A 1913 Twist on Modern Entertaining

Published in 1913, The Art of Entertaining for All Occasions offers seasonal entertaining ideas. For November events, Madame Merri suggests a festive guest prize, particularly for card parties, a popular pastime of the era.

A card party, quite literally, was a party in which the central event was card games. The hostess set up the tables and provided food and drink. Then, players often rotated tables until a winner was declared, and the winner received a small prize. Card parties could also be used to raise money for charities, and they would, in that case, be run by committees to handle the logistics of ticket sales and menu planning. The hosting duties inevitably fell to our female ancestors, who mastered the art of organizing such activities so that they ran smoothly.

As for the prize, here is Madame Merri’s suggestion:

The following idea may be utilized not only for a card party prize, but for any game for which the hostess chooses to offer a reward. Get a nicely formed golden yellow pumpkin, hollow out carefully, and line with waxed paper. Then if the really clever imitation vegetable candies are obtainable, fill with these delicious concoctions. They come in the shape of carrots, corn kernels, potatoes; and many kinds of fruits, such as cherries and currants, as well as nuts are imitated. If these sweets are not to be had, fill the pumpkin with home-made goodies, which will prove just as acceptable. Replace the top of the pumpkin and tie down with green ribbon. A cabbage may be arranged in the same way and may be filled with chestnuts if desired for a booby or consolation prize.

This is a creative way to use a pumpkin (or cabbage) as a prize or gift for a game or party. The pumpkin or consolation cabbage can be hollowed out and filled with candies or homemade treats; the filled vegetable can then be tied with a ribbon, making it a festive and unique prize for a holiday party.