Dirt Roads and...........the Prom

 

On the Dirt road today......tiny toys, books, and the Prom.

Fairy Granddaughter calls these "Ma-Maw's BLUE PEARLS" LOL

One of my miniature shelves.  These are the little "teeny genies" that her and I used to play with. She's outgrown them now, but I think they are cute so I keep them on the shelf.

Lots of other tiny treasures too.....little ponies, tiny books,  fairies, sparkly jewels, a few unicorns. 

Another shelf of tiny things--tiny animals, a purple sofa, fairies reading books, a hot pink sofa.....

Marbles, bright green chairs, a purple coffee table, blue lamps....

the little baby pegasus has laid down for a nap. LOL

Finally finished reading The Golden Cup by Belva Plain. It was a long and great read! the first one was Evergreen, which I read last summer. I had started the sequel, the Golden Cup way back in the Fall, and just now finished it. Not because it wasn't good....because it was. I was just reading slowly. Next up in this series is Tapestry.  I love Belva's big long sweeping generational family sagas, taking place in different eras. 

as you can see....I have a few stacks of Belva Plain books. LOL

I got this book from a dear friend for Christmas. I'm now getting started on it again. It's good so far!
Did you ever read anything by Julie Ellis? She writes great historical novels set in different eras too. Drama, romance, and history.

I read ALOT OF Belva Plain, Julie Ellis, and Cynthia Freeman back in the 1980s.

Speaking of books and reading....I am sad to say good-bye to one of my top favorite magazines....Reminisce. Hard to believe, but I've been reading it for close to 32 years!  Back when I first started reading it, I enjoyed all the true stories and pictures about life in the 1940s and 1950s. But as time passed....I started noticing photographs and stories from the 1970s and even the 1980s!!--- and I thought "wait, the 1970s.....THAT'S not old, that's not nostalgic...that's recent..........right....well maybe not.....no, nope. Time goes fast. LOL

I sure will miss Reminisce and Reminisce Extra.
(below) from the Editor, Mary:

Did you read Reminisce?

It's Prom season once again! This little book is so cute and has so many fun pictures.

I love seeing all the different styles for tuxes and prom gowns through the different years. I'd say these two below are the 80s maybe? The hair/bangs are all poofed and spray-netted up, and girls still wore hosiery. Nobody even wears stockings to church anymore, just bare legs.

The two below??---late Seventies maybe? Early 80s? The boys tuxes shirts don't have ruffles.

These two below definitely look 1960s to me, how about you? The couple in the pink room might even be late 1950s, with his skinny tie and her strapless gown with what looks like a swishy taffeta skirt. Love their big pretty wrist corsages!

This group is having a fun evening!

Below....looks like the 1950s to me. Almost everyone is in a strapless gown and most of them are wearing gloves. 

Looks like the 1960s to me. The girls on the left are in shorter dresses, so maybe later 60s, and the ladies in the black and white picture looks more like the early 1960s.  The dresses were getting shorter, and remember when it was "glamorous and elegant" to wear a fur stole or shawl?
Even prom flowers go through trends, I think. Back in the 50s, an orchid corsage the young man would pin onto the gown was the "thing". Orchids were "exotic". LOL Then wrist corsages were kind of the trend, wore on bare wrist, or over the gloves if the girl wore gloves.
 In the 70s I noticed not even a "regular" corsage or wrist corsage was the style.....girls were actually carrying little nose-gays. (like the girl on the book's cover) Of course you couldn't pin those on your dress, but they looked pretty in the Prom pictures, so much like wedding bouquets. 

(all prom photos above from "Prom Night" by Elissa Stein)

I got this bookmark back in the Fall, I think they are so pretty! Love the embroidery

We finally finished up all the Seasons of In the Heat of the Night. I sure loved this series, and hated to see it end! All of the actors did a great job portraying life, crime, drama, relationships and current events in the 1980s in small town Sparta, Mississippi. 

Now we have started "Hotel". We've seen just a few episodes so far. They are not GREAT, but not too bad either. We are liking it a bit more as we get to know the characters working at the St. Gregory Hotel in San Francisco. I always liked James Brolin as an actor every since Marcus Welby, M.D., back in 1969 and the early 70s. I also always liked Connie Sellecca too. Did you used to watch Marcus Welby? How about Medical Center?

so...........tell me about YOUR PROM.  Was yours in the High School gymnasium, all decorated in crepe paper and balloons and paper flowers? Was a band hired for the big evening?

Or was your Prom in a nice hotel ballroom or other venue?

We had our dinner and dance all in the same ballroom. I've seen these days the couples go to dinner somewhere, sometimes as a group, some as just a couple....at the restaurant of choice. 

 Back in our day, we had dinner served there at the same place as the dance. After we ate, they cleared the dishes away and we still sat at the big round tables unless we were up dancing. We had a band. These days I think they do D.J.s??

Did you go to the Beauty Shop on Prom day, to get a fancy up-do?

"Dyed to match" satiny pumps, or strappy high heeled dress sandals------

Do you remember back when we got our shoes dyed to match our dresses? You would to to a real shoe store (LOL), where they would measure your feet, got to the back of the store and return with several selections....for you to try on and walk in. Then when you made your choice you left your shoes with a material swatch of your gown, and in a week or so, they would call you and let you know that your fancy shoes were ready to be picked up.

 It was the same procedure for bridesmaids. The fancy little clutch pocketbooks for Prom, or weddings.....were often dyed to match the shoes.

What kind of corsage did you wear, or carry?

How about gloves, did you or not?

There were no such things as nail salons when I was in high school. We polished our own nails! Unbelievable!! ha ha LOL

And there were no such thing as "spray tans". I don't think even QT was around yet. ha ha LOL (QT was a nasty smelling quick tanning lotion that would turn your skin an un-natural shade of tan)

None of us cared about a "tan" or not....unless we were wearing a strapless gown. In that case, we would "lay out" on a blanket in the backyard, with a transistor radio,  slathered in baby oil and iodine.

Saturday morning--the phone rings. It's your best friend. "Do you wanna lay out today? Looks like it will be warm and sunny" And your answer...."yes, soon as American Bandstand is over." 

We never missed American Bandstand. LOL

Last question.....what were your favorite songs played at your Prom?