Sunday, May 22, 2016

Field to Vase Dinner Tour ~ A Hill Country Garden Party







Put on a crown of flowers and join me

for the most amazing 

Field of Flowers Garden Party.






is a series of private, intimate gatherings being  

held across the US at family owned flower farms.

Last evening I had the privilage to be a guest 

at one of these artisan-style dinners held in a unique venue. 





Pamela and Frank Arnosky of


were our gracious hosts for the evening at their

Texas hill country flower farm in Blanco, TX.





Originally planned to be held in the fields among

all these gorgeous blooming flowers,

the threat of thunder storms moved the venue into

the Arnosky's beautiful big blue barn.





Three rows of long tables filled the space

while thousands of gorgeous fresh flowers filled

vases down the center of all the tables.

Can you see how amazing this setting is?





Outside, tents were set up for the on-site kitchen and bar.


filled the glasses of happy guests.





Erin Esensee and her team from H-E-B Blooms

were the flower designers who created 

all the amazing arrangements for the event.





Erin demonstrated the art of creating

a sweet boquet with Arnosky fresh flowers.

In addition to the blue glass vases filled with flowers,

Erin and her team created the arrangements with a "fence post"

as a nod to the many flowers that grow wild

across the pastures and along the fences of our Texas hill country.





Each place setting featured a mix 

of vintage dishes and flatware.

Can you imagine my squeal of delight

as I sat down to this charming place setting?





The dinner plate at my spot

was Eggshell Georgian by Homer Laughlin.

If you read my recent post,

 Inspirations From My Mother, here

you'll know why I was touched with nostalgia.






was the chef responsible for our incredible meal.

Take a look at the scrumptious menu above.




Dinner was 

served family style.




Platter after platter of delicious offerings 

were place down the center of our table for all to enjoy.





As dining companions enjoyed the 

"farm to table" seasonal meal,

the beautiful blue barn was filled with

the sounds of laughter and lively conversation.





All the while, the beauty of the 

landscape lingered just outside the windows.





I feel full of gratitude 

for friends, flowers, and fine food.


Field to Vase Dinner Tour ~ here.

Arnosky Family Flower Farm ~ here.

Slow Flowers, American Grown Flowers ~ here.

Flower Magazine ~ here.


Joining 


A Garden Party @ Thoughts of Home and Share Your Cup
Mosaic Monday @ Lavender Cottage


Sarah
Sarah

The summer we married, my husband was in graduate school, and I was employed as a teacher. We took a portion of our savings that summer and purchased a sailboat. We christened our Catalina 22, “Hyacinths For The Soul” after Saadi’s poem. Our "Hyacinths" provided years of pleasure.

50 comments:

  1. What a beautiful venue and event. The menu is exquisite and the flowers simply glorious.

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  2. Wow, what a fabulous event and experience for you! The flowers! And now I want to have a flower farm. New retirement goal?

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  3. Oh my word, Sarah! What an absolutely fantastic party to be part of! Your place setting was so you. The flowers and food among them all looked wonderful. Thank you so much for sharing this. You look amazing too. And is that Laura and ? (Stacey?) in that bottom right frame of the collage? Whoever they are, you all looked to have a great time.
    Rita

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  4. Oh Sarah!!! What a magical evening! The flowers and food look positively ambrosial!!! You Texans know how to do it right! Enjoy your week.

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  5. What a great idea and what a lovely evening this must have been Sarah! I love the idea of being surrounded by all the flowers in the field and in the vases on the table. The menu sounds delicious and the setting is beautiful. You look lovely and I can see how much everyone was enjoying the evening. I think this would be an amazing way to live, on a flower farm! Great post Sarah………...

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  6. Good morning Sarah, Thank you for sharing this wonderful food and garden tour. It is so amazing and I would love to have joined in with this beautiful celebration. My garden club is having a program this month and the title is "From our Farm to your Table." The Eggshell Georgian Homer Laughlin plate sure made me smile. I had service for 12 in that pattern with every extra servings dishes they made. I gave them to my daughter-in-law when we moved to NC. I admit I have missed them but our home here in NC was a big downsize and there is not enough storage. With our mountain view it was worth giving some of my things away. We have a garden tour coming up in July that will be similar to this but not quite as grand. Can't wait.

    Happy Blue Monday,
    xo, Jeanne

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  7. WOW! I would love to attend an event like What a beautiful setting.

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  8. It's beautiful..seeing all the arrangements must have taken your breath away..looks like a wonderful event..and your words of gratitude are so sincere.

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  9. What a fantastic post. Those arrangements are stunning and the food, oh my! Looks like a great event for all and the setting is perfect. So glad you shared this Sarah at DI&DI. Flower farms are so lovely. Have a great week!

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  10. Oh Sarah, that looks amazing. Beautiful venue and flowers and a lovely meal.
    hugs,
    Linda

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  11. Lucky you attending this great function. Just the thing I would truly enjoy.

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  12. What a fantastic event! I really enjoyed all your photos!! I loved the table setting with all the gorgeous flowers down the center of the tables, so pretty! The food looked amazing too! Field to Vase Dinner Tour, Loved It!
    Hugs, Jody

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  13. Now I officially want to go to this event!! You made it look like a real winner. You look so pretty with your floral halo. :)

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  14. Wow! That is some barn...how rustic and elegant. Looks like a super fun event and I love your floral wreath!

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  15. What an amazing event to attend. The tables are gorgeous and the menu looks delicious. I hope you'll link this post to Mosaic Monday next week as I've gone monthly for the summer. (last Monday of the month)

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  16. Oh how pretty and fun! Thanks so much for sharing. I'd love to do something like this! Your photo's are beautiful! I'm following you now. I'd love you to come over and see my Blue Monday post. (not nearly as nice as yours though!) Please come over and Follow me!

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  17. How wonderful!!! I would have loved this, too. Everything looks beautiful and delicious. Happy Pink Saturday, Sarah.

    I have my mother's first set of dishes, too. They are Homer Laughlin Jean, and they are a treasure to me.

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  18. Be still my beating heart! How beautiful is that barn with those gorgeous table settings! I have a full set of the Homer Laughlin that was your place setting. It is one of my very favorites. Dianne

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  19. Oh, what a delightful event!! The tables looked lovely and the floral arrangement were so colorful and pretty. The menu looked delish...If i had a barn like that, I would always entertain in it!! What an exciting dinner event and thanks for sharing!!

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  20. Oh my goodness Sarah, what a wonderful event that you were able to attend! I am in awe at the beauty of the tables...the flowers, the hanging glass orbs, and the fabulous food. Yes, I would've squealed wth delight at the pretty Homer Laughlin place setting, too. Loved the stunning picture of you...you're such a classy Texas lady, and so are your friends! Thanks for sharing such an incredible event from the Hill Country.

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  21. Sarah,
    You find the most amazing things to attend. What a fantastic event this was. It reminds me of the dinners in the field events I've seen in magazines. Now I am starving after seeing all the delicious platters of food.

    Judith

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  22. Sarah,
    What an amazing, unique Garden experience, dear friend!
    I adore the long rows of tables and serving the meal "family style".
    For me, there's nothing quite as enjoyable as a "sit down" dinner!
    Thank you for sharing!
    Fondly,
    Pat

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  23. Sarah, That looks incredible. The food, menu, venue and of course the pretty flowers are all stunning! I love the casual bouquets with field flowers...my favorites. Oh what a gorgeous and glorious evening you must have had! Those Homer Laughlin plates were icing on the cake! Thanks for sharing!

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  24. Oh Sarah, what a fun and fabulous party to attend. Those rows of table with flowers down the center are just gorgeous. Sure wish I would have been along for the tour and party with you. Beautiful!

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  25. Dearest Sarah,
    Wow, that is quite an event for catering delicious food for so many people.
    Too bad the weather was threatening... it would have been even lovelier outdoors between the colorful blooms.
    It is balm for the soul, living through such events!
    Hugs,
    Mariette

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  26. Dear Sarah,
    Now this is a way to celebrate! Everything looks so comforting and inviting. Love the barn.
    Thank you so much for sharing
    blessings,
    Penny

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  27. What a fabulous idea and a great way to celebrate.

    I'm sorry the event had to be moved inside, but the barn is a beautiful setting.

    Thanks for sharing this with everyone.

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  28. What an amazing venue! I can just imagine how you felt when saw all those beautiful flowers and your special place setting. Sarah, you look beautiful with the floral wreath!

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  29. ♫♫ Lucky Dog, Lucky Dog ♫♫ How fun that must have been to attend such a spectacular event! The food looks scrumptious & the flowers make me swoon....SOOOOO beautiful! Only in TX could you see cowboy boots worn with a lace dress & pull it off beautifully. :) After last year's drought, who would have thought they would have to move indoors due to RAIN!! Thanks for sharing these wonderful photos.

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  30. Oh Sarah...SWOON...from the blue barn to the flowers and the dinner...*sigh*. I can only imagine how thrilling it was to be there. I immediately clicked over via your link for The American Grown Field to Vase Dinner Tour~ it seems they've exceeded there bandwith :) I'll check back but looking at the invitation and photo, it doesn't look like they're available east of the Mississippi, drat. What a great concept and recipe for a delicious and beautiful evening!

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  31. If I could dream up the perfect way to spend an evening, this just might be it. This looks amazing! The tables are gorgeous and the food looks so fresh and delicious.

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  32. What a delightful event! You do find the niftiest things in your area. That many flowers all in one place would make my heart sing!

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  33. What a stunning feast to participate to, I wonder the joy and the cheerfulness with which you're remembering this day of yours, my lovely friend, thank you for sharing it with us !

    Hope you're having a beautiful week I'm wishing you all my best for your days to come, sending love and hugs to you

    Dany

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  34. Sarah... I'm amazed by the flower arrangements and all the care that went into creating such a wonderful event. I bet you had the time of your life. :) Thank you so much for sharing your beautiful evening and delicious meal with us. What a treat! And thanks for linking your post up to Project Inspire{d}!
    All the best for an extraordinary week! [hugs]

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  35. Sarah,
    To have experienced an evening like this is truly a blessed and incredible experience!
    To think that we have our own flower farms like this in our beloved Texas is just the icing on the cake and of course this post has encouraged me to plant even more sunflowers! I need a sunflower farm!
    I am nearly swooning over the beauty, festivities and joy of it all!
    I am just going to have to look again:)
    Happy Flower Power joy to all!
    Jemma

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  36. That's an amazing event! All those floral arrangements blows me away! Looks like everyone was enjoying themselves!

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  37. Ever since Vicki @ 2 Bags Full blogged about an event like this I've been longing to attend something similar. I can just imagine how much you enjoyed the evening, everything looks gorgeous, the barn, the food, the flowers and the convivial crowd. No wonder you're smiling! Love the hat BTW.

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  38. How beautiful it all looks, Sarah. Such a good idea and such fun!

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  39. What a gorgeous gathering~ those flowers! Thank you for being a lovely flower that joined our garden party.

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  40. Oh my gosh Sarah, what an event! I can see why you squealed with delight at your place setting. Simply perfect! I would be in 7th heaven at an event such as this. Gorgeous flowers, delicious food, and fun friends. Doesn't get much better than that! Thanks for sharing with SYC and the Garden Party!
    hugs,
    Jann

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  41. You know, I could read this post a million times, you have ignited a notion!
    Thanks so much for sharing this with us at TOHOT!
    Jemma

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  42. Oh I know this was so much fun! I've been to an Outstanding in the Field dinner which was wonderful but all these gorgeous flowers would certainly take the experience to another level. I'm going to be a the look out for a Dallas date!

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  43. Why is it that I always learn about this kind of thing after the event? What a beautiful post! All those flowers! Sigh.

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  44. Everything about that post was beautiful. Lovely photo opportunity for you as well. Beautiful post

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  45. My goodness what a fabulous event...those tables filled with flowers and the amazing menu....wow, something I would love to attend! Thanks for sharing this lovely event.

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  46. Sarah,
    O MY!!! What a delightful post!! So much beauty and joyfulness!! I enjoyed this so much!Thanks so much for sharing!!
    Thanks so much for stopping by!!
    Hugs,
    Deb

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  47. Sarah, how special to be included in such a wonderful event. Everything is just beautiful. Thanks for sharing at Your Inspired Design Link Party.

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  48. What an amazing event, Sarah! I've never been to anything like it, but it looks like SO much fun--flowers and food, how can you go wrong, right? Thanks so much for sharing the experience with us all at Vintage Charm--it was delightful :)

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  49. What an awesome event Sarah! Thanks for sharing!

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  50. Sarah, You go to the most interesting events! I must find one of these farm to table dinners to try. I've never heard of one with the special addition of the vintage china. I love the little round terrarium hanging over each seat! That would be easy to do at home~~thank you for the inspiration! Linda

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