Full Holiday

Being popular is tiring. I’ve had plans every night since Greg has been gone (November 29), and tonight was the culmination with a good friend’s birthday party. Tonight marks one week from my own birthday party, and it has pretty much taken all week to recover… But I love this friend and I knew it would be a low-key affair, so I rallied. Actually, I did more than that.

I went Full Holiday.

For a person who spends most of her life in workout clothes or pajamas, I took the invitation to a casual birthday dinner in Menlo Park as a Reason To Celebrate. I have an overflowing closet full of cute clothes that beg to be worn, yet so few occasions warrant them. I’m not even sure this one did, but I went for it.

Perhaps you are unfamiliar with going Full Holiday. There are a few requirements, 4 of 5 need to be met to reach the minimum:

1. Restrictive clothing. Tights, control-top nylons, and/or Spanx.
2. Footwear. Heels, adornments on the footwear, footwear that is incongruent with current weather situations.
3. Color. Bright red and/or green, colors that the wearer does not look good in.
4. Costmetics. Quantities more than normal, often in hues uncommon for wearer.
5. Sparkle. In the form of diamonds, gemstones, rhinestones, sequins, or glitter

I personally accommodated these four requirements with my ensemble this evening:

1. I wore tights (that I believe were control-top, based on the welts on my abdomen now).
2. My wedge heels, while very comfortable, had big jewels on the top.
3. I did my eyes up a bit more than normal and wore a plum-colored lip GLOSS that was much different than my usual.
4. I adorned a lovely cocktail ring, dangly earrings, and rhinestone bangles.

I surprised myself, really, pulling it all together. I got compliments from my friends, but who knows if they were just being kind… Especially considering the Birthday Girl is 6 months pregnant and showed up in jeans and a sweater. It was all she could do to watch me order another glass of wine.

I’d love to show off my handiwork, but alas… I cannot. This clearly was not the kind of party where anyone brought a camera, including myself!