Swing!

Last night we had a Spring Fling swing dance in the dorm. It was such a blast! Normally we have only a few girls and men who are all regular swing dancers, but this particular dance yielded quite a few new faces, as well as helped me to get to know others in a much more intimate way. I like to refer to the swing dancers of my generation as the "counterculture" of our school, and after seeing these pictures, I'm sure you'll see why!


The first is a photo of us playing "The Charleston Game", and the second is a silly picture that my dear friend Jason and I posed for to imitate the ladies modeling my dress on the pattern envelope. (Yes, this is the new swing dancing dress that I made with my new sewing machine over spring break!) My friends Jillian and Alexa also made their dresses from vintage patterns, so we were really playing up the retro look last night :-)

New Dresses!

Last week I experienced the wonderful holiday known to most college students as Spring Break. But instead of spending the days lounging on the sunny beaches of Cancun, I stayed put in New Hampshire and went home to 3 feet of snow still on the ground.

As much as I would have enjoyed the sun and sands, I spent my time engaged in classic New England winter activities such as sewing, baking, snowshoeing, and starting seeds for the garden. My latest sewing projects were a Regency-style dress for an event at school, a new swing dancing dress, and crinolines. With so much to do, it gave me a great excuse to get acquainted with my new sewing machine!

My Regency dress was a bit of a challenge (it took about 2 days to finish) because I created the dress design from a 1795 fashion plate and used the dimensions of a circa 1800 shift as the basic pattern from which to work. I wish I had been able to make a kerchief and cap to go with it, but I realized that not everyone cared about historical accuracy as much as me, and anyway, I didn't have any more white linen.

As for the new swing dancing dress, I am exceedingly proud of it. Two of my dear school friends (who are also history majors and swing dancers) recently bought vintage patterns from the 1940's to make new dresses. When they showed me the patterns, I couldn't help but think how wonderful it would be if we all had 40's dresses. Alas, I didn't have enough money to buy a vintage pattern or enough time to create my own from scratch, so I compromised and bought a reproduction pattern made by Simplicity. The pattern was originally from 1950, and I used forest-green brushed silk with a silver nylon lining. Not a complicated pattern, but lots of steps!

I'm so excited to wear my new dresses!

Birthday!

So I'm finally 21. I had a wonderful birthday full of family, friends, and surprises! For the past few years I haven't been able to go home for my birthday due to previous obligations, but I finally had my chance. It was wonderful. There was a big dinner with all of our family friends, and we served spaghetti with Cincinnati chili, homemade baguettes, and vanilla cake with four layers of whipped toffee frosting. And if an entire weekend with my favorite people wasn't enough, my family surprised me with my very own sewing machine! What a wonderful way to celebrate my twenty-first year.

Music of My Soul

Over Winter Break, my momma, sister, and I took a brief trip to visit my uncle in New York. He lives about 15 minutes outside of the city and often has meetings at the Ralph Lauren offices downtown, so we take advantage of these opportunities to ride in with him. On this particular trip, Uncle dropped us off in the morning, and we took the commuter rail back home that night. During our visit we attended a Broadway show called "Memphis" which has lately become my absolute favorite musical! I am the sort of person that can listen to the same song for hours, and never become tired of it if I like it enough. Unfortunately for my family, I did just this for days and days at a time after seeing "Memphis".

I have such a deep passion and appreciation for music that I often wonder how in the world I would be able to live without it. Many of my friends have very limited taste in music, or no interest in it whatsoever. I attribute much of my love of music to the broad variety that my daddie exposed me to while I was growing up. My parents often tell me that my first full phrases were interpretations of Beatles songs ("I've got a Ticket to Ride," to be specific) and that by the time I was four, I had memorized the words to "Oklahoma", "Hair", "The Music Man", Billy Joel's earliest records, and many Joanie Mitchell songs. Looking back now, I am not sure that many of those lyrics were appropriate for a preschooler to be singing at the top of her lungs... but there it is. Music has been, and always will be a part of me. There is a song that I am reminded of when I think of my relationship to music. Here it is sung by Amanda Seyfried in the movie version of "Mamma Mia".

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rZnBI8j_6JI

On Monday night, I sang solo for an audience for the first time in about three years. I was a wreck, but it was exhilarating. I was accompanied by three very talented young men; all of whom I have become great friends with in the past year. It has been wonderful to have the opportunity to express myself the way that God intended me to, and I very much look forward to performing with them again.

Valentine Love

Here are some photos of this lovely Valentine's Day. The box is full of handmade and non-handmade Valentines for my dear friends at school. I always feel that something handmade or handwritten is much more personal than something bought at a store, so I made each Valentine as unique as the friend I gave it to.

Tonight in the dorm we are going to have what we call a "Stoplight Party." I'm excited because it has been a sort of running joke since my freshman year in Hall Council that we would host this "mixer" type of party, but at the same time I feel that it could be a little awkward. Each person attending the party must wear a certain color to reflect their relationship status. Wear green if you're single, red if you're in a relationship, or yellow if it's complicated. Stoplight colors, right? The only hitch is that my dorm is the honors designated residence hall, and we tend to have many introverted residents. I will be wearing green and because dating within the hall is very common, and if everyone shows up in red, it won't be very much of a mixer for me ;-)

Either way, it should be fun to dress up and do something other than homework for the night!

A Young Princess Di

These photos were taken by my dear Daddie at my sister's 18th birthday party. The theme of the party was "The Roaring Twenties" so I did my research on early 1920's hairstyles and dresses. This was the resulting ensemble.

Because my hair is naturally curly, I tamed the curls in the front with rag curls a few hours before the party, and the rest was pinned back in a loose updo. The purse that is barely visible in my lap was my great-grandmother, Evelyne Marie O'Callaghan Betzig's, during the twenties.

My aunt recently told me that I remind her of a young Princess Diana in these photos. I don't know if that is true, but I feel flattered nonetheless!

A Little Bit About Me

I've had the most difficult time trying to think of creative posts, so I thought this might be a start. I love answering questions, so just ask if you think of any more!

What are you doing right now?

Drinking tea, eating chocolate, and trying to make a creative blog post.

What’s your most embarrassing moment?

I have so many, I couldn’t possibly choose one!

How many computers are in your house right now?

At home, one per person, and at least 3 laptops, so 8? (Although this is because my Daddie ran his own online business for 10 years, and we still have all the residual computers.)

What did you do on Sunday?

I went to church with a friend, and then I spent most of the day reading for my History of New Hampshire class.

Look to your right. What do you see?

My mug of tea, my electric kettle, a photo of my Momma and Daddie from before I was born, and notes from some very dear friends.

How about your left?

My semester schedule and my Bible calendar.

What’s something you really want to do right now?

Go swing dancing, go home for the weekend, or do something with my friends.

What is something you find gross?

I can’t bear it when people chew loudly. And I hate the sound of smacking lips.

Describe your perfect guy:

Someone who shares my beliefs, is a hard worker, is friendly, loves children, believes in the same political movements as myself, loves his family, loves animals, is musical, enjoys the outdoors, respects the environment, is clean and health-conscious, responsible, sweet, kind, gentle, sensitive, and loving.

What is something you are looking forward to?

The Valentine’s Day festivities!

What are your plans for tomorrow?

Hopefully I will go for another snowshoe in the woods, do some homework, and maybe see a movie.

Do you know anyone with the same birthday as you?

Elizabeth Taylor, Josh Groban, and a girl I met in English class.

How do you feel right now?

I am feeling a little cooped up, homesick, and restless.

Do you hide your feelings or show them?

I try to hide them, but I’m not very good at it :-)

Do you like to have long hair or short hair?

I have medium hair!

What do you always take with you?

My phone, my school ID, and my wallet.

What would you do if you received a long love letter?

I would write back, of course!

Last person you drove around with?

I think it was my Daddie when he brought me back to school.

What were you doing at 11 PM last night?

I was playing chess with some wonderful people in the lounge.

What color shirt are you wearing?

Navy blue.

Where would you rather live, England or Australia?

England. As far as I know, there aren’t any poisonous snakes there :-)

What do you do when you have a bad day?

“It could always be worse!”