The prettiest possible decoration for this occasion is made by the lavish use of sweet peas, the flowers which seem to suggest young girlhood. The brilliant pink ones should be chosen, and bowls of them should stand about the table, one large one in the centre and smaller ones around irregularly; or else one large bowl may be in the centre and a quant.i.ty of the blossoms with the stems broken off scattered all over the table. This is one of the times when satin bows are not out of place, for girls generally think a table all the more attractive for them, though for most luncheons they are tabooed, as suggestive of the professional decorator who revels in bows. The bonbons should be pink, and the cards should be small sheets of paper rolled up to resemble diplomas, each tied with a rose-coloured ribbon, with the name of the guest written on the outside.

MENU

BOUILLON.

CREAMED FISH IN Sh.e.l.lS.

ASPARAGUS WITH CREAM DRESSING.

BROILED SPRING CHICKEN. PEAS. POTATOES.

CURRANT JELLY.

CHERRY ICE.

LETTUCE AND TOMATO SALAD WITH FRENCH DRESSING. CHEESE STRAWS.

INDIVIDUAL STRAWBERRY SHORTCAKES.

CHOCOLATE. BONBONS.

The shortcakes may be either made by baking cakes in small tins, splitting, adding the crushed fruit, and putting whipped cream on top, or else in a fashion which all girls will welcome, by using a very small charlotte russe with a quant.i.ty of strawberries heaped about the base and powdered sugar over all.

A ROSE LUNCHEON

In this month of roses it is a pretty fancy to have a meal when they shall be especially in evidence. The table may be laid much as for the sweet pea luncheon,--that is, with bowls of the flower scattered over the table or one large bowl, and the flowers themselves, despoiled of their stems, scattered over the cloth. The cards may be of stiff paper, cut out to resemble flat, open roses, coloured pink, with the name of the guest written directly across. A large rose may lie at each plate, or in a pretty fashion they may be laid in a loose wreath around the centrepiece, and at the close of the meal each guest may be asked to take some of those before her plate. The bonbons used should be candied rose leaves.

MENU

PINEAPPLE FILLED WITH FRUITS.

CREAM OF ASPARAGUS SOUP.

SOFT-Sh.e.l.l CRABS ON TOAST.

FRIED SWEETBREADS. PEAS. POTATO CROQUETTES.

CURRANT SHERBET.

TOMATO BASKETS WITH CUc.u.mBER JELLY.

MAYONNAISE.

FROZEN STRAWBERRIES. CAKES.

COFFEE. BONBONS.

The pineapple is to have its bushy top cut off, and the inside scooped out; the core is put aside, the soft part picked up and mixed with a little banana, orange, and small strawberries, sugar, and sherry, if you use it, and the whole put back in the sh.e.l.l and pa.s.sed, the top lying on one side of the dish; small gla.s.s saucers, or nappies, as they are called, are on each plate, and the guest is to put a spoonful in hers.

The colder the pineapple is, the better. If soft-sh.e.l.l crabs are not to be had, serve a creamed fish in whole cuc.u.mbers, as was suggested for a January luncheon. The tomato baskets are very pretty; they are made by cutting smooth tomatoes in basket shapes, removing the inside with a small spoon, and filling with cuc.u.mber jelly mixed with mayonnaise. This latter is made by crushing peeled and sliced cuc.u.mbers, adding seasoning and a little onion, and stewing till soft; they are then set with gelatine in a dish and when firm they are broken into pieces small enough to go in the baskets. If you are to have crabs, this course is all right, but if you have subst.i.tuted the cuc.u.mbers with fish, you must again subst.i.tute and serve another salad for this. The frozen strawberries are made by crushing the fruit to a paste, adding one-third as much boiled lemonade, sweetening well, straining, and freezing. The cakes served with this should be iced in a rather deep pink.

There are so many pretty and appropriate quotations about roses that one may well add one to each guest card.

"Roses for the blush of youth."

"The sweetest rose, where all are roses."

"She looks as clear as morning roses newly washed with dew."

"Mantling on the maiden's cheek, Young roses kindled into thoughts."

"It was roses, roses, all the way."

"The rose is sweetest washed with morning dew."

"The red rose cries, 'She is near, she is near!'

And the white rose weeps, 'She is late!'"

"O beautiful, royal rose, O rose so fair and sweet!"

"Gather ye roses while ye may, Old Time is still a-flying."

"Queen rose in the rose-bud garden of girls."

A PEONY LUNCHEON

[Ill.u.s.tration]

is certainly novel, and if carried out carefully it is extremely pretty, although at first thought one would think the peony too large and coa.r.s.e a flower to use on the table. In order to get the best effect, the table must be a round one and quite large. Then the peonies, pink and white ones mixed, and with plenty of their own foliage, should be piled in a ma.s.s in the centre, with the bowl which holds them in place completely concealed. The flowers should lie on the cloth as well as rise in a mound from the table. Any one of the menus previously given will do to serve until the final course is reached, when the ice cream is to appear in the peonies themselves. A white cream is chosen, the hearts of the largest pink peonies are cut out, a round of waxed paper laid in the place, and a heaping, rounded spoonful of the cream is placed in the flowers. It is to have a spray of leaves under it as it lies on the plate.

July

The summer days in the country are apt to seem rather long, if the weather is too hot for vigorous exercise, but entertaining one's friends breaks the time delightfully. If the July noontime is warm, still the heat adds to the pleasure a luncheon of cold and delicious dainties gives, especially if such a meal is served on a cool and shady porch, when it becomes fit for the G.o.ds. If one's summer home is unfortunately without this sort of outdoor room, a little ingenuity will serve to provide a subst.i.tute. In the early spring, some tall, strong posts may be set in the ground on the north or west side of the house about fourteen feet or more away, and the tops of these joined to the wall by some lighter strips of wood; then a floor may be laid, unless the gra.s.sy turf is preferred, and quickly growing vines, such as the morning glory or the moon-vine, planted, and soon one will have a really beautiful arbour room.

The first gala day of the month, indeed the only one the calendar recognises, is the Fourth of July; this certainly deserves to be celebrated by a luncheon.

FOURTH OF JULY LUNCHEON

[Ill.u.s.tration: FOR A FOURTH OF JULY LUNCHEON]

[Ill.u.s.tration: IN PLACE OF A GUEST CARD.]

Stand a toy cannon on your table for a centrepiece, draping it with delicate vines; or, if this proves too expensive to buy, and too difficult to borrow, suspend a large bell from two wooden supports in the middle, with the same vines. At each plate lay a bonbon box which exactly resembles a cannon fire-cracker, filled with small red candies; the name of the guest may be printed on the side and it will serve for a guest card. Or you may give the guests small liberty bells instead of the large crackers, and use small crackers for cards. Or, instead of either of these things, you may give each one a bunch of real fire-crackers with her name printed on the outside.

[Ill.u.s.tration]

Have several vases of flowers on the table, with red and white carnation and blue bachelors' b.u.t.tons in each; or if you do not like them mixed, alternate vases with red ones alone, white alone, and blue alone. In your little dishes of radishes, almonds, and bonbons, stand tiny American flags; tie the sandwiches with narrow red, white, and blue striped ribbon, and the handles of the currant cups as well; the table may also have little tents and soldiers as in the military luncheon already suggested.

MENU

ICED CURRANTS.

ICED BOUILLON. WATER-CRESS SANDWICHES.

COLD SALMON. SAUCE TARTARE.

TONGUE IN ASPIC.

TOMATOES WITH FRENCH DRESSING.

RASPBERRY SHRUB.

PINEAPPLE SALAD. CHEESE CRACKERS.

ICE CREAM IN DRUMS. CAKES. BONBONS.