Musing on picnic dresses and an impromptu stop at The White Rose event center in Indiana.

Picnic Dresses for Summer 2019 I Red Plaid Shirtdress from New York and Company #SummerStyle #StyleInspo

It’s not often you find yourself stripping down moments after intruding on a complete stranger’s property. But that’s exactly what I was doing about four minutes after driving by The White Rose event center in Indiana.

And if you think that’s a surprising way to start a blog post, you’re not alone. When I purchased this dress from New York and Company, I imagined modeling it for you in a post on summer picnic dresses. What I did not imagine, though, was stumbling across the most interesting and historic property for the photos!

Surprise Stop at The White Rose Event Center

Heading into Memorial Day weekend, my mom and I were en route to meet with family in the small town of Huntington, Indiana for my Great Uncle’s memorial service. It was one of those perfect days for a road trip: sunny skies, warm (but not too warm) temperatures and no humidity to speak of.

While making our way through the scenic country roads, I spotted this beautiful historic barn and said aloud how great it would be in an Instagram photo. Cut to my mom throwing on the breaks, turning around and creeping onto the property just a moment later.

As we ooh, ahh-ed and suspiciously lurked around in the parking lot, we spotted a lady across the way and had to introduce ourselves. She was the owner of the space and so graciously let me change out of my travel clothes into what I fondly refer to as my ‘picnic dress’ to snap some photos.

Picnic Dresses for Summer 2019 I Red Plaid Shirtdress from New York and Company #SummerStyle #StyleInspo

A History Lesson at The White Rose

After changing in the most darling cottage, the owner walked me through The White Rose property and I was completely awe-struck.

Sadly, I don’t have any pictures of the indoor space as my mom was across the way…but I HIGHLY suggest you take a look at their Facebook page for photos as it’s truly a sight to be seen. Geographically speaking, it’s close to Fort Wayne, Indiana and makes for a gorgeous setting for a wedding if you’re in the area.

If you’re at all into history, it’s also a really fascinating property.

It dates back to the Rockefeller family’s hay day along the Ohio/Indiana/Pennsylvania pipeline. Behind the event space, we couldn’t help but notice these raised railroad cars. The owner kindly explained to us that they were used back in the day to transport coal. That darling cottage I mentioned changing in? That was a converted telegraph station. How neat, right?

Picnic Dresses for Summer 2019 I Red Plaid Shirtdress from New York and Company #SummerStyle #StyleInspo — Behind The White Rose are remnants of raised railroad tracks that were used to transport coal. This was during the Rockefeller’s hay day and the Indiana/Ohio/Pennsylvania pipeline.

Historic telegraph station converted to a bridal suite at The White Rose Event Center in Indiana — A historic telegraph station has been converted to a darling bridal suite at The White Rose.

Of course I’m no history buff, but I really found learning more about The White Rose property interesting. It also was the unofficial kick-off what turned out to be a quite wonderful weekend filled with one history lesson after the next.

After connecting with my aunt and grandma, I went on to learn so much about my ancestors’ history in the area. We donated some family artifacts to the local historical museum, where I learned even more about the background of the region, the style of clothes everyone wore and even the types of candy and kitchen appliances they used. The weekend also included trips to several grave sites and even the local Health Department (yes) to determine the cause of death of one ancestor who sadly died at just nine months old.

Truly, it was an incredibly fascinating weekend as a whole. I never really considered starting a genealogy project before but my Memorial Day weekend turned out to be a crash course in one!

Onto Summer Picnic Dresses

Walk down memory lane aside, I do also want to declare my love of picnic dresses for summer. And with Memorial Day now behind us, I think we can all safely say that summer has officially arrived.

To prep my wardrobe for the warm months ahead, I’ve done quite a bit of shopping recently and snatched up SEVERAL picnic dresses to carry me through the season. In fact, I think they may truly be my new thing!

The way I see it, picnic dresses are the perfect all around staple to have in your closet.

You can wear them to the office.

You can wear them to festivals.

You can wear them to summer parties and potentially even a wedding if you find the right one.

(They also happen to be incredibly comfortable which is an added bonus well worth mentioning.)

To inspire you for the summer ahead, I’ve rounded up a selection of darling picnic dresses that are just perfect for the season! Who knows? Maybe you’ll stumble upon a historic property to wear your’s on, too! *wink wink*

Summer Picnic Dresses

Like this Post?

Join the Dream Squad

Sign up for my weekly newsletter to receive exclusive dreamer content you won’t find on Dream in Lace straight in your inbox. Let’s be dreamers, together!