Opera House Glove and Caplet GIVEAWAY!!!! CLOSED.

When I was in college, about ten years ago, I took a class that required a visit to the opera. Seeing as I rarely was given an opportunity to dress up I looked forward to the event all semester. I bought a floor length plum satin skirt and lavendar JCrew silk top. When the day finally came I was ready. We drove down to Baltimore and found our way to the entrance.

Alas, to my disappointment I found myself accompanied by spectators dressed in jeans and sweaters. There were also the usual Sunday best dresses but I was by far the more formal of our company.

I guess I longed for the days when couples wore tuxedos and tiaras to ticketed events. I think part of me knew I'd be overdressed but I guess that part of me didn't care. I mean, why such apathy for the aesthetic?

This post is a tribute to those more ceremonious eras. But perhaps I'm not alone. Perhaps someone else out has their own floor length gown hanging in the back of their closet or arm length velvet gloves lying in the bottom of their drawer. Never to be worn again.

Let's be the ones to bring them back! It's not too late to be pretty:)

The gloves themselves were surprisingly difficult to sew. When I first set out to make something I thought, oh I'll take it easy this week, I'll make a pair of gloves. Wrong!

They might have been easy had they not included these nasty little buggers called 'gussets'. What are gussets? Besides the unmentioned devices of torture in the ninth circle of hell? Well, they're the tiny inbetween pieces of fabric that so usually go unnoticed by every other glove wearer, including myself. That is until you have the unfortunate luck to have to use them in a sewing project.

Other than that the gloves were fairly easy. Not much cutting. Although I need to warn you that they are tight. And I don't mean in the 'too cool for school' sense but the 'my fingers are turning blue' sense. So if you have larger sized arms than me the gloves may not be for you.

They are made out of some sort of leather-like material. I'm not quite sure exactly what it is. But I can tell you that I bought it in the upholstery section and it doesn't have much elasticity.

HOWEVER, the cute little caplet may sway your vote. It is enclosed with an antique looking brass clasp.

The fur in both the gloves and the caplet are of course, faux. I did have the opportunity to purchase real fur but the price tag and animal rights issues held me back. The feathers however are real....and more humane. I was going for a sort of 30's Gatsby look. And if the winning blog leaves a comment it will be included in the giveaway. I would enter for that alone. They are the trendiest little accessories on etsy nowadays.

Oh and the shoes! Too cool huh? They were from
my friend Abi's grandmother. Under the tongue, they say something about being handmade in Italy....and are like three sizes too small for my feet. I smashed my toes in them for the photo shoot but even that short amount of time left deep red gashes in my Achilles tendons. Still..worth it.

I'm not going to divulge where these photos were taken. It would just detract from the illusion. But I was a little disappointed when we arrived. There were other rooms that I had wanted to use that were roped off on Sunday. I had been hoping to get a photo sitting in a folding auditorium seat. Originally I had wanted Brian to accompany me in a tuxedo but that was just wishful thinking. I would have been more likely to win the Powerball.

But I have to give credit where credit is due. He did an amazing job with the photography. Especially considering the fact that it was the first time he used the new camera. I was far more hands off this time and I found the shoot to be far less stressful. I should use this philosophy in the rest of my life.

Last day for posts is Friday 2/13/09. Winner will be announced Sunday!

As usual, if you would like a chance to win these gloves and caplet just link back to this post. If you have any questions see the "questions and answers" link to the right. If you use blogger just use the "create a link" link at the bottom of this post. If you don't use blogger, that's fine too. Just create a link on your page as you normally would and I will see it using Technorati.

Create a Link