A Gilded Age Christmas, Part 2
As I begin this post, I realize that there’s a fact about Christmas in the Gilded Age of which many are probably not aware…the Vanderbilts, and others in their “set,”… Read More
Author: Bettie Bearden Pardee
A Gilded Age Christmas , Part 1
It is glorious in Newport any time of the year, but especially at Christmas! And with all the attention “The Gilded Age” series has garnered I thought I’d begin my… Read More
Thanksgiving ’23
As we head into the Thanksgiving holiday, my heart is full…not only is my only sibling making her annual “turkey trot” to Newport, but a lifelong friend will also be… Read More
Out and About in Paris
It had been five years since I’d last been in Paris…so you can imagine my exuberant state of mind. Even despite the on and off rain, I strolled and took… Read More
Autumn In Paris
I have been very fortunate to have visited Paris in almost every month of the year…and she never disappoints!! But this trip was charmed in ways that I could not… Read More
Classical Shindig, New Orleans-Style
Halloween is behind us, and the long holiday season with its many occasions and opportunities for celebration, is upon us. Where better to look for new inspiration than one of… Read More
Hampton Court Gardens
The first thing that might come to mind when you read “Hampton Court Palace” may be King Henry VIII and his unfortunate wives (of those six, Jane Seymour was the… Read More
Early Fall at Parterre
Even if fall will probably be late (or very subtle) this year, there are still those signatures in the gardens that announce the season is changing. One is the pair… Read More
Entertaining in the Orangerie
Well, by the enthusiastic response to last week’s post on our Orangerie, I bet you’ll love seeing this whimsical “folly” in her main role –party central. For, once finished with… Read More
Romancing the Orangerie
What could be more romantic than four rare ‘Hally Jolivette’ cherry standards, swathed in tiny individual shell-pink blossoms that sway in the soft breezes of a mid-April dawn. They are… Read More