also imperatively necessary.— From "Etiquette: What to Do, and How to Do It," By Lady Constance Eleanora C. Howard, 1885

 Etiquette Enthusiast, Maura J Graber, is the Site Editor for the

Etiquipedia© Etiquette Encyclopedia 

Red Carpet Posing Etiquette

Red-Carpet Red Flags: How Not to Pose at the Oscars

From the "Kiss of Death" to the "Flapper," The Hollywood Reporter names the top 5 red carpet no-nos when it comes to striking a pose.

THE PEACE OUT
Cyrus goes for this one, which fits with her "Party in the U.S.A." songbook. Surely there's a better way to show your commitment to world peace.

THE JESSICA RABBIT
Note to Angelina: Roger Rabbit's vampy, slit-up-to-there-wearing better half is merely a cartoon, and she should only be channeled on Halloween.

THE FLAPPER
Katy Perry is a fan of this saccharine pose that tries -- too hard -- to convey bubbliness. It's cute for a second, then the novelty wanes.

THE KISS OF DEATH
Lindsay Lohan made this popular around Mean Girls, and everyone knows how that turned out. Recent offenders: Selena Gomez and Vanessa Hudgens.

THE PIGEON TOE
A good choice -- if an actress actually wants her hips to look bigger. Word of advice: Pretend you're doing Pilates, and keep those toes straight.

Illustrations by Todd Detwiler for The Hollywood Reporter

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

Red Carpet Worthy Etiquette

When honored with an Academy Award nomination, Red Carpet attire should be chosen carefully. Attire should invite compliments, not questions of your judgement, regardless of how much fun you feel it would be to attend in what appears to be a giant, dead swan!— “Society has its own definite code of manners that must be observed before one can enter its portals. There are certain rules that must be followed before one can enter its envied circle. There are conventionalities that must be observed ... There are certain prevailing modes in dressing ... To know and adhere to these laws is to be admitted to the highest society and enjoy the company of the most brilliant minds. — Etiquette is an art—the art of doing and saying the correct thing at the correct time—the art of being able to hold oneself always in hand, no matter how exacting the circumstance.” —From Lillian Eichler's 1921, Book of Etiquette

The Red Carpet: A brief history...

For decades, stars great, small and dubious have swanned down the Oscars regal rug — Crimson being the color of royalty for millennia. But what of its origins? It has a backstory as rich and multifarious as a Selznick epic!

458 B.C.
In Aeschylus' tentpole tragedy, Agamemnon returns from the Trojan War to find that his wife, Clytemnestra, had laid a path of dark red tapestries, supposedly in his honor. Agamemnon's response, "Only the gods deserve the pomps of honor, I am human." What that 21st-century red carpet honorees were so humble.

1821 A.D.
In Georgetown, South Carolina, a ceremonial red carpet was rolled out for President James Monroe when he arrived by riverboat.

1902
The New York Central launched the 20th Century Limited, an exclusive passenger express between New York and Chicago. Embarking passengers at Grand Central Terminal walked a red carpet that ran the length of the platform, supposedly inspiring the bromide "red-carpet treatment."

In Hitchcock's, North by Northwest, Cary Grant escapes Manhattan on the Limited -— The scene was shot at Grand Central and featured a carpet by industrial designer Henry Dreyfuss. Grant, disguised as a Red Cap, and Eva Marie Saint, tromp on plush red when the train arrives in Chicago.

1922
Hollywood's first red carpet event usually is ascribed to the opening of Sid Grauman's Egyptian Theatre and the premiere of "Robin Hood," starring Douglas Fairbanks. The irrepressible Grauman, a founding Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences member, later would take credit for the red carpet becoming a staple at Hollywood events.

1961
The first Oscar's red carpet was rolled out at the 33rd Academy Awards on April 17, 1961 at the Santa Monica Civic Auditorium.

1966
The Oscars were broadcast in color for the first time, giving millions of viewers a glimpse of the red carpet in living color.

1992
The American Turf and Carpet company took over making the Oscars red carpet. The continuous filament nylon creation is manufactured and dyed in Dalton Georgia, and replaced every two years. The carpet is not wholly red. It's dyed with a proprietary blend of colors, used exclusively for the carpet to make it "read red" on television ("Nancy Reagan red", as Joan Rivers called it), sealed to prevent the color from degrading under assault from innumerable high heels.

2001
The Oscars moved to the Kodak (now Dolby) Theater. The red carpet followed.

2003
US forces invaded Iraq three days before the Oscars. In deference, the preshow hoopla was scaled-back dramatically, including the red carpet itself, which shrunk to a vestigial doormat in front of the theater entrance.

2013
A metastasizing number of awards events and premieres inspired organizers to roll out carpets in yellow, (like at the 2013 Nickelodeon Kids' Choice Awards,) blue, pink and even white. The Grammys, Emmys, and Oscars carpets remain steadfastly red.

2014
Today's Oscar red carpet has grown to 16,500 square feet and takes two days to install. Scraps are jealously guarded to keep them out of the hands of eBay trolls.  Source —The Hollywood Reporter

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