Hello-Hello and Happy Friday. Are you ready for a weekend?
In the spirit of a little relaxation and rejuvenation, we begin with Sunday’s New York Times Magazine; it will feature a piece by Rosie Schaap titled Preppy Drinks Never Go Out Of Style. Ms. Schaap writes the monthly “Drink” column for the paper, and is always an enjoyable read. In Sunday’s story she reminisces about time she spent enjoying The Original Preppy Handbook back in 1980, and her recollections from the book during a recent trip to Nantucket.
I went sailing. I ate heaps of steamers and lobster and corn. I took long walks in the dunes and made up rotten limericks the whole time. No one would mistake me for a preppy, but I did wear pink one night.
Then Ms. Schaap talks about a drink she only had once:
And on my final afternoon, I stopped into a bar and asked for a drink I hadn’t had in decades: a madras. It was the drink of choice for one of my closest college friends, a true prep, and I only ever had one when we drank together.
Accompanying the piece, this picture of a Madras, Sea Breeze and Brighton Beach breeze.
William Brinson for the NY Times (Stylists: Ed Gabriels & Susan Brinson)
(Those links take you to the recipe for each, I’m not sure I’d be able to choose among the three, they all look that good.)
Back to the story:
But it’s fun, and easy, to upgrade preppy staples.
I suspect a true prep wouldn’t want to mess with tradition. This summer, he can just avert his eyes and stick with a G. & T.
Ms. Schaap also shares a “Preppy Summer Reading List” in her column:
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“Collected Stories and Other Writings,” John Cheever
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“Commencement,” J. Courtney Sullivan
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“Losing Mum and Pup,” Christopher Buckley
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“Seating Arrangements,” Maggie Shipstead
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“Selected Poems,” James Merrill
In a blog post about the column we read about Ms. Schaap meeting Maggie Shipstead, author of Seating Arrangements.
I devoured the novel — set on a fictional New England island, populated by preppies, during a wedding weekend — and naturally it wound up on the reading list accompanying the column.
By e-mail, I asked Shipstead what drinks she considers preppy classics. ‘‘There are the obvious ones like G. and T.’s and Cape Codders and whatnot,” she told me. “I would also put forward Mt. Gay and tonic. For the hardcore, there’s the bullshot: cold beef bullion and vodka.”
This one was a fun read. Click here for the story and here for the blog post. A quick note, if you look for this piece in Sunday’s Magazine, the headline is “I’ll Have a Sea Breeze Dahling“.
One added note, in a comment on Wednesday’s post Lauren mentioned another classic, Tipsy in Madras – A Complete Guide to 80s Preppy Drinking , dating back to 2004. (I remain baffled as to how someone like myself, who has consumed enormous quantities of alcohol an occasional cocktail, could have forgotten the book.)
Image via Barnes & Noble
From Publishers Weekly:
What defines a preppy cocktail? Archaism (the drink must have existed pre-80s), character (nothing cheap or easy), understatement (nothing with an umbrella) and, of course, Anglicanism (if it’s exotic, it ain’t preppy). Beginning with an insightful essay on the demise of preppy culture in the early 1990s, this book goes on to chronicle the how-tos of drinking for the Lacoste set.
I was also reminded of another treasure among prep mixologists and cooks, Alexandra Wentworth’s The WASP Cookbook from 1997.
Barnes & Noble
This is another one also packed away years ago when we thought we were moving (someone-who-shall-remain-nameless-but-you-know-him-by-the-initials-TC thought there were too many cookbooks on the shelves in the kitchen for prospective buyers to fully appreciate the room, cough-cough), but easy to spot because of its resemblance to the Social Register. It is a delight, described as a “A Perfect Little Cookbook for Muffies” in a Baltimore Sun review:
In conversation she simply calls WASPs “my people.” She has the credentials.
Her mother is a Muffie. Her mother’s full name is Mabel Cabot (as in Henry Cabot Lodge) Wentworth. Muffie is a graduate of Smith College and a former social secretary for the Reagan White House.
Her father, “Daddy,” Eric Wentworth, is a Harvard man and a former reporter for the Washington Post.
Many thanks to @Queen P on Twitter, and Elizabeth (who left a comment on Wednesday’s post), they reminded me about this one.
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We leave you with something from the other end of the spectrum, an early look at a fall fashion accessory. With apologies to those who have already seen this on our Facebook page, I just couldn’t resist sharing it with our treasured blog readers. It is referred to by Swank Atlanta this way: “THIS IS THE MUST-HAVE BAG FOR FALL!!!!
CC Skye The Shredder at Swank Atlanta
That is the Shredder Hobo Bag in honey leather:
This FAB bag is a slouchy, casual, edgy yet elegant handbag. This bag is a favorite among stylists and Hollywood elite.
The Facebook comments on the post were fabulous:
- Rachel noted that “It looks like something cave-women would have toted their primitive tools in. Meat carver, mortar and pestle, large club for when the Hubs is out of line….”
- Leslie said makes a good point: “My black lab could do that.”
- Maria asked “Did they rip it right off the cow?”
The Shredder bag is $695. (Really.)
On that wacky note, goodbye until next time. May you enjoy a splendid weekend!