THE LASHES PART 2

They're off!!! The infamous fake eyelash extensions are a thing of the past. I know I should be happy about it, but part of me is a bit ticked, after all they were very expensive and lasted only two weeks of a promised eight. Apparently if you want them to last for the eight weeks, you're not supposed to blink, wash, rub, or even smile with the things on. Unfortunately for me, I suffer from seasonal allergies, and with all the ragweed we have growing in the field at the back of our house , my eyes have been watery and itchy. It just about killed me but I did manage to refrain from rubbing my eyes. There was nothing I could do however about the tearing. My right eye in particular seemed to be affected and one morning I awoke with a little bit of the lash falling off. It was on the outside corner and when it came off it was hardly noticeable. The next morning there was a little more coming off and I wondered if there might be some glue I could use to put adhere the few lashes that had come off. I could tell the lashes on my right eye were doomed. It was like having a loose tooth as a child and I just couldn't resist touching and playing with the lashes, they were drooping and getting in the way of my vision. At this point, I was now driving to the city to attend Daniel's wedding. The lashes on my right eye tore off easily and I was in the predicament of having overly long, lush, dark eyelashes on one eye and barely noticeable, stubby, fair lashes on the other. As I am a safe driver, I did not bother to look in the mirror to check out my new look which probably would have made me laugh so hard I would have driven off the road and ended up in a fiery heap. My problem then, was how to get the lashes off my other eyelid? I had another couple of hours of driving left which gave me plenty of time to work away at them. I started on each corner and slowly worked off the glue and soon was left with a narrow little strip in the middle that was being quite stubborn. I took a deep breath and yanked firmly on them. Ta dah! Off they came with just a little discomfort. I relished in the joy of being able to rub my eyes again. Pure heaven, but wait..... what???? No!!!!!!!!! It seems while removing the last of the fake eyelashes I ripped out a rather large chunk of my own. Child number 5 thought this uproariously funny and couldn't wait to tell his other siblings. They have no respect for me whatsoever.

THE STORY OF THE DRESS

We searched high and low for a modest wedding dress with not much luck.I suggested to Brittany that we try looking on the internet and came across this great site that custom made dresses at a very, very reasonable price. Brittany saw one that she really liked and as I was about to place the order I noticed that they required more time than we had to make the dress. To say we were disappointed was an understatement. I decided that I would email them and see if they could accommodate our request to have a dress made in time for the wedding with the understanding that it would cost extra. I wasn't overly hopeful so was pleasantly surprised when I received a reply to my question within an hour. The contact person (Libby) told me she would get in touch with the designer and get back to me as soon as possible. Later that day, I received another email from Libby telling me that if I placed my order by the end of the day, we would have the dress in time for the wedding. The cost to have it rushed? 30 US dollars. We took measurements, placed the order and waited.

I can tell you that there were a few raised eyebrows when we told people we had ordered a wedding dress on the internet. My friends were pretty dubious about the whole thing thinking I might be getting ripped off. I wasn't too worried because Libby had been so good about communicating even after the company had received my payment.

Exactly a week before the wedding, the dress arrived. It fit perfectly, looked beautiful, and Brittany was very happy with it. The total price including the rush order and shipping came to $238 US Amazing!

I cannot say enough good things about Libby and my experience with modgowns.com I would highly recommend them. So if you are looking for a modest custom made dress for a wedding or prom , check them out.

WHAT FUN

I had no idea that decorating a tent for a wedding was so much work or so much fun. The joy in it came from working together as a family to create something beautiful for our only daughter/sister. It took us the better part of an afternoon to set up tables and chairs and hang lanterns but the end result was well worth the effort.

The most amusing part of the day was the phone call I received from my dear husband as he tried to purchase more fabric for the tables. I had decided early on that I would prefer one long piece of cloth to cover a row of tables rather than smaller tablecloths for each table. It ended up being much cheaper than buying tablecloths and the effect was nicer. I am now the proud owner of 25 meters of white material. At $2.50 a meter it was a fraction of the cost of the cheapest tablecloths I could find at $14. I would have needed 12 so that was a saving of over $100 dollars. Then there was the added benefit of talking my husband through the ordeal of having to go to a fabric store and finding/purchasing the appropriate material. With the help of an attentive employee at the store, he passed with flying colours and arrived home quite pleased with himself. There is hope for the man after all.

THE THINGS I GET TALKED INTO

Over the years my children have managed to talk me into doing things that if I had a clear moment to think about, I would probably never seriously consider. For some inexplicable reason, my usually dependable common sense seems to fly out the window when my daughter becomes involved in matters of beauty and fashion. There have been many purchases I have regretted upon returning home from a shopping excursion with her. Last week, as we were preparing for the big day, Brittany suggested we go and get manicures and pedicures. Safe. I love my painted toes. It was then suggested that we get spray tans (I wonder who's paying for all this?). I declined, worried that I might end up too dark or perhaps even orange. Smart. Brittany did not turn out orange but you should see the inside of her white T-shirt. Her wedding dress didn't fair much better. The crowning glory to all the beauty prep? Eyelash extensions. No, not the false eyelashes that go on in a single strip across your eyelid but rather a lengthy and expensive process of glueing longer and thicker lashes to each of your existing lashes. Once done there is no need for mascara or eyeliner. Did I mention these are expensive? As the technician pointed out, they do last for two months if you look after them.

All my life, I have wanted longer eyelashes. Mine are short, sparse, very fair, and they are hardly noticeable even when I am wearing globs of mascara. I worried though that the extensions might be too drastic and I debated with Brittany for a long time over it. She won and we made the appointment in Toronto (this service is not available in the city we live in). Brittany went first. It took the better part of an hour to glue them on. She looked great. My turn next. I lay down on the table, the technician taped closed my eyes, and proceeded to glue on the shortest lashes in her collection then almost an hour later, handed me a mirror. I wasn't impressed. Maybe there is a reason I don't have long, dark lashes. I got back to our hotel and my little grandson was reluctant to give me a hug and kiss goodnight. I went into the bathroom to check out my new lashes and laughed so hard I almost fell over. My boys could hardly contain themselves when they first saw me. Brittany thought they looked great and my husband thinks they are nice too. Seriously? How can you not break out into fits of giggles when you see me?

I have to thank all those that came to the wedding receptions (there were two) and did nothing but look curiously at me as they came through the receiving line. I appreciate your feigned ignorance of my ridiculous lashes. Why do I let Brittany drown out the little voice of reason that warns me against these follies?

It's been almost a week and I am starting to get used to them. I am no longer startled when I catch my reflection in a mirror and I am getting used to the way people check them out when talking to me.

I won't be posting pictures.

AN INSPIRED IDEA

A few weeks ago Brittany and I went looking for some fireworks thinking it might be a fun thing to do at her outdoor reception when I felt a sudden wave of inspiration. "Let's get a bunch of sparklers and we'll light them when you and Ben have your first dance" I suggested. We cleared the store out of their small supply.

The effect was magical.

THIS TIME NEXT WEEK

This time next week the tent will come down, the company will be gone, and I will hopefully be relaxing with my feet up on the sofa. I can hardly wait. Ian has taken this entire next week off of work to "help" with the final preparations. I will probably send him golfing (read it and weep Haki). I love my husband dearly, he has many talents but helping with wedding preparations is not one of them. For the time it would take me to explain what I want done, it would be faster just to do it myself.

Ian: What can I do to help?

Me: Can you make some paper flowers for me?

Sure I think I can manage that.

Take eight sheets of tissue paper.

How can you count out eight? These papers are all sticking together.

Dampen your finger.

It's putting holes in the paper.

I said dampen it not slobber all over it.

Okay, I've got eight now what do I do?

Do an accordion fold all the way down.

What size do I make the folds?

About an inch wide.

Does this look right?

Yep. that's fine.

But I don't think it's an inch.

It will be fine.

How come it's uneven on this side?

You'll have to redo it.

It's still not going right.

Here let me fix it. Now wrap a piece of wire round the middle and snip the ends into points.

Is this the middle?

Close enough.

How should I cut the ends?

Into points, you know, like an arrow.

Where do we keep the scissors?

The same place they've been for the last eleven years.

Oh... in the kitchen?

Yep.

It's hard cutting through all these layers. I can't do it. (frustration creeping in)

Just cut through a few layers at a time.

Okay now what?

Carefully peel each layer up and to the middle one at a time.

Oops... it ripped.

Gently, gently.

Uh oh, I ripped another piece.

You have to be really gentle.

Ummm.... how come it's ripping all the time.

It's tissue paper.

How come mine doesn't look like yours?

Maybe it has something to do with all the rips.

Is there another job I can do instead?

This was the simple job

Oh!

In the meantime, I've made three paper flowers, and written this post.

PAPER FLOWERS

Brittany's reception is being held at the house and I thought it would be nice to have some sort of decoration along the path to the tent so I purchased some stakes, some tulle, and I am in the process of making giant paper flowers to line the walkway. Cute eh?

HAPPY SURPRISE

The long list doesn't seem to be getting any shorter. In fact, with each passing day it gets a bit longer as we realize something was forgotten or somebody brilliant utters the words " you know what would be great?". On the most part the suggestions are great ideas and I just wish we had the time to follow through on all of them.

I thought we were in for a quiet long weekend but then the phone rang this morning and Daniel announced that he and Olivia were coming for the weekend and would be here at lunch. Later this afternoon, Brittany called to say she and Ben were coming for the remainder of the weekend as well. Matthew and Kere were already here with the kids so we now have quite a houseful. Ian has gone to town to get groceries. I am a happy camper and will enjoy this welcome break from sewing bridesmaid dresses. I think I will teach everyone how to make a paper peony.