The postillion was struck by lightning

At long last, I have photos from the Dickens ball I went to at the beginning of December. They were hidden on my friend's computer in a folder of cat photos, which sounds plausible to me. Her cats are crafty, and probably put them there themselves.

I have to tell you that I look like a hag in most of them, so apologies for that.



All of us together. From left to right: me, Eric, Dawn. As the night wore on, everybody's clothes magically started fitting better. In the following photos, you can see how they've settled on our bodies in this one. I know my corset shifted downwards about halfway through the night and everything magically fit better.

( My horribly magenta ballgown )

( Dawn's dainty dress )

( The manliest man in the manliest vest ever )

( The aftermath )

On December 9, I'm going to the Dickens Festival and Fezziwig's Ball in Lanesboro, Minn. In a big damn dress, no less. I'm also making my roommate a coat and vest and his girlfriend (one of my bestest friends) a bodice. I have approximately a month to do this. I'm going to have power through this month, basically sewing every waking moment of my life. But it will be grand when it happens.

My dress will be in this lovely magenta silk faille taffeta. That right: magenta. Completely fitting with a mid-century aesthetic, and it's going to look great with the black bonnet I already have made.

My roommate (henceforth known as Bojangles) will be sporting a vest in this completely synthetic jacquard and a coat in some black wool. The vest will the higher-necked version linked above. He already has a tux shirt and a pair of black dress pants, so he's covered on the bottom half.

As for what fabric his lady will be sporting: no idea. Haven't seen it yet. In case you're wondering why Lord and Lady Bojangles aren't dressed in high Dickensian clothing, Lady Bojangles decided she liked the 1880s better than the 1850s, and I decided I didn't want to make two complete outfits in November. Especially since pants are my fatal sewing weakness.

Oh my god. I just realized how much hemming I'm going to be doing. Eek.