Muddy Marathoner to Black Tie Formal: Savor the Symphony

Last night was the Elan Circle’s annual Savor the Symphony charity event, held at the Adolphus Hotel in Dallas. Since my friend Blake chairs the event and spends a lot of time planning an organizing, I’ve been hearing about it forever, and so planned to stick around Dallas for the weekend in order to attend. It was just luck that I found a marathon to run yesterday while I was in town (more on that in tomorrow’s race recap), but when I arrived home absolutely covered in caked-on mud, I realized that I was about to embark on a pretty crazy transformation from dirty marathoner to black tie-ready. I’ve learned a lot this month as part of my fashion challenge, but could I pull it off?

I had chosen a white one-shoulder gown that I found online a month or so ago at a deep discount, and paired that with gold strappy heels from DSW. I had to scrub my ankles and feet for quite some time to get the mud off, but then I did my nails myself with a bright red polish for my toes and a clear pink gloss on my fingers. I did my hair myself instead of going to get it done, and had originally planned a complicated updo similar to what I wore at the Junior League Winter Ball. When that didn’t work out, though, I went for a simple ballerina bun at the nape of my neck – I figured it would better show off the one-shoulder neckline and jewelry anyway. I also took a risk in doing my makeup myself, but I think I did a pretty good job in mixing brown and gold eyeshadows to create a smoky eye – and I was thrilled that my makeup took less than five minutes. One thing I was worried about it in taking on this challenge was that it would take me much longer than usual to get ready. However, I found that it takes me more time to figure out how to put an outfit together, but once I’ve gotten that down, the rest is still quick. And as I get more outfit friend-approved (you should see the Sunday texts between me and my “fashion consultants” when I’m packing for the week), that should get faster too.

The one-shoulder dress didn’t allow me to wear a necklace, which is normally the only jewelry I wear, so I had to try some new things instead to look appropriately festive. While I don’t have pierced ears, I found these neat little things that convert pierced earrings to clip ons, allowing me to wear big dangly earrings. Wearing my hair pulled back allowed me to show them off, and I was very excited to wear earrings for the first time in my life! At Theodora and Ashley‘s insistence, I also removed my Nike+ Fuelband and swapped it out for a simple gold bracelet instead (another first for me, since I never wear bracelets). After grabbing a gold silk clutch I picked up incredibly inexpensively at Burlington Coat Factory, I was good to go!

The event was amazing, though I may have gotten a little carried away when it came time to bid on the auction items. But hey, two full cases of wine (bought in four separate lots) and three packages of Flywheel classes are the staples of my life, and I’ll totally use them fast! (She said only half-jokingly.) I had an incredible time with my friends, who put in the hard sell for me to move to Dallas, and I’m starting to think I might actually want to do that!

Maybe. Someday. We’ll see. Blake, no promises.