I have been meaning to share this lovely day from way back in June with you for some time now, so apologize for the long delay. Regular readers will remember that our day at Royal Ascot has been an annual event for a few years now. We go as the guests of some very lovely friends and are always extremely grateful for their generosity!
The excitement of the day begins for me when I inspect the flowers on arrival! Every year I eagerly anticipate the floral delights I will find both in the room where we sit for lunch and around the whole Ascot site. You can imagine my delight when I arrived this year to find that peonies were the focus flower in many of the arrangements!
Roses, hydrangeas and peonies were combined and used individually to create some stunning centrepieces. I think this years flowers were my favorite so far and not just because of the peonies. I also loved the color scheme – pink, champagne and gold were the predominant colours in all the accessories – my current favorite combination.
I loved these tall gold vases and will be looking out for something similar to use at home.
The hydrangeas in gold bowls were set on blush pink upholstered low seats.
Even the bar had been given a gold make over for the occasion.
Top hats were combined with flowers on display shelves,
And the cutlery was gold!
The champagne, of course, was pink.
Having pursued the dining room we headed out to the balcony to watch the highlight of the day – the arrival of the royal party and in particular, of course, the Queen.
I think she looked delightful in her cornflower blue ensemble!
This year our table were particularly lucky as we were allowed down to the show ring to get a close up view of the horses as they were paraded before a race. We were right next to all the television cameras and felt at the heart of the rising anticipation as racing was about to commence.
I particularly loved the markings on this unusual horse below – a rare sight amongst all the browns.
We watched the jockey’s mount their horses and then headed over to the track to watch the race.
Outside of the ring, the outfits are always worth perusing! Ladies in beautiful hats and dresses abound and the gentlemen look particularly handsome in their top hats.
The purpose of the day, of course, is to watch the racing – although sometimes it can feel hard to find the time to consider the form, place your bets and head out to the track when inside you are being plied with delicious food and plenty of champagne.
It feels like no sooner has lunch finished than they are serving afternoon tea – which of course here in the UK means sandwiches, scones with jam and cream and a selection of cakes. There is plenty of tea of course and possibly another glass of champagne to wash it all down!
And finally it is time for songs around the bandstand before we contemplate starting our long journey home.
With a last glass of champagne of course before everyone heads off!
As ever I must say a huge thank you to our lovely and generous hosts – this day is a real treat!!
I am back in the real world now however, so on Friday I will be here sharing the garden jobs that I like to get done in August!
