After 2 catastrophic computer crashes and losing this blog post work (twice) as well as many photos, here is finally my post on the Krewe of Jingle Parade 2015. Organized by the Downtown Development District, the Canal Street Home for the Holidays Krewe of Jingle Parade features marching bands, majorettes, dance troupes, stilt-walkers, festive floats, Santa and local favorite – Mr. Bingle. (For the history of Mr. Bingle, click HERE). As one of the 125-or-so Pussyfooters dancers, I get to see the spectacle from the inside-out including festively dressed children and kids-at-heart waving as we pass.
The Pussyfooters love to take the holiday-themed versions of their pink-corseted uniforms to a fanciful extreme and I made a fairly big effort with my candy-cane-themed look and gingerbread-girl bustle piece. The longer I parade with these nurses, executives, business owners, mothers and other pillars of the community, the more elaborate my costumes get. They give me a lot to aspire to.
It was a beautiful day for a parade – sunny and in the upper 60’s. Youth dance and majorette troupes included Shine Tyme, Dance I.H.C., Passion Dance Center, Majorettes R Us, Precious Jewels, Girl Twirl and Mademoiselle Dwyn’s School of Dance. Adult crews included Muff A Lottas, Organ Grinders, Pussyfooters, Amelia Earhawts and the Krewe of the Rolling Elvi. School bands were represented by Sophie B. Wright, ReNEW Cultural Arts Center and Cohen College Prep while organizations like Fox 8 and Sheraton/ Windsor Court hotels provided floats. Other paraders included Urban Cowboys Riding Club and Santa.
At my first Jingle parade, I realized that, like movies, the Pussyfooters has introduced me to people I wouldn’t have met, experiences I wouldn’t have had and costumes I wouldn’t have worn. It requires discipline, pushing past your physical limits (up to 11 miles of dancing) and a willingness to look foolish in public. This time, my 2 worlds collided as we danced past the Brandan “B-mike” Odums‘ New Orleans Film Festival mural on St. Charles with my face on it.
On our way home, we popped into Fifi Mahony’s to see some of their elaborate holiday wigs. It was the first time I’d shopped for wigs while wearing one and I’d never felt more welcome. I think one of the women with the Krewe of the Rolling Elvi (pictured below) was wearing one of their insanely fabulous creations. Enjoy a peek behind the scenes and photos from the parade.
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- Pussyfooters gather
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- candy cane Pussyfooters
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- Krewe of the Rolling Elvi before parade
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- Unicorn-Pegasus
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- Mr. Bingle’s nose
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- Passion Dance Center
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- Mademoiselle Dwyn’s School of Dance lines up
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- Dance I.H.C. lines up
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- Dance I.H.C.
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- Dance I.H.C. waiting
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- Mr. Bingle!
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- Pussyfooters
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- candy!
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- Pussyfooters before parade
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- Majorettes R Us lines up
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- Majorettes R Us twirlers
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- Girl Twirl pre-parade
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- Girl Twirl lines up
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- Rolling Elvi
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- Pussyfooter as Mr. Bingle
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- colorful Pussyfooters
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- repping Hanukah
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- dancers
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- Muff A Lottos before the parade
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- adorable reindeer
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- peek-a-boo
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- Sophie B. Wright lines up
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- Partridge in a pear tree
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- Geese a layin’
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- Pussyfooters pre-parade
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- Amelia Earhawts
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- Precious Jewels,
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- Precious Jewels lines up
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- Precious Jewels dancers
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- Precious Jewels twirlers
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- Mr. Bingle rides
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- Sophie B. Wright
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- Sophie B. Wright parades
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- Santa float
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- float riders
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- Shine Tyme
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- Dance I.H.C. parades
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- Dance I.H.C. blows kisses
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- Passion Dance Center parades
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- Passion Dance Center struts
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- Passion Dance Center dances
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- Majorettes R Us parades
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- Majorettes R Us twirls
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- Majorettes R Us,
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- Majorettes R Us dances
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- Fox 8 float
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- Fox 8 float riders
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- Krewe of the Rolling Elvi
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- Krewe of the Rolling Elvi rolls
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- an Elvis
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- Elvi
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- fabulous wig
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- Muff A Lottas parade
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- Muff A Lottas dance
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- Muff A Lottas,
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- Urban Cowboys Riding Club
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- Girl Twirl parades
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- Girl Twirlers
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- Organ Grinders
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- Organ Grinders dance
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- Organ Grinders parade
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- ReNEW Cultural Arts Center
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- ReNEW Cultural Arts Center dancers
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- ReNEW Cultural Arts Center band
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- ReNEW Cultural Arts Center flags
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- ReNEW Cultural Arts Center,
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- Sheraton/ Windsor Court hotels float
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- Pussyfooters!
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- Pussyfooters parade
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- dancing!
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- Christmas Pussyfooters
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- Pussyfooters dance
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- dancing with the Pussyfooters
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- stilt walker
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- Mademoiselle Dwyn’s School of Dance
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- Mademoiselle Dwyn dancer
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- Mademoiselle Dwyn’s School of Dance dances
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- Nun
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- Amelia Earhawts parade
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- Cohen College Prep
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- Cohen College Prep dancers
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- Cohen College Prep parades
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- Saints Santa car
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- Mr. Bingle float
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- Precious Jewels
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- Precious Jewels parades
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- Santa’s coming!
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- snowman
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- Santa!
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- Santa waves
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- Pussyfooters after parade
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- NOFF mural
L.A. to N.O.LA 
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Looks like this was a great warm up event for the quickly approaching Carnival season. Any chance that it will be this warm in February?
The photos of Mr. Bingle brought back memories of going to Maison Blanche on Canal St to have our photo taken with Santa. While the cartoon version of Mr. Bingle is pretty innocuous; I do recall being creeped out by a person in a Bingle costume — not unlike the one in the carriage photo. Thanks for the memories.
Wondering about the weather myself. With such an early Carnival, I suppose anything’s possible.