JAFA 2011 - The Ball

The Ball. Who doesn't love a ball? The gowns, the dances, the flirting. Well, the gowns at any rate. I do love me a ballgown. We ended up arriving a little late, but only so that we were fashionable. More because we just weren't quite ready on time. Four women sharing a bathroom is not going to work out too well when it comes to being ready on time. At any rate we had a fantastic time. I was a little disappointed in the photographer that was in attendance (I take better photos), and rather perplexed that she didn't seem to know enough to bounce her flash rather than full frontal.

I think we all looked marvellous. It seems that the ballgown is the one gown that we put the most work into. Some of us, more work than is really sane.

Me for one. While I simply adore how my gown turned out, I can remember all the cursing over how to go about making the wretched sleeves. And all the handsewing to get them to an appropriate historical level. In the end it was well worth all the frustration and sore fingers. I think the only part that I was not overly happy with was the fact that I made it a little too tight in the bodice and we had to stretch to get it on and that I could have put more padding in my quilted hem. It did hold the skirts out nicely, but it could have been stiffer. To complete the look, I was going for a mid 1820s hairstyle. I found a great sketch of "Apollo Knots" that I had a go at replicating. Essentially it is three large barrel curls pinned the crown of the head. They could have been larger, but my hair is only so long, and I don't have any hairpieces that match at the moment. I am pleased though with how it turned out and am actually really looking forward to wearing this gown again some time. Especially after all the work that I put into it.