but I didn't mean to steal your heart!

Woo! It's over! It's finally over! It's only February 9th and I'm already burnt out on pink and red and hearts and glitter.

Last night me and my crew hosted our 3rd annual Valentine's Day fundraiser for this year's faire coming up in October. The first year was a casual shindig with live music, a comedian and a silent auction for naughty items. The second year we did a steampunk Valentines Day Ball and this year we went for a good old fashioned masquerade ball with a formal attire or costumes only dress code.



 

I was trying to go for a gothic ringmaster look, but my red mini top hat wouldn't fit on my head with my massive fake ponytail so I wore this head piece I made last week instead. Everyone asked me if I was supposed to be the Queen of Hearts...

"Uh, well, I was supposed to be a... oh never mind... Yeah, I'm the Queen of Hearts."

Since I'm cheap and I believe in mostly DIY costuming, the only thing I bought for this outfit was the high-collar bolero from Ebay for $7 and the choker, also from Ebay for $3. Everything else came from my closet.

There were some spectacular gowns and costumes there.  I was extremely impressed with the effort everyone put into their outfits.

************

The attendance was the highest we've ever had. Even the Queen and Duke from the royal court of a nearby Renaissance Faire came to visit us in full renaissance garb.

And here's my right hand man Brian and his friend, Amy. Aren't they hot?!

And making a rare appearance is my husband! He rarely gets to come to our events because he's either working or babysitting our son. And look! He's wearing the exact same tie Shybiker wore in this post!

He had door duty all night. Good ol' husband.

The lady on the left won the ladies' costume contest (for obvious reasons!) and we even had a sultry belly dancer come out.

She left this poor young guy wide eyed and speechless with her veil dance.

The silent auction went way better than expected. A few businesses donated some pretty awesome stuff for the auction including gourmet cupcakes... and I won those.

The balloons were provided by Wally's Party Factory for absolutely free! We didn't even ask for them! The manager of the store came to me and asked if she could help with the ball. Um, yeah!

The playlist I worked on for a month was perfect and the dance floor stayed packed!

This time I actually had time to dance. Well I wasn't really dancing - I was more giving comedic performances of popular dances that I hate. I had people laughing to tears.

My exaggerated interpretation of Gangnam Style was a hit.

Overall, we raised some money for the faire and put on a stellar ball that people will talk about for weeks. I'm pretty darn satisfied with how everything turned out... and that's rare!