· Literary Ball 2016! ·

After having such a smashing success at our Literary Ball last year, we thought it merited repitition!  We were able to use the same building as last year and while we had a smaller crowd, we had a wonderful amount of dancers for the space and we even had visitors from 4 different states! :-)

Kathryn, Tara, and I all came as characters from Cranford.  Well, technically we came as the younger versions of our characters so we could all re-wear our regency attire!  We took our inspiration from the movie adaptation, so there are a few technicalities that are inaccurate to the book.  I'll leave it to the book aficionados to identify them. ;-)

Kathryn was Mrs. Jamieson- complete with the earliest predecessor of Carlo the dog

I was Mrs Forrester- one little known fact about her is that her unfortunate history with lime pits was a life-long problem... needless to say, she became quite adept at fashioning pyjamas for cows! ;-)

I jumped on the chance to hand-sew miniature pyjamas for our stuffed animal- they're even made from period-appropriate wool flannel.  Because, you know... I could. ;-)

Tara was Miss Pole- naturally a perky feather adds just the right touch!

My parents came as Paul Bunyan and Babe the Blue Ox.  I guess dressing as bovines runs in the family! ;-)

Something that's changed since last year is that I've now started calling dances!  There is a dedicated group at our church that have been ready and willing learners and it's been great fun spreading the love for English and Scottish Country dancing! :-)

I made my dress several years ago, and posted about it here (still one of my favorite photo shoots! :-)).  The apron was from my 18th c. wardrobe (because Mrs. Forrester always needs more fluffliness!) and the chemisette and cap were newly made for the event.

Everyone was requested to bring a copy of their character's book and as always, it's so fun to see the variety represented!  This time we had everything from historical fiction to children's books to manga to fantasy!

Dickens characters like Mr. Micawber are always great choices! :-)

Les Miserables characters!

This 100 year old building has some fun details!

Even the little boys had a great time and did a great job dancing! :-)  When the costumes were complete at the beginning of the evening, 3 of these boys were Cowardly Lion, Scarecrow, and Tin Man and their sister was Dorothy!

· Photos by Kathryn! ·