French la Vie

 

The first dance I ever went to my mom chaperoned. I was okay with that because at thirteen what mattered was that I got to go to the dance.

Before arriving at the dance my mom told me, "Whoever asks you to dance say yes. It takes courage to ask someone to dance and you are here to dance. When the music starts if no one has asked you to dance, then ask someone to dance with you or go out and dance by yourself." for good measure my mom added, "I do not want to see you sitting around, just dance."

I danced ever dance either with someone or alone. 

 

"A dance card or carnet du bal

was used by a woman to record the names of the gentlemen

with whom she intends to dance each successive dance at a formal ball."

 

"The act of asking a lady to dance had to be carefully orchestrated. A gentleman should stand at a comfortable distance from the lady, bow slightly toward her and request the honor of her presence as a dancing partner. He should never be hasty or overly sure of himself, and should never ask the same lady to accompany him for more than four dances; as such a degree of informality is improper in a ballroom. Furthermore, he should always be well acquainted with a dance before participating since any mistakes he makes during a dance put his partner in an awkward position. A lady, in turn, should not refuse a gentleman's offer unless she has already accepted another's proposal."

"Dance cards listed the specific dances to be performed and provided lines for ladies to fill in the names of their dance partners. In many instances, dance cards and programs were designed in such a way as to make them valuable in their own right, as a souvenir of the evening" via Etiquette 

 

 

Last weekend I found this carnet du bal it is especially charming as it has its pages intact,

and some of them are filled. Also, it still has its original pencil.

 

Thankfully my dance card wasn't full when I met French Husband at the I-BEAM.

 

 

Popular Songs, 1914

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