The Afternoon Tea

Last Saturday afternoon, I threw an afternoon party for about forty guests, which it seems is now becoming an annual event. It was a nice way to celebrate the end of my second year of law school (and a good excuse to polish my silver collection). For beverages, there were Pimm's cups with strawberry and cucumber slices as well as "Logan Circle Iced Tea," which was sweet tea vodka and mint lemonade (the only actual "tea" in sight). As seen above, the table featured pink peonies, bright green tennis balls, and pink & green penny candy. For food, I served smoked salmon tea sandwiches ...

Ina's roasted chicken salad on crackers ... (probably the biggest hit of the party -- and remarkably simple to make!)

Palmiers (store bought) and homemade lemon bars ...

Crudité and green herb dip ...

More peonies ...

And simple pink roses. All in all, it was a smashing party, and I had just as much fun planning as I did celebrating.

Simply Van

An American Wedding

Call me crazy, but I prefer the way America does royal weddings.

21st Century Prep

Lisa Birnbach, author of prep tome The Official Preppy Handbook, will release a sequel to her 1980 classic in September along with author Chip Kidd. In the 25 years since the original, "preppy" (as a fashion trend, not the prep lifestyle) has cycled in and out of fashion and right now seems to be riding a crest of popularity - one need only look as far as the recent resurgence of J.Crew. The irony of this, of course, is that the class of people the book lampooned never seems to care whether frayed oxfords, Barbour jackets, and deck shoes are in, they (we?) simply wear them because it's what's practical, what's traditional, what's always been done. The best part about Birnbach's satire is that everyone's in on the laugh --non-preps and preps alike-- mostly because of how painfully accurate her social commentary is. (I swear there's a sketch of an older gentleman toward the back that was based on my father.) Enjoy the video sneak peek here - looks like the OPH 2.0 is going to be just as fun as the first version.