Before we all hunkered down to flatten the curve, my friend Sarah Tucker and I got together to dream up Derby party details. We thought we’d be celebrating with our friends and family, in fact Sarah’s in-laws have made an annual tradition of it! This time last year a bunch of parent volunteers were gathered in her den-turned florist studio to make 30+ arrangements for our school’s Derby themed fundraiser and I can’t wait to playing with flowers and friends again!
The good news is that The Kentucky Derby isn’t cancelled, just postponed until September. We figure that this slight change of plans doesn’t mean you have to totally give up your derby plans, just double the derby fun.
So raise your Mint Juleps to an excuse to try out some recipes, make more crafts and getting dressed up! Whether you’ll be celebrating in your finest seersucker or coziest jammies, here are some ideas for a derby day – for now, and later!
What To Do:
Watch the race! Even though it isn’t live! The horses may not be running in May, but there are plenty of clips from years past to be found on YouTube. Pick your favorite and let your kids in on the 2 minute thrill of the track! When the real deal rolls around in September we’ll all be primed and ready to cheer on those beautiful horses!
Have a race of your own! Don’t let the horses have all the fun! Get out the quarantine wiggles with sack races in the backyard or make your own pool noodle horse and gallop down the hallway or cut out the crafting and order these inflatable options. I love this group of wind-up animal toys for having a family-friendly critter race on the dining room table!
Learn about Kentucky! Take this opportunity to find the state on the map. Talk about what it is famous for, look at pictures, or test out your pipes singing “My Old Kentucky Home“!
Play Games! Horseshoes are a great game for anytime, but perfect for a derby day. This outdoor option sticks right in the grass, or this kid-friendly plastic option can even be used inside. Pin the tail on the horse is classic fun for a wide age range!
Make something cute! Themed crafting is always a win and there are so many related ideas for derby day that can be as elaborate or low-key as your supplies, age range, or patience allows. Tissue paper hats are a hit and here are some more home hat making ideas. Decorate your own jersey or horseshoe! Make your own awards to give to each other like “great kitchen helper” or “awesome joke teller!”
How to Decorate
We felt the storied history of the Derby called for timeless and traditional accessories like silver, cut crystal and embroidered linen. Both of us are avid treasure hunters who enjoy trips to our local thrift and consignment stores to add to our collections. The name of the game is classic pieces at bargain prices. A derby party gives us an excuse to use our silver trophies from Salvation Army that we knew we might “need some day” and we both find joy in pulling things out of our own cabinets to use again and again. What better to use for flower arrangements than the julep cups. Sweet, silver and often engraved, they look chic holding make-up brushes in the bathroom, or on your desk with a bouquet of pens and pencils. They’re obviously at their best with a cocktail in them, but they’re also perfect vessels for flowers.
Thanks to Fifty Flowers, we were able to get a mix of blooms and then I grabbed another bunch of roses from the grocery story just in case. When planning for flowers I like a mix that includes greenery, stock flowers, and a “star”, or focal flower, in this case it was a pretty garden rose as nod to the derby’s other name, “The Run For The Roses”. What we had was enough flowers for some julep arrangements to scatter around, as well as for the front door horseshoe wreath which you can read more about here.
Materials: Flower bucket, water, container for arrangements, floral sheers, flower feed, wet floral foam – optional.
Here’s how we made our julep cup arrangements –
Condition Your Blooms: Our resident flower experts, Sarah’s mom and my MIL, have years of floral design experience with their garden clubs. They both emphasize to condition your flowers before arranging them. To do this, after taking the flowers out of the box, remove any leaves that would end up underwater, otherwise they can rot and your beautiful blooms will wilt more quickly. Cut the stems at an angle to allow for more absorption of water. Use floral scissors like these to prevent damage to the stem. You can also use a knife. Place them in a cool room, in a clean bucket of room temperature water for a few hours or over night, along with some flower food mixed in (those little packets that come with your flowers).
Play With The Flowers: After conditioned, the arranging can begin! We both cut the flowers a few times (also angled) to play around with the right height and proportion for the container. We usually start with the greenery and stock flowers, placing them in a cris-cross to get a mix and create a little base. If you have wet floral foam like this Oasis, which can help prolong the life of your arrangement and create stability for the stems. Make sure you follow the instructions of the floral foam and pre-soak it before arranging.
As you get closer to the end of your arrangement, find the perfect spot for your “star” to shine and if you’re doing multiple arrangements, make sure each group has at least one of the stars. If it is one large arrangement, make sure the stars are distributed throughout. For flowers like roses, you can massage them a bit to help them open up.
Tip: Take your arrangement to the next level by incorporating clippings from your yard. In this case we popped outside to Sarah’s backyard to clip Boston fern and grabbed some Spanish moss off the trees. Doing this adds a personalized touch. I’ve even used leftover herbs from the fridge and for these I also included some mint leaves as a nod to the Derby’s signature drink.
Once finished, move your arrangement to another location or to the final destination, and come back later to make any edits or additions! Make sure to look at it from all angles and check for any holes. Most importantly, enjoy! There’s nothing like fresh flowers to lift the mood and set a tone, and as many steps as this may seem, there is no real way to do it wrong!
What to Serve:
Eat: Classic Southern Fare and Kentucky Staples
You can’t go wrong with a traditional tasting menu featuring flavors from south of the Mason-Dixon. Pimento cheese, BBQ, deviled eggs, pecans and anything with bourbon, are solid choices. Certainly the Derby is known for the Hot Brown and the bite sized version in Reese Witherspoon’s Whisky in a Teacup book perfect for a party, now or later! She also includes a delicious recipe for Pulled Pork Sliders with a Bourbon BBQ sauce. Pimento cheese can be served as a dip, on finger sandwiches, with some fried green tomatoes, or as a fun take on a grilled cheese! I’ve never met a deviled egg I didn’t like and it is a quintessential finger food.
But perhaps the most important thing on the menu is the Mint Julep.
A cocktail is only as good as its ice and in this case, and we learned just how crucial crushed ice is to the classic Mint Julep. It all has to do with the surface area of the ice and how it melts over time to make the drink more refreshing. This bag and mallet was too much fun and made having a big bowl of crushed iced ready for a crowd easy-peasy. Think how much fun kids would have crushing the ice, that is if you’re brave enough to hand over a mallet!
To get started on juleps, select your cup – a classic mint julep cup like this from Mark and Graham is pretty much perfect. Even the official Kentucky Derby glasses are only $5.99 and would be a fun party favor! But any glass will work as long as the drink is tasty! We played with this recipe from Bon Appetit for our test run –
1. Muddle or “bruise” 2 mint leaves (or more if desired) and 1 tsp of powdered sugar in the bottom of your glass. This is the perfect chance to customize your julep. We pulled out some berries and used a muddler. Let your guests get creative and call the shots and make whatever they want.
2. Add 2 oz (or 1/4 cup) of bourbon.
3. Add 1/2 cup of crushed ice
4. Add one tablespoon of water
5. Stir to blend, add more powdered sugar if desired.
6. Garnish with mint and enjoy!
For a fun and family friendly non-alcoholic julep recipe, check out this one via AllRecipes
What To Wear
Hats, bow ties, seersucker and florals – dressing for the derby is quite possibly the best part! Thank you to Draper James for this seersucker number, which is perfect for our little spot in Florida since it was already entering into summer weather territory back when we were brainstorming in February. These horseshoe stud earrings seemed like the perfect nod to our equestrian friends and the gold ones are another sweet option! Sarah has this floral linen wrap dress which is a great feminine and lightweight option! If our temperatures are just as hot come September, I might snag this linen lovely for myself! It comes in extended sizes and the flowers remind me of the iconic red roses that punctuate the derby. Whatever you wear, you can’t forget a hat or fascinator! I found mine at a local consignment store a few years back and it is a trusty straw hat that works in a pinch. If I were to be at a formal derby party or hopefully one day the real deal, I’d be sure to elevate my headgear!
Photo Credits: Alisia Thompson
