Vintage and Tissues

I'll post the "PS" at the top: got this one today. Madeleine and her fabulous James. They've now been together for about 14 months, and are kindred spirits, sharing a wonderfully strange sense of humour, a love of music, and a reluctance to sleep before midnight at the earliest. He is a fearsomely good pianist, classically-trained but with jazz improvisation as his real passion. I love him to bits, which, frankly, is just as well.

**********

Well, I was going to wait until I had the "official" photos to post this, but I have some time today and I'm in the mood, so I'll go with the cropped happy snap for the time being.

This is Madeleine, the oldest of our three girls, at her Year 12 Formal a week or so ago. This is quite a big deal here, and comes before final school exam preparations take over every waking moment.

We looked for a very long time for a dress that was just right. Mads wanted something long and classical, but it was more a case of knowing what she didn't want rather than what she did. Funny - the specialist school she goes to has a dance stream and a music stream; the female dancers all wear short dresses, while the musos almost exclusively go "longs". Of course the dancers are very body-aware and confident, but I think the longs look classier (yes Mum).

Anyway - the story of the dress. My much-adored mother died quite suddenly when Mads was only eleven and in her final year at primary school. They were very close, and even now, some of Mads' most powerful creative writing brings up the pain of that loss.

After trawling though shop after shop looking unsuccessfully for the right dress, Mads remembered this one and asked if she could pull it out of storage. It was part of my mother's trousseau, and only she ever wore it. My mum was a very skilled dressmaker, and it's beautifully made in pure ivory silk with antique lace at the bodice, laced with rolled silk ties at the back. It is actually a nightdress, but we figured if turning underwear into daytime couture was OK for Stella McCartney then this was well within the rules for a school Formal.

As soon as Madeleine put it on she knew it was right. She told me she'd always wanted Grandma to make her Formal dress, and now she had. Hugs and tears for both of us, and the decision was made.

So here she is, at almost 18 years old, still thinking of the wonderful woman who loved and gave her her so much. I've always told the girls that Mum lives on through the people she loved most. It's nice that they feel the same way.