Things are all a twitter here at the manor, as we put the finishing touches on the The Third Annual Willow Manor Ball. Like Mrs. Dalloway, I just had to buy the flowers myself. I ordered arm loads of my favorite yellow roses and a few extra potted palms, which have proved in previous years, to be the perfect little trysting spots. Some hunky local guys were hired to handle the valet parking, and the masterful Leonard Cohen has agreed to arrive on the front lawn again this year, via helicopter, just in time to be our traditional MC for the evening. I flew in late last night from Paris, where I found the most fabulous vintage gown. Today the tailor is coming to adjust the size down, since I'm ever-so-cyberliciously thin.
Be sure you've got those bloggy calendars marked. Stop in any time here at Willow Manor Thursday, September 30 and leave a comment to be included in the drawing for the door prizes. There will also be a Mr. Linky widget available, if you would like others to visit your blog to see who your special date might be and what loveliness you are wearing to the ball. And remember....
photo borrowed from google images
So thrilling....the dress is coming together nicely, thank you...my date is shining his dancing shoes and polishing his wit!
ReplyDeleteCan't wait!
That's a terrific photo! (And hey, look at me! I'm only the second commenter!)
ReplyDeleteWell, you will float across the floor in this number - with George at your side...I hope you asked Annie L.. to photograph everyone...and as for yellow roses...a must for an autumn ball....bkm
ReplyDeleteExciting! Everyone seems all set and ready. The first picture of your post is gorgeous.
ReplyDeleteI am so excited about attending my first Willow Ball!
ReplyDeleteCar selected, bag selected, shoes selected.... dates (yes, dates) selected....I am still deciding between two gowns.... ah, decisions, decisions...
I know you will have the manor decorated beautifully for this Autumn Ball...beautiful flowers, delicious food, sensual wine and cocktails.... and La Musica! You know one of my dates is Franz Liszt - and he has aleady agreed to play a few pieces for us...so the classical genre will be represented.
This IS the Autumn Event of the year!
Love,
♥ Robin ♥
Just found myself completely engrossed in the clip and forgot I was even in bloggyword for the moment. I just can't imagine how much work it was for all involved to put that dance sequence together - fabulous! I think the only downside to me leaving on vacation next week is missing this darn ball. Can't wait to hear what food will be served!
ReplyDeleteIs that a young Judy Garland in that dress?? Either way, it's a gorgeous piece of 'art'.
ReplyDeleteDanny Kaye was an exceptional entertainer and I loved him mostly for his comedy.
Excellent photo!
ReplyDeleteI'm choosing my dress now, but since I am a size 48, this is not off the shelf. Can I bring Emma Watson?
ReplyDeleteI adore Emma Watson. If you don't bring her, I'll be terribly disappointed, Tom!
ReplyDeleteOh don't forget to get Leonard a birthday present....what a man!
ReplyDeleteFunny I mentioned him today, not knowing it was his birthday. Happy Birthday, Mr. Cohen, daaaaling!!!
ReplyDeleteHow very exciting! Things are looking great for the Ball, 30th September shall be a great day, I'm sure!
ReplyDeleteOoh, trysting spots! I have got to make this year, especially as you won't believe who's asked me!
ReplyDeletethings sound so deliciously busy!
ReplyDeletesometimes even the planning can be a party.
I just love that dress in the photo,perfect for twirling the night away.
Rene
I love that there will be such a ball on my birthday! How exciting!
ReplyDeleteAnd I am absolutely in love with Mr. Cohen - Happy Birthday!
super beautiful photo.
ReplyDeleteI'm very nervous 'cause I really don't get out much. And then to attend something like this... well it's quite anxiety provoking.
ReplyDeleteBut, I'll get over the jitters and I'm sure to have fun.
Too fun! Wow--that dress on the cover of Life is amazing, n'est ce pas? Have a blast with the preparations for the big event. I'll watch anxiously to see it all unravel. Thanks for the smile!
ReplyDeletewillow -- what fun to watch that dance video! -- barbara
ReplyDeleteWhat a lovely gown. You should rustle and swish in a most delicious manner (Manor?)
ReplyDeleteLeonard Cohen? Be still, my heart...
Leonard Cohen must be in his
ReplyDeleteseventies now. He has always
been the premier poet
laureate of the boomers
burning bras in the 60's,
much more the poet than
a singer, yet his voice haunts.
Perhaps he can do some
Zen rituals before the evening
wanes, for he is a Buddhist
priest; or so they say.
I think I will wear my
white deerskin leather
tuxedo, with black long
fringes at the arms, and
across my back, and a
Paladin black gambler's
shirt with a Bret Maverick
bright read long bow tie;
and upon arrival I will be
wearing George A. Custer's
7th Cavalry cape, and
Cyrano's great black plumed
hat.
I have never been to a Willow Manor Ball. May I attend and bring my friend Russell? It's his birthday this month. Will you be serving cream puffs with choux pastry? They're very good with champagne.
ReplyDeleteI just bought some new pearls recently. I think I'll wear them.
@Glenn Buttkus: I hope you meant that you'll be wearing a black hat like Cyrano's, because his plume was most emphatically white. :)
ReplyDeleteOh, how exciting! I'll keep checking back, hoping to meet some of my favorites here.
ReplyDeleteTrysting spot? Did you say trysting spot? I am so there!!!
ReplyDeleteFlowers and palms and a dashing MC, your Parisian gown ... oh my!
bkm is right ~ may we have Annie L to photograph at the Ball?
YOU KNOW I WILL BE THERE! You can just reserve my spot. I am loving that dress!!!
ReplyDeleteI sooo love that scene too. Makes me want to see the movie again. One of the best ever. And, wow, cou;d they dance!
ReplyDeleteOK, with the icon, should we link to this post or the intro one or to your home page?
P.S. You mean, all my crunches don't even count here in cyberville? But I worked so hard to get into shape for this event! LOL. Fun. Still, I do need to invite someone don't I? Funnily enough, I saw something recently with someone who I thought,she's the one...just need to find the contact info! :) the big event ball is rapidly approaching and I think she is somewhere in Scotland presently--rather remote in fact. Hmmm...
Hey, I was just in Paris too. I just picked up my new dinner jacket from Jean-Paul's (just wait till you see it; typical Gaultier). Lady Magnon arrives back from London on saturday; her dress had to be boxed specially in order to go in the hold.
ReplyDeleteVery much looking forward to next thursday.
I'm cyber-shopping for my dress pronto! Count me in!
ReplyDeleteThis is all way too overpowering for an ol' Bear. Think I'll just hide in the bushes and listen to Mr. Cohen sing. That would be a treat.
ReplyDeleteWhat am I wearing? Fur coat. My own. What else would a Bear wear?
I still don't have a date, but I'm working on it. And the gown -- it's just so difficult to find something in my size, as I'm so thin as well! Yours looks amazing...
ReplyDeleteThe thirtieth is creeping nearer and I'm in no way prepared! I hope I get there although you'll certainly outshine me!
ReplyDeleteOh what fun and excitement, I am looking forward to viewing all from the top of the stairs at Willow Manor. Please look after Leonard Cohen and don't invite him to stay on too long as I am off to see him in Auckland, NZ at the end of next month!
ReplyDeleteI'm garnering things quietly in the background ready for the big day. Your dress looks FAB, it will be a treat to see you twirling on the dance floor!
ReplyDeletegorgeous. now, just don't spill any chocolate on it!
ReplyDeleteHah...or red wine! I'm beginning to think it might be too stiff to dance in! Hmm. I did come home with two gowns from Paris.
ReplyDeleteAhhhh Danny Kaye! What a great performer. What a great nose. We have that in common. His Ukranian Jewish, mine Italian Catholic.
ReplyDeleteI must admit to being bemused by the Willow Ball. I see the ladies getting into it in a big way. I'll probably be a wall flower and watch this year. Having said that I'll look for an opportunity to overcome my shyness.
Hey, Steve, a lot of guys got into it last year, with tuxedos and fabulous dates. Come on! It's fun!
ReplyDeleteWillow, as happens sometimes, best laid plans of mice and men.....I have been called away. And will unfortunately not be able to attend. But when I return I will "see" and visit all the participants. Thanks so much for the invitation! I know you will have a wonderful time! And the Ball will be the success of the season!
ReplyDeleteSo sorry Annell, you will be missed!
ReplyDeleteFabulous creativity you have dear Willow. I wish you the best of luck, it sounds like a lovely soiree! I absolutely love the clip from White Christmas, my favorite scene, truly. I may just pop in to be a part of all the merriment, hmmm...off to find an elegant gown and dancing shoes!
ReplyDeleteDearest Willow, I do hope I can make it to the ball, even if I have to come on crutches or a walking frame, come to think of it that would be a teensy weensy handicap on the dance floor, though not insurmountable, if I danced with Arnie whatsitsname
ReplyDeletewho could easily cart me around.
Dear Willow, I'm so sorry, I got so into feeling sorry for myself that I would not be able to go to the ball....I forgot to say your gown is lovely! You will be the bell of the ball, for sure! I will always think of you in the lovely dress!
ReplyDeleteGlenn, what a dashing ensemble! You will certainly stand out in the crowd. Unless, of course, George Armstrong Custer shows up.
ReplyDeleteThat dress is so 50's love it. must be organdy.
ReplyDeleteI won't dance, Don't ask me. yvonne
love this post
ReplyDeleteOh my that dress is so beautiful.
ReplyDelete@Silver Fox--thanks for setting
ReplyDeletethe theatrical record straight,
and me. Of course Cyrano's
plume was white, and so will
mine be, to match the beautiful
white deerskin.
@Willow, if George does make
an appearance, then there might
be a rumble. He was the fencing
champion of West Point, but
I am bringing my Braveheart
broadsword, and Custer was
a short little runt. Go look at
his actual uniform at the
museum at Little Big Horn.
Please invite David Garrett
to perform, his inspired
fiddling really send me,
and the guests will dig him.
Who could resist an invitation to the ball, even from a girl who is NOT afraid of Virginia Woolf :)
ReplyDeleteThanks for reminding me how charming Kaye was, The Secret Life of Walter Mitty was my favourite among his works.
Gosh the 30th is coming round so quickly - I must get my skates on.
ReplyDeleteLove the video - puts a whole new meaning on the term 'pole dancing'!
BKM and Helen, super idea. I'm phoning Annie Leibovitz right now!
ReplyDeleteYour dress is beautiful...is it chiffon? Maybe you could wear it for your grand entrance and change into your second one for dancing later.
ReplyDeleteI love Danny & Vera in the dancing scene..so smooth. I've been shopping fo a dress, but haven't found the right one yet. You have inspired me to keep looking with your lovely selection : )
I forgot to mention...I like Mona Lisa and enjoy the full moon tonight : )
ReplyDeleteYour gown is lovely. Clive and I are thrilled to be joining this year!
ReplyDeleteLet's hope Leonard's back doesn't give out again. Better pray for a gentle helicopter landing.
ReplyDeleteBee, Gary Oldman is so incredibly sexy. If you don't bring him, I'm going to give him a call. George won't mind.
ReplyDeleteLadyCat, I think I like your two-dress idea! Brilliant!
ReplyDelete"maybe it isn't only the music"
ReplyDeleteWillow, I love the video, and I have to say, that the pole dancing was completely unexpected. LOL!
Glad everyone is enjoying the pole dancing a la Danny Kaye! Too cute, isn't it?
ReplyDeleteDear Willow, Just checking.....has the antique Louis Vuitton trunk arrived yet? Please do not trouble the staff to unpack, but the services of a housemaid would be appreciated in order to ensure that, whatever my final choice of gown, it will be wrinkle free.
ReplyDeleteoh, the glamour has me positively swooning! if k.d. hadn't already agreed to be my date, I might ask Danny Kaye. What a gentleman....what a pole dancer!
ReplyDeleteYour dress is beautiful! It looks like icing on a wedding cake!
ReplyDeleteNow I know why Leonard Cohen never returned my calls - official MC?! This is a dream come true!
ReplyDeleteI'm having a hard time deciding, I'm such a Libra that way!
ReplyDeleteMy big day is Sunday, I'm guessing yours is sometime soon ~ wink wink ~
I love the 'cyberliciously thin' aspect of the Ball. And the low cost of a couture gown! Does fun at the Manor ever stop?
ReplyDeleteCatherine
Wow Willow! That dress is totally stunning! You will look so glamorous in it. So you, dear! I'm way behind with my planning this year, but sometimes the spur of the moment decisions about what to wear, who to bring, how to arrive are exciting and will get my adrenalin going like mad! It's all about the buzz!
ReplyDeleteGoddess, mine's not until October 20!
ReplyDeleteHehe, Jane, I know! Sometimes the sizzle is more fun than the steak!! :)
ReplyDeleteWhile others were re-enacting Westerns, my choice was always musicals. Abandoning that 'Vera Ellen' look, the flounce, the flashy shoes that didn't make one a 'working girl', the femininity -- well, it got expunged with the 60s.
ReplyDeleteLook. I've got a call into Meryl. She may be filming, so is it all right to come alone? Black tie?
September 30 is my birthday.
I'll be out on the terrace.
TFool
Love the dress and the dancing. I can hardly wait!!!!
ReplyDelete