Hula Dancer Barbie

Hula Dancer Barbie

Halifax and Dartmouth used to celebrate Natal Day separately, a week apart.  Dartmouth had dories on the sidewalks where a service club served free chowder for breakfast.  There was a parade in the morning, a regatta on Lake Banook in the afternoon and fireworks in the evening.

The year I was 6, a hula dancer who lived in my neighbourhood approached my mother to ask if I would be on her float in the parade. She had noticed me because I have skin that tans easily and dark brown, curly hair. She danced in a grass skirt in the center of the float while three other little girls and I sat on the corners and waved our arms about in a way that was meant to suggest hula dancing.

I arrived at the marshaling area early wearing a bathing suit.  They added a lei, a grass skirt, flowers for my hair, anklets and wristlets.  July in Dartmouth can be warm and sunny or cold and rainy.  That year was definitely cold and rainy.  Rather than hide our costumes under coats, we wore clear dry cleaner bags.  And so began the coldest Natal Day of my life...until a week later,  when we did it again for the Halifax celebration.

Barbie never suffers from the cold or heat but, let's face it, she can't pretend to hula dance with her arms.

Medieval Barbie

Medieval Barbie

Medieval Barbie is wearing a dress made of dark green velvet with an underskirt of very fragile gold metallic brocade.  She is standing by the dark pink peonies that came into bloom yesterday.

Medieval fairs are very popular attractions in the summer and there is one near here every year in the hamlet called Osgoode.  Here one can watch jousting, a hand-fasting and see crafts people ply their ancient trades.  There will be puppet shows, magicians, dancers, and a murder mystery dinner.  You can buy jewellery,  bread and honey, clothing and armour. 

Barbie will fit right in.   Fit might not be exactly the right word; she's a little shorter than most of the other fair-goers but you know what I mean. 

Spring Flowers Barbie

Spring Flowers Barbie

Siberian irises are among the earliest blooms in my garden.  They are lovely mauve flowers with yellow accents on the petals.  They are the perfect flower for people who don't have green thumbs.  Siberian irises are resistant to soft rot and iris borers.  They are hardy to Zone 3 and don't fall down in the rain like peonies.

Barbie's dress is a light mauve with yellow/green beading on the collar and drop waist.  You can't see the pretty trim at the bottom of her skirt because I am not a photographer.  I realized as I perched on my makeshift seat that I kept posing Barbie with a telephone pole growing out of her head. (You can still see the pole on the left).

I did try other angles and vantage points but Barbie has little patience.   I noticed her smile was increasingly plastic so I had to make do with the shots I had.

Bridal Wreath Barbie

Bridal Wreath Barbie

Barbie hasn't had a wedding in weeks!  But this weekend the bridal wreath spirea was in full bloom and if that isn't a reason to get married I don't know what is.

You'll notice Barbie's wedding gown is not white.  Vera Wang has featured entire collections of non-white wedding dresses including a series of  red tones and this dress is a tribute to her work. In the movie Time Again, Rachel MacAdams wears a red wedding dress, not by Vera Wang but it is a great dress. 

Queen Victoria's wedding dress was white and started a fashion that has been copied many, many times.  The biggest problem with white of course is it is so hard to keep it clean and red wine leaves such a hideous, conspicuous stain.  

A little free advice to brides, stick to white wine until all the pictures have been taken. And don't eat the salad at dinner in case a leaf becomes lodged in your teeth.  You can thank me later.