Alfresco sophistication and simple picnic pleasures

Once a year my family go on an outting, a big family picnic to which all my paternal relatives are invited.  We meet for coffee and a chat, wander round some stately pile, a zoo, museum or some such place, and then have a picnic followed by some games and afternoon tea.  This has occured every year for far longer than I have been alive and is always a pleasure.  As you can imagine, over such a long time picnic sets have come and gone, and plastic has taken over.  The smell of a plastic lunch box is disappointing; it doesn't matter what you put in it, the smell is always the same.  So imagine my delight when I came upon this beauty. 

Floating on a cloud of exhaustion, relief and pay day confidence I had spied this in a charity shop and applied the rule 'If x is still there when I go back then it's meant to be."  It was still there.  It was meant to be.  I handed over my hard earned food shopping money and bought it. 

 Complete, beautiful and just in time for the Family Picnic I made up the thermos flasks with tea to drink out of the china cups & saucers, and ensured that my picnic fayre required the use of plates, cutlery and a little light seasoning.  The pleasure to be had from such alfresco sophistication should not be underestimated and plans have already been made for further use.