A Black Tie Mistake

I know we all have stories of embarrassing things that have happened to us. Sometimes, I feel like they happen more often to me. Like the time as a high school cheerleader, I did a high kick in the middle of the football field. I kicked with so much force I landed flat on the ground. Forehead slap! The truth is I know I’m not alone. Also, the good news is MOST of the time I can laugh at myself.

This brings me to a situation about 2 years ago. My grandmother had passed away the previous month. I was in grief, which, of course, made it a terribly sad time. Very few things made me happy and just carrying out everyday life was sometimes overwhelming.

Then, Brent got an invitation to the 2018 Western Heritage Awards at the National Cowboy and Western Heritage Museum. It was a black-tie event and I was going to be his date. I was so excited! Date night was just what we needed. I totally love fancy parties and dressing up, so I was looking forward to it even though the sadness from losing my grandmother was consuming me most of the time.

The Dress

I shopped for a formal dress. I only had a little over a week to find the right one. I considered ordering one from Rent the Runway but felt it was a bit more than I wanted to pay for a one time use and the timeframe was tight. I decided to buy from a store and it felt like I was shopping for prom!

It was a blast. After a bit of searching, I found just the right dress at a consignment shop. It actually ended up being a sample dress (way cheaper price than a regular dress) which meant it had the word “SAMPLE” embroidered near the bottom hem of the skirt. The font was only 1/2 inch in height, not really noticeable when the dress was on. No big deal but since I knew it was there I wanted it gone. I called up my mother-in-law who helped me brainstorm how I could remove it. I did some thread pulling, scrubbed the affected area with soap and water to straighten the fabric threads and it mostly disappeared. The “E” gave me trouble but the rest came off pretty smoothly.

I was happy with the dress. It fit well, was comfortable, was black-tie appropriate and I felt like I could wear it to another event in the future. Next, came the question of hair and accessories. I had some earrings that I could use so that was already decided. I painted my nails this color. I also had some black patent leather heels that would work perfectly. Deciding how to wear my hair was so fun! I polled some friends and got their feedback. I also did a lot of YouTube research about what style would be elegant, but also doable for me to DIY. We had a fairly tight budget overall. Brent had to rent a tux and my dress was not super cheap so I needed to do my hair myself.

The Mistake

I found this video and did a test run. It went well so I decided to go for it on the night of the event. All was going smoothly. I was able to create the look without too much trouble and felt proud of my work. Then I thought it would be best to spray it with hairspray so the style would stay in place. After I had sprayed quite a lot of hairspray into my hair I realized little white flakes were attaching to my hair. They were not going away. Something was incredibly wrong with my hairspray. [Enter total panic mode].

Up to this point in the day, I had helped facilitate a neighborhood workday, dropped Grant at a friend’s birthday party (a first without parents), and somehow managed to take care of a three-year-old plus take a shower and paint my nails. Then the doorbell rang and the babysitter, Raven, had arrived.

My makeup was finished, I just needed to slip on my shoes and grab my clutch BUT my hair was a disaster. There was NO WAY I could go to the event with white flakes scattered throughout my hair. Brent’s co-workers would be there, his boss and her husband, even the owner of the company! Not to mention it was in the banquet room of the museum, which I had dreamed of attending an event there since I first laid eyes on it in middle school (the paintings are phenomenal).

I didn’t know what to do. I could maybe fix the problem by taking out the 39 bobby pins and brushing it out but there was no time to redo the style and wearing it down would not look good. I’m pretty sure I told Brent, on the edge of tears, I just can’t go.

The Rescue

As I was showing Raven my hair and explaining to her my predicament she casually said she could fix my hair if I wanted her too. She said she did it for girls in her youth group all the time. I’m pretty sure I was crying at this point! Since my hair had already been brushed out and with that all the little white blobs eliminated she could easily whip up a hairstyle and we could rush out the door.

I know how awesome babysitters are, they help us in so many others ways than just watching our kids. They cook, clean, are bored out of their minds after the kids go to sleep (since we don’t have a T.V.) but this was over the top! Raven was a godsend that night. She changed the way I felt about the evening. If I had to go with ratty hair it would have affected how I felt and really no matter how you look if you don’t feel pretty than it just doesn’t matter.

She made me feel confident and beautiful. Plus, she entertained my kids, fed them, and put them to bed. For a mother to know your kids are well-taken care gives you so much freedom to truly relax and enjoy yourself. We had such a nice time at the event.

A lesson learned is to NEVER trust an old bottle of hairspray. I hardly ever use hairspray, like ever. I know this sounds crazy but the bottle of spray was from 2007. I bought it to use at our wedding! It stayed in the cabinet because most of the bottle was full and you never know when you might need some hairspray. It goes bad, throw it out. Lesson learned.

I’d love to hear how someone helped you through a sticky situation.

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