When shall we folk meet again?

Hi,

I read the other day that if you’re not quite feeling something, that rather than thinking can I be bothered?, it may be wiser to reflect on will I enjoy it when I’m there? I will be honest and say I’ve been a bit tired this week – nothing stressful or worrying, just modern life – and as such, I wasn’t 100% sure about packing everything for Chams.

But…. 🙃 ‘Tis the Halloween Do but once a year – yea gads, I’m already leaning into Shakespearean tones, and I’ve not even mentioned witches yet! 😁

From o’cross the land, they were called; gathered,
Bedecked in darkness with deed filled hearts,
Of sharpened nail, with canines long, are the Chosen,
Know them by their hats, their tresses, and their hunger!
For souls? bay the unlearned and fearful
Nay! A slice of Victoria sponge and a big mug of coffee 😉

Where was I? Oh aye. At Chams we like a reason to mix things up a little and so each October, the second meeting is typically Halloween fancy dress. It’s not compulsory, just something fun if you want to join in.

This year, rather than going for a more gothic vibe, I wondered if I might try my luck at something more witchy. Getting something from a fancy dress shop seemed off the cards. Partly because the materials tend to be synthetic – and I don’t do well with nylon textures – and, there’s the curse of male vs female costumes. I don’t mean sizing, but I’m fairly sure that a firefighter outfit has trousers, rather than hotpants and a midriff top. Maybe I’m wrong, maybe hotpants – given the flames and the water – would be an excellent choice in the real world, but I would be concerned about sparks and debris…. 😁

Plus, I’d odd, so I kinda like to mix & match stuff and try to create something with what I know or what I’ve seen. I guess that’s the creativity bias creeping in.

I had a pair of black ankle boots from a while back and I’d bought some black & white stripey tights in the sale last year. I felt that might be the start – the base? – of a look, so I just needed a dress or something to make it come together. Cue a look on Vinted and I found a rather pretty long tunic, with stars & moons on it. A quick message to the seller about length, and I thought why not. If it didn’t work for Halloween, I thought it cute enough for blending into a regular outfit with leggings or jeans.

I tried it on on Tuesday and felt things would work. It was a little shorter than I’m used to, but following the rule of legs or top not both I felt it was okay. That and given the ankle boots cut shorten your leg, a higher hem seems to balance things out. I certainly felt this when I tried the bronze skirt & brown boots, which didn’t work for me when put together.

The hat I got online and I picked this one because it was made of the same fabric as sun hats are. I hoped that would keep its shape and feel better on. I’ll be keeping this – maybe not for daytime wear though! – as it feels quite lovely.

I was late setting off to Chams and thankfully the traffic had died down due to that extra 30 minute wait. I spent some time getting the ‘happy Halloween’ paper decorations out of the cupboard and tying the string to the window handles. That and I had brought along an old plasma globe which had belonged to Wee Man, passed to Child 2.0, who handed it to me yesterday for recycling. Not exactly an eldritch experience of terror, but it changed the walls up a little. 🙂

With just the one outfit in the bag, I was ready fairly quickly. I did try my hand at some false lashes and I was careful not to overdo the darker eye make-up. The advice of not trying something new on the day (or night) is something I live by. Experiments are best done, IMO, when you’ve the time to back out, trying again, or decide it’s not for you. It’s too much of a risk of can’t-fix-it-so-off-and-reapply when you’re just about ready,

The evening started off a little quiet as it took folk a little longer to arrive. I guess this was people needing a little time to get ready. Sadly, Val couldn’t make it due to work issues, but so it goes ❤️ I think pretty much everyone had gone for something black on the night – except Deb who’d gone purple. Well, not completely purple, that feels a bit too Chocolate Factory – but we don’t judge at Chams! 😉 Diane had gone for a vampire look – complete with cape and fangs. However, I think the teeth where giving her a bit of trouble. I will not make a gag about age – I don’t want to be bitten 😁

Stevie had brought along some cake to celebrate her birthday, and I’d picked up a Birthday Girl badge earlier in the week for her. We -ummm- did rather well on the portion sizes, as only six folk wanted cake and there were two of them! Still, what a treat…. and an extra long dog walk this weekend, no doubt.

There was much good natured laughter and shared stories about various topics, which – no Halloween pun intended – was just the tonic. I felt my tiredness lift with the humour and on being able to listen to what people had been up to.

The evening drew to a close and there was a flurry of activity around photos given the costumes. I’m hoping some of the members will pop them on CDH in due course. Chaos ensued as various kind & witty comments where made, as folk got in line for their photo. I will not repeat Jayne’s, as it was rude-and-not-rude at the same time. I had to stop to get my breath.

Just as we finished, my brain kicked in and I wondered about getting folk to stand holding the plasma globe. Diane was first with Jayne adjusting the cape and globe’s cable to hide it from view. Someone popped Stevie’s broom under my arm and with the lights off – plus a vignette filter – there’s the photo in question.

Given the smiles, laughter, and language, everyone seemed to have had a good time, so it was off into the dark, having committed our fell sorcery of looking out for each other, sharing food & stories, and celebrating.

I’ll take that as a win.

L x