Labyrinth of Jareth

The Ball was held at the Park Plaza Hotel, and holy cow, is it gorgeous. You have to allow me a few pictures to show the various rooms and areas, because the setting really made the night. I'm not some wedding-crazy woman, but if I were getting married, I would definitely consider this place. It's not in such a great area, but you forget that as you step inside. This is the Grand Staircase, guarded before the night began and the gates were opened at the top.

This was the ballroom at the top ofvthe stairs, all heavy-beamed ceiling and gold gilding. I really wish I'd had a partner to waltz with.

One of the many beautiful iron chandeliers throughout the hotel.

One of the downstairs rooms.

Now, some attendees. Steampunk was fucking EVERYWHERE. I'm so glad I did not dress in steampunk. It was done to DEATH. There were some cool examples, but for the most part I started to feel a huge steampunk-ennui by the end of the night, and actively sought out other costumes to admire.

Death and her brother Dream showed up right before I left and I snapped a quick picture. She was pretty cute;)

This chick looked awesome. She had this cage strapped to her back wreathed in blue lights, and I never got the chance to ask her about it. I had to take a picture, of course.

I REALLY wish this picture wasn't so frigging dark The best look of the night, in my opinion, was the little girl dressed as Claudia. She was prefect: sweet, beautiful golden curls and blue dress . . . and so creepy as a result! They were there early and left early, naturally: she was maybe eight, so it was past her bedtime. I hope she had fun; she definitely knew how to pose for the photographers:)

There was a spotlight in the lobby and it was a favorite picture spot. People would come in and stop, posing, while photogs snapped away. This group was pretty amazing-looking.

This girl was in a pretty decent Loki costume, and she was working the event. She stood on the steps all night, looking ready to kick Avenger ass. I hope she kept an eye out for the Hulk:)

All in all, I would have had more fun if I'd gone with someone or in a group, but it was still fun to people-watch (though it would have been better if I'd had a snark-partner!). There were a lot of lame, half-assed costumes, and quite a few women who thought this was an excuse to wear almost nothing. In fact, there was one couple dressed as Adam and Eve who were, quite literally, wearing pasties and almost nothing else. The stripper heels and bare bellies made me a little depressed, but the really awesome looks more than made up for it. There were definitely folks who went all out with a vengeance, and it made me proud to be a weirdo right along with them. I'm already starting to think about my ensemble for next year . . .