Friends, please excuse my recycled photos here. When my girlfriends’ accountability group got together for a pre-Derby brunch in 2019, I pieced things together for a celebratory table that I’m almost sure I could never top!
Kentucky Derby gatherings themselves are as old as the race itself! Informal social events surrounding the actual race have snowballed over the years to the elaborate parties and over-the-top celebrations that we Louisvillians see every year. An entire culture has blossomed around the fashion (helped, no doubt, by other racing events throughout the world), and also around the food!
From Bourbon Balls, benedictine spread, and the ever-phenomenal hot brown to mint juleps and sweet tea, food is a pretty integral part of the Derby season. And- with Louisville always being at the top of the best lists for Foodies- there’s no shortage of places to go for a great meal during the Derby Festival. However, if you’re wanting to celebrate at home, I’m hoping these photos from 2019 will inspire.
For my brunch with girlfriends, I selected a white tablecloth, gold chargers, these wavy blue dinner plates from Aerin, and these gorgeous Gein France salad plates. The flowers were springtime blooms you’d find in any Kentucky-area florist this time of year. As fancy as the place settings were, lunch was relatively low-key. Hot brown sliders, fried chicken, walnut and caramel bars. Of course, welcome juleps were wildly appropriate!
When setting your own table for the holiday, I invite you to think of two things: Racing, and Roses. While a search of “Kentucky Derby party ideas” on Google will bring up an immediate explosion of red rose photos, you don’t have to be so on point with your decorating. Think instead of weaving in the traditional elements of the day- like roses, seersucker, Bourbon, and jockey silks- in small doses, so that your table doesn’t feel like it’s playing dress up, but rather, feels like you, and looks like it belongs in your home.
All tables start with a base of some sort- you can easily find a piece of table-sized turf for a fun faux tablecloth, or have a length of seersucker hemmed to drape over cocktail tables outside. To me, napkins are always an easy way to sneak in a fun color, pattern, or statement without being too over-the-top.
While plates and chargers can be more expensive when themed, salad plates are a great option to add a burst of the day’s spirit without breaking the bank. Recently, we were at a wedding where the china was all vintage, mis-matched, and floral. Imagine your luck if you scoured websites like 1stDibs or Replacements.com for red rose themed dinner plates and found several that could be mix-and-matched.
There’s always the option of setting your usual table but adding in a few festive pieces. Imagine these photo frames as place card holders for a formal meal (each with a photo of the attendee in Derby garb!), or these fun swags across a build your own julep bar or waffle station at a Derby morning brunch.
However you celebrate, I hope you enjoy the season! This is truly my favorite time of year, and with the giant fireworks kick-off last Saturday, the Derby Festival is officially under way in the Bluegrass!
** this post is not sponsored in any way. all thoughts and opinions are my own **
** photos by Kyle Lueken **
