♫ Masquerade! Paper faces on parade
Masquerade! Hide your face so the world will never find you ♫
So I scratched one item off my bucket list last Saturday – attend a masquerade ball! It just goes to show that some dreams do come true, if you work for it. And work for it I did, because I’ve been pushing for this theme for our office yearend D&D (dinner & dance) since last year!
All those gorgeous Victorian clothes we’re wearing in the picture above was rented from a place called Masquerade, which Jemma found online. S$50 already includes a dress, mask and choker. I didn’t wear the choker that came with my costume and chose to wear one I already own.
I was super giddy to be wearing the gown which I had to ask them to alter because it wouldn’t fit me, haha! But while it looks gorgeous, I have to say I pity the ladies of the olden days because it’s so heavy, with all the layers of petticoats underneath, and it was so hot! My legs sweat a ton, it was like wearing a freaking sauna!
We had our hair done at Jean Yip. I had no idea what I wanted, really, just that it definitely had to be curly. Next thing you know, the hairdresser had made this elaborate hairdo for me!
I did my own makeup. I am so amazed at how long-lasting Mac Russian Red lipstick is! I didn’t retouch for the entire night and it stayed put! Same thing for my foundation, I didn’t need powder nor film strips at all during the night thanks to this combo = Mac prep & prime + Bourjois healthy foundation + Urban Decay setting spray.
The location was St Regis hotel, one of the most luxurious ones in Singapore. We’re so lucky we managed to snag them! Since there are 350 guests, it’s usually a pain to find a venue for us. Look at how gorgeous the place is!
For entertainment, we were serenaded by this acoustic couple. The guy is not only a singer, but a magician as well, and in between sets, he performed some tricks such as swallowing a very long balloon and making it “snow” with paper confetti.
Of course we had food as well. It was a delicious sit-down dinner. I loved all the food, they were all so tasty except for the dessert, which was disappointing, but only probably because I prefer chocolate-flavored dessert. However some people complained afterwards that there wasn’t enough and they got hungry afterwards.
The menu was:
* Tian of tomato-avocado with crab meat, tomato marmalade, Jicama trout roe, mixed cress salad (not pictured)
* Wild morel mushroom velote, cepes dust (it looks like chocolate soup, no?)
* Roasted cajun chicken roulade, sauteed asparagus, chive potato mousseline
* Pistachio-ginger cheesecake, orange jelly, honey-figs ice cream
We also had a photo booth, but there were so many people in line that I got to have only one picture with my friends. I didn’t really have time to queue because I had some duties as a social committee member.
At one point I even had to get up on stage and announce something and tried to crack a joke about how I knew they really wanted to vote me for best dressed, but unfortunately social committee members were not eligible.
Later on as I walked around collecting the ballots, a couple of people said they wanted to vote for me, including our biggest boss. Haha! In the end, it was my friend Dred and her boss Sri who won. They are the ones in orange on the first pic.
There was also a raffle draw, and none of us friends won anything. Hmph.
When the program was done, we danced for a bit on the dance floor before heading home. We didn’t want to go to the after-party anymore because as I said in previous blog – signs of aging.
I’ll end this post with a bunch of pictures. Sorry, I couldn’t decide on just one! There are actually more but this will have to do!
The hotel had so many Christmas trees, and I wanted to pose with all of them!
Then we rushed home at midnight and our gowns turned back into rags. And I didn’t even get a prince out of it. Oh well! It was still a dream come true anyway! 😄
P.S. Yearend parties from previous years:
- 2010 – Casino Royale @ Marina Bay Sands Convention Centre
- 2011 – Hollywood Night @ Marina Bay Sands Convention Centre
- 2012 – Gangnam Style @ W Hotel