Mardi Gras is about as early as it can get this year with Krewe du Vieux kicking things off on January 23rd! In New Orleans, we’re all eating King Cake. My genius friend and fellow Pussyfooter dancer ,Christine Miller of Two Chicks Walking Tours, hosts an annual “potluck” where women bring King Cakes from local bakeries and kitchens. (photo below by Elizabeth Zibilich). Like last year, I wasn’t able to attend but was the lucky recipient of a plate of samples from District Donuts Sliders Brew, Hi Do Bakery and the always amazing Manny Randazzo King Cakes. And like every year, I enjoyed the tradition of converting our home’s Christmas tree to a Mardi Gras tree.
Most of our Christmas ornaments I made from Sculpey clay, glass beads or chandelier crystals. Though our Mardi Gras tree has a few of my handmade adornments, most of the ornaments are medallions from beads we’ve caught in parades over the years. So hanging the 6 Krewe of Muses annual shoe medallions transported me back to those parades, standing on the curb watching it go by for 4 years then dancing in the parade for the past 2 years. Finding a spot for my Zulu ornaments takes me back to my first year living here when the Saints won the Super Bowl DURING Mardi Gras in one of the most magical moments in the history of partying and celebration. It’s a moment I’ve done my best to capture in my upcoming book, The Secret of the Other Mother: A Charlotte Reade Mystery.
And decorating the tree gets me excited for the season ahead. King Cake aside, Carnival season really begins for me at the Pussyfooter’s annual Blush Ball this Friday benefitting Metropolitan Center for Women and Children (METRO), a domestic violence non-profit. The Soul Rebels will play along with DJ Ronnie Roux and my dancing pink sisters and I will dance and debut our new uniform pieces. Cinderella may have gotten to attend a ball, but every year we get to host one!
As a child, I dreamed of going to a ball in a fancy pink dress that made me feel beautiful. As a grown woman, this will be the third time I’m attending a ball in a fancy pink… corset. With combat boots. And I already know that I’ll feel beautiful. Because not only is our uniform designed to accent our curves, it expresses the beauty of women coming together to dance for women and children in need. And it glorifies the femininity of these dancing women, many of whom are executives, business owners, nurses, teachers, moms and other “boss women” who have to be pretty tough outside our corsets.
Enjoy the tree and I hope to see you when I’m parading with the Pussyfooters!
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- King Cake, photo by Elizabeth Zibilich
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- Mardi Gras tree
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- Django, Nyx medallion, Sculpey Mardi Gras Indian
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- 6 Muses shoe medallions
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- Sculpey Django Lara Lee ornament
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- Sculpey harlequin
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- Krewe of Tucks toilet
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- Mardi Gras wreath
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- Christmas ornaments
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- Sculpey Christmas ornaments
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- Sculpey ornaments
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- Blush Ball 2014
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- Blush Ball 2015 photo by nola.com
L.A. to N.O.LA 
The king cakes look wonderful and a am glad that you named a few of the bakeries to get those goodies. Such fun this season. Our son is in the MOT over here in Mobile, We are going to stay at the Riverview with the babies while their mom and dad party downtown the last weekend of mg. hope to see you at crawfish boil, have fun these next few weeks.
Such a great time of year!
Hope to be able to share some 2016 throws that would be worthy of addition to your 2017 tree.
Looking forward to it. Throw me somethin’ mister!
The tree is gorgeous!
Thank you!