I have been meaning to share this lovely day from way back in June with you for some time now, so apologise 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 favourite so far and not just because of the peonies. I also loved the colour scheme – pink, champagne and gold were the predominant colours in all the accessories – my current favourite 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!
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Oh this was a treat as I have never seen this event except in My Fair Lady! How do they stop people from walking off with the cutlery…
Stunning flowers and the Queen looked wonderful. My husband met the Queen and her husband…his crew won the Queen’s Silver Jubilee crew race in Ottawa and she presented him with the cup as he was the coxswain…he even has a picture. Apparently he didn’t know who Prince Phillip was and he had been conversing with him for quite a while after the race…surprise, surprise.
I am so impressed that your husband has met the Queen Donna!! Yu did make me giggle about the cutlery – to be honest I think it would be very easy to take it, although I don’t think anyone would.
What a treat! Thanks for sharing it with us all-:) Donna, I chucked at your question above. Can you imagine Scotland Yard being on your tail for walking off with the cutlery. How very gauche! The hats are marvelous aren’t they?
We both had a giggle at Donna’s question Susan! There is plenty of security to protect the Queen but I have never seen anyone checking the guests for cutlery.
Though I’m more interested in horse manure than horses, it does look like an exciting day – thanks for sharing the treat with us. Of course they should have peonies, the king of all flowers to the Chinese.
Thank you Mary – I am sure all those horses must produce plenty of manure! This was my fourth visit to Ascot and the first time they have used peonies in the table decorations.
Hi Donna! I have had a lovely time looking at all the wonderful photos on your posts. This was such a treat to read through this post. What a wonderful experience! Loved all the beautiful floral arrangements and especially the amazing photos of the Queen, who as always looked incredible! To think she will be 90 next year!
Thank you for sharing.
Kate
Thank you Kate – I am pleased that you enjoyed sharing this lovely day with me. You are right that the Queen is amazing – she doesn’t even have help getting out of her carriage.
Wonderful photography and narrative Julie to help us relive the day with you.
Thank you Susie – I am glad you enjoyed it.
It must be wonderful to be invited to spend a day at Royal Ascot. Was it a profitable day for you?
We broke even Brian – having lost almost every race my husband had a lucky win on the accumulator which put us back in credit – just. I am a very cautious gambler though so even a loss would not have been too onerous!
Thanks for sharing Julie – most intriguing to see it from the inside like this.
Thank you Cathy – it does feel very different being there to watching it on the TV or seeing it on the news. I think the reality is less hedonistic than is portrayed in the press & there are a broad range of people of there – really it is just a very fun day out. We are not there on Ladies Day though, so that is probably a completely different experience.
Last year I visited Elder Daughter in the middle of Ascot week, changing trains at Ascot, which was an interesting experience sitting on the train amongst all those people in all their formal finery!