· 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! ·

· A Gold Dot Party! ·

Kathryn and I have had this thing for gold dots lately.  You know, the kind that show up all over Pinterest and on everything from sheets to sheet cakes nowadays.

It had been going on for a little while when I came across my gold dotty fabric.  I needed a few excuses before I'd be ready to splurge on the fabric, so one of my "reasons" was that K and I would host a Gold Dot Party.  Well, the time and place was now!  My dress was long-since done, Kathryn's outfit was complete (did you notice how we had entirely circular reasoning going on here?  Yeah, we don't care), Christmas decor was drastically clearanced, and the social wasteland of the early portion of the year was upon us!

Gold Dot Party indeed.  We did our best to live up to the theme, albeit there were some aspects where we had to cut corners.  Oh well, nothing too glaring. ;-)

So here you go- a party all about gold and all about polka dots!  Enjoy!

I made over 180 feet of garland for the party out of 1,250 gold discs (go big or go home is my motto when it comes to these things!)- it was a fun project and I adore the way it turned out!  Now I'm just looking for ways to incorporate it into every party we have...

We compiled a Pinterest board of our favorite gold dot ideas, and dotted champagne flutes were on the "must do" list. ;-)  Due to my job, I wasn't able to help out with the majority of prep but Kathryn did a wonderful job on them!

The backdrop for the food table is entirely the handiwork of Tara, Kathryn, and Kristen- didn't it turn out smashingly??  Clearanced Christmas ornaments for the win!

And I have to mention here- major props to Tara for her help in all the prep for this party!  Without her diligent work taking care of details, our party would not have been nearly as successful!!  Thanks again, dear!

Kathryn's amazing calligraphy is always welcome. :-)  You should have seen her handiwork on the invitation envelopes!  Stunning!

Kathryn has this cute antique end table (that I always want to steal from her), but the top is rather beat up.  We covered it with gold dot wrapping paper (another Christmas clearance score!) and voila!  A properly theme-fitting area for decorating nails. ;-)

Artisan Bread - from this book (*highly recommended!*)

Pear, Goat Cheese, Candied Walnut, and Craisin Salad · Authentic Tuscan Risotto

Here's a little preview for you of Kathryn's gold dotty outfit.... now we just need to find a great photoshoot location for a full-fledged post!

My dear friend Marie Michelle was able to make it for the occasion, too! :-)

All in all, it was a great excuse for a delightful day spent with a delightful group of ladies!! :-)

(and it was also a great excuse for that fabric!)

· Photos by Kathryn ·

· Birthday Tea Party ·

This isn't my normal, predictable sort of post, but I thought our tea party this month was worthy of a post. :-)  We had some friends visiting around our "birthday season" (3 of the 4 birthdays in our family fall within a 13 day period), so we took that as a sufficient excuse to have a tea party. ;-)  There's something addictively fun about making more-than-usually cute food and pulling out all the fun china and serving dishes!

Our place settings included the plates my parents picked out for their wedding registry.  They are a simple white octagonal design from Johnson Bros. and they've proven to be extremely versatile and classic throughout the years.

The tea cups are part of my fledgling collection of pink depression glass.  I have a post about the depression glass I've collected from estate sales in the works, so I'll keep it brief this time!  I'm only buying when I find great deals and I'm open to a mis-matched set- I currently have 3 different styles of cups and saucers and I think depression glass is actually rather charming when mixed up! :-)

The tablecloth and napkins were a fun, frivolous purchase from an antique mall.  We love decorating with this tablecloth- the embroidery is so stunning!

My sister enjoys folding napkins for special occasions and we all enjoy the fruits of her labors. :-)  A Crown fold highlights the embroidered corner of these napkins perfectly and starched napkins ensure crisp, neat folds!  Unfortunately... I forgot to get a detail shot of the napkins.  Oh well. ;-)

Our 3-tiered server displayed the savory treats: Cucumber Sandwiches and Fish-Paste Sandwiches.  We may or may not have been extremely interested in trying fish paste sandwiches after watching the adaptation of Agatha Christie's "Sad Cypress"... ;-)  I'm pleased to report that our ventures into fish-paste were a success and they've made it onto the "repeatable" list!

Fish-Paste Sandwiches

Adapted from a recipe from Yummly

6oz can salmon
1/2t black pepper
3T cream cheese
1T mustard
1T butter

Mix together using fork or food processor, spread on white bread to make sandwiches.

The last tier housed one of our favorite recipes: Rosemary Parmesan Scones.  These are a must-try!!

The chocolate-covered strawberries are always an easy addition to a party and this time we used a mixture of chocolate candy melts and chocolate chips- I think we achieved a good compromise between taste and firm-enough chocolate coating. ;-)

Rosemary Parmesan Scones

Recipe from Tea Time magazine

2 1/2 c. flour

2 T. sugar

2 t. baking powder

1/2 t. salt

1/2 c. chilled butter

1/2 c. parmesan cheese

1 T. dried rosemary (or 3 T. fresh)

3/4 c. (or more) milk

Combine flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt.  Cut in butter until mixture is crumbly.  Add cheese and rosemary and combine.  Add milk and stir, using more if needed until dough holds together.  Knead dough 8-10 times (this step makes the flaky layers).  Gently shape into a circle about 3/4" thick and cut into 12 wedges.  Bake at 375° for 16-20 minutes or until tops get lightly browned.

-Optional- 

Brush tops before baking with olive oil and a sprinkling of salt.

Our official dessert for the day was also a new, successful recipe!

Lemon Curd Tartlets

Crust from Williams Sonoma

1 3/4 cups gingersnap crumbs
5 Tbs. unsalted butter, at room temperature
About 1 1 /2 cups lemon curd (see recipe below)
3 or 4 kiwis, peeled and thinly sliced
Mint leaves

Preheat an oven to 375ºF. Butter four 4 1/2-inch tartlet pans with removable bottoms. 

To make the crust, in a food processor, combine the gingersnap crumbs and butter. Pulse until the butter is evenly distributed and the mixture starts to clump together. Remove the crumb mixture from the food processor and press the mixture onto the bottom and up the sides of the prepared tartlet pans.  Bake until the crusts are set and begin to brown, 8 to 10 minutes. Transfer the pans to a wire rack and let cool. 

Remove the cooled tartlet shells from the pans and gently spoon the curd into the shells. Arrange the kiwi slices and mint leaves on top.

Lemon Curd

Juice of 4 lemons (1c)
Zest of 4 lemons
4 eggs, beaten
1/2c butter, cut in small pieces
2c sugar

In the top of a double boiler, combine all ingredients.  Place over simmering water and stir until sugar is dissolved.  Continue to cook, stirring occasionally, until thickened and smooth.  Lemon curd will firm up slightly when cool, but for the tarts it is nice to have a slightly thicker consistency.

Yield- approx. 1 pint
Lemon curd can be stored in the fridge, however if you are making in bulk, it freezes excellently too!

Enjoy!

· Literary Ball! ·

Back in February, our family decided to host a ball of our own!  We've been attending quite a lot over the past couple years, and it seemed like high time to host some festivities for everyone else!

Years ago, we hosted a few "Twelfth Night" parties and requested everyone to dress as a literary character.  It was always great fun, and worked well for large groups!  We don't know tons of people who have extensive historical wardrobes, so have a non-era-specific theme allows for everyone to have something already in their closet that's appropriate. :-)

We were able to rent a local historic building for the dance, and it was so charming inside and out!

We'll definitely have to host another event here! :-)

We asked everyone to bring a copy of the book they were representing- we had a group of 70, and had everything from Shakespeare to E.B. White to Charles Dickens to modern fantasy authors!  It was so fun to see the creativity and vast variety!

My sister came as Alice in Wonderland, 1930s style.  She already had a dress in the perfect shade of blue and the striped stockings- it was just too perfect to pass up!

We danced a variety of English and Scottish Country Dances through the evening that reference classic literature- "Alice", "Great Expectations", "Once Upon a Time", "Felicity", etc. 

After coming as various historical characters over the years, I felt like it was time to break out of the expected and embrace my more quirky side. ;-)

Click, Clack, Moo: Cows That Type has been a family favorite for years, and somehow it just seemed like a great option!  Apparently, cow fabric is a Hobby Lobby standby, so it seemed like it was meant to be.  I took the opportunity to make a fauxlero (faux bolero) dress like I've been wanting for years, and it ended up being a very easy design to draft on my own!

The dress went together so well and it will end up being handy for "Dress Like a Cow Day" at Chick-fil-A and, you know... all those other reasons I'll want to (literally) look like a cow...

I happened upon a cow bell at Hobby Lobby the week before the ball, and it seemed like the perfect touch!  Well, it was.  Except for the fact that alllll through the bouncy Scottish Country Dancing, I was, ahem, clanging rather loudly.

I must say, for someone who doesn't like to be the center of attention, I have quite a propensity for picking rather loud (sometimes literally...) and attention-grabbing outfits.

Kathryn and I- the Farmyard Girls!

Which is hilarious, considering we aren't really the farm-y type....  Kathryn wore her gingham dress and came as Fern Arable from Charlotte's Web

OK, so I feel a bit bad about posting another picture of just me.... but is my blog, and I was having such a great hair day!! ;-)

My friend Susan (on the left) has been a dear friend for years, and I just have to point out her wonderful dress!  She came as Agnes Wakefield from David Copperfield and made a wonderful 1840s gown.  She inspires me with all she's able to accomplish, and her ambition to tackle big, crazy things I would be too scared by!

We had guests from 5 different states, and it was so wonderful to catch up with so many of them! :-)

· Photos by Brandon and Kathryn- thank you both for taking time out of the evening to capture it so well! ·