A Vintage-Themed Hen Party in Oxford

Warning: This post contains photos of delicious cakes that may cause drooling.

I’ve just come back from a wonderful weekend in Oxford for my friend Emma’s hen party, and to be honest, I’m still full with all the amazing food we managed to cram in over the 3 days!

With the wedding in June, us bridesmaids have been planning the weekend away in Oxford for a few months now. I will first say that I really can’t take much credit though; maid of honour Charlie, and Katie, did most of the organising and put in so much time & effort to make the weekend what it was – thanks ladies!

We travelled up on Friday for what was supposed to be a 5 hour journey to Mollington (half an hour outside Oxford), but which quickly turned into a nearly 8 hour journey thanks to a 2 hour stand still queue on the A30 and the satnav’s dodgy countryside back-road routes. Emma didn’t know it, but we were heading to a beautiful old Tudor period house that we’d be staying in for the weekend…

Our long journey didn’t matter once we arrived though, greeted by those who had already made themselves at home, spending the day decorating with champagne and cocktails, followed by a delicious evening meal to feed our appetites. We spent the evening playing some hilarious hen party games, and getting a little bit tipsy on too many bubbles…

For the Saturday, we had several activities planned – none of which Emma knew about; the whole thing was a surprise – starting with a 1920s dance class in Oxford centre with our very much in-character instructor, Phi Phi La Bon Bon! It was quite a laugh, and resulted in a floor full of feathers from our fans and feather boas.

After this, we grabbed some lunch and headed to the New Theatre to watch Sister Act, equipped with bags of retro sweets, followed by a few more bubbles at The Varsity Club – a rooftop bar/nightclub with views of the Oxford skyline. It was beautiful!

For dinner we had an enormous three-course meal at Bill’s and ended up tottering back to the taxi with bellies full of breaded halloumi and Gin & Tonics – all still in our 1920s outfits, might I add, which we had been wearing all day!

Sunday brought with it some fun surprises for Emma. Katie had the idea to create a ‘wedding advent calendar’ (thanks to Pinterest, I believe!) that we’d all bought & wrapped gifts for to present to Em on Sunday morning. Such a sweet way to countdown to the big day!

The other surprise was the most wonderful of high teas; a fantastic spread prepared by Charlie and Katie complete with salmon and cucumber sandwiches, lemon drizzle cake, tarts, brownies, and even a cupcake bouquet!

We’d also all brought with us one vintage tea cup & saucer (sourced from local charity shops & relatives) to serve cocktails & tea in throughout the weekend, and for Em to keep as a souvenir afterwards too. Without planning to, we’d all bought blue and white teacups, which looked particularly beautiful against the white-painted garden furniture of the house.

There was so much food but it was all so delicious, and was definitely the perfect cherry on top for the weekend; even the sun came out for us!

This has definitely raised my standards and expectations for any future hen party I may have in my life; it was amazing to see how much effort Emma’s friends put in to make the weekend extra special! It was a lovely few days and hopefully one Em will remember for years to come :)

 

What would be your perfect hen weekend?

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