A menucard is like a perfect bow on a little gift. If a hostess has gone to the effort of creating a menucard, you know you’re in for a special meal. A menucard provokes a sense of anticipation, and they are useful things. They can pull together the décor for a dinner, tell guests what they’ll be eating and drinking, and provide a conversation starter for dinner partners who have just met. It’s also a place for a hostess to […]
There are some very fine calligraphers in Washington, possibly because there is a steady demand for formal invitations, menu cards, place cards, programs, and official certificates. My friend Lee Ann Clark lives on a farm in Stevenson, Maryland and produces beautiful calligraphy for the Vice President’s Residence, the National Gallery, the Department of State, embassies, weddings, and private parties. Lee Ann does the calligraphy work for our formal parties at home as well as making our holiday cards. And she’s […]
At the White House, calligraphy is used to create and address invitations, place cards, menu cards, escort cards, holiday cards, proclamations, programs, certificates, and pretty much anything that involves paper and a pen. There are three full-time calligraphers, who work out of a big room in the East Wing which has a nice eastern exposure for lots of natural light, and they rarely have a moment of leisure; along with all of the beautiful words they bring to life, they […]
and is a throwback to the days when many aspects of formal entertaining were done in French. While the French-ness of “R.s.v.p” (note the periods between each letter – that is the correct usage) may be outmoded, the concept is not. There seems to be an epidemic today of people not responding to invitations. This is rude! How is your host supposed to know how much liquor to buy? With this in mind, here is a quick breakdown of when […]
Many people I meet seem to have an unquenchable curiosity about life in the White House. They ask what it was really like to be around the President and First Lady, what I wore, how I learned about Protocol, how the menus were created, what the best party was – though more often than not they want to hear about the worst party. (Who doesn’t love a good party disaster story?) So let’s dip into the full White House experience, […]
