thedrifter
11-08-07, 05:56 AM
Having a ball: Marines and their wives put on the glitz at Marine Corps' 232nd birthday celebrations
Published Thursday November 8 2007
By DAN HILLIARD
dhilliard@beaufortgazette.com
843-986-5531
Jill Keyes left her Marine husband in the dust when she went shopping for a gown for the annual Marine Corps birthday ball.
After all, it's hard to find a decent dress when you have a price limit, she said.
"I wouldn't want to put him through that," Keyes said Nov. 1 as she tried on a sequined turquoise gown at Magic Moments boutique. "He hates shopping, period. Besides, he'd probably kill me. I spent a lot more than I was supposed to. But it was worth it."
While Marines hang cargo netting and other decorations to prepare for the ball, their spouses hit the shops to get ready for the biggest date night of the year -- Nov. 10, the day the Marine Corps officially was created in 1775.
For some of them, this will be the most expensive thing they do all year, said Magic Moments owner Donna Castellano, herself a Marine wife.
Her business picks up by almost 70 percent in late October and early November, she said. In two months, she can sell 1,000 gowns.
"We've sold so many our racks are empty, almost."
Most of her dresses cost around $225, but some officer's wives won't blink twice at dropping $900 on a specially made gown.
Including the cost of a gown, haircut, manicure and tickets, it's fairly easy for a Marine spouse to blow through $1,000 to $2,500 preparing for one night of cake and Corps tradition, Castellano said.
Keyes was a pretty congenial customer, she said. She came in, dropped $200 on a dress and was out the door. But some girls -- ballzillas, she calls them -- treat the Marine Corps ball like a grown-up prom, and they are ruthless when it comes to sizing and making sure they have a unique gown.
Store manager Chantelle Gancerez, also a Marine wife, says there are several gowns in the store with busted seams and zippers that are casualties of denial.
"When you walk in the door, we ask you how we can help and what size street clothes you wear," she said. One woman insisted she was a size 4. Gancerez discreetly handed her a size 6.
"As soon as she looked at the label, she said, 'Oh no, no, no -- I'm a size 4,' Gancerez said. She relented and handed the woman a size 4. The zipper popped almost immediately.
"They all try to stuff themselves in," she said. "It's unreal.
Women on the other end of the spectrum cause their fair share of havoc as well, Gancerez said.
"You have the girls who come in who are severely thin and say things like, 'Oh, this dress makes
me look fat.' I'm like, 'Really? Can you show me where?' Then we have some girls who seem to think the gowns were made to fit them, and I tell them that no one's got a mannequin's body. Everyone's got too little on top and too much on the bottom or vice versa. You're going to need alterations."
This is the year of the Disney princess gown, Castellano said. Everyone wants a puffy bottom with frills and lace. Castellano said she has to keep a record of which gowns go to which unit to prevent a ballroom fracas.
"We try not to sell carbon copies to the same unit," she said. "Especially to the officers' wives. Oh, do they get irritated."
Ballzillas looking to avoid paying through the nose for a gown are shameless negotiators, she said.
"They'll come in and say, 'My husband will only let me spend 60 bucks.' I look around and tell them that's not going to work. It's all about who can look the best without spending the most money."
Monica Queen, wife of Gunnery Sgt. Eric Queen of Marine Recruit Depot Parris Island, said she and her 10-year-old daughter Morgan plan to attend a non-commissioned officer ball Friday.
Preparing for the ball has been a $400 hassle so far.
This will be her fifth ball, however, and it's well worth it, she said.
"We've been married five years, and this is our fifth ball," she said. "It's kind of routine. We know we're going to need extra money this time of year. The biggest hassle is the dress, by far. Nobody has the same size, the sizes are always wrong, and I'm big on matching his uniform, so I have to find a black or red dress. It's hard to find a dress in those colors that is appropriate for the ball."
Last year, the straps on Queen's dress snapped from the constant sitting up and standing down during the Marine birthday ceremony.
At least her shoes survived the ordeal.
Lance Cpl. Rene Mejia's wife Iovana had just spent $30 on a new pair of shoes for this year's ball when her pit bull chewed them to a pulp.
"I went to try to get them fixed, but they were so badly chewed the clerks couldn't fix them," she said.
Mejia plans to get through the Marine Corps birthday relatively cheaply. Overall, her costs will be about $200.
"We've been together for seven years, so it does remind me of the homecomings and proms I used to go to with my husband," she said. "It'll be nice to have another picture in our house."
No matter how fun it is to get all dressed up and spend an evening carousing, the Marine Corps birthday comes down to a celebration of honor and tradition, said Shawn Sutton, the wife of Marine Corps Air Station Sgt. Maj. James Sutton.
A former Marine herself, Sutton said the money and pomp surrounding the ball takes a back seat to 232 years of Corps service.
"I'm sure people spend unbelievable amounts of money, but anytime you get up that high, it's purely by choice," she said. "Dresses can be had second-hand, and there's no law saying you've got to get your hair done. There's very few people there wearing real diamonds and stuff like that."
In addition, the ball is a salute from the Marine Corps to the spouses who keep its fighting men and women supported on the home-front, Sutton said.
"They give us a chance to be involved in that celebration. They could do it dining in, something that wouldn't involve the spouses, but they don't. I think they know it's good for the spouses to go and see their husbands taking pride in the Marine Corps."
Ellie
Published Thursday November 8 2007
By DAN HILLIARD
dhilliard@beaufortgazette.com
843-986-5531
Jill Keyes left her Marine husband in the dust when she went shopping for a gown for the annual Marine Corps birthday ball.
After all, it's hard to find a decent dress when you have a price limit, she said.
"I wouldn't want to put him through that," Keyes said Nov. 1 as she tried on a sequined turquoise gown at Magic Moments boutique. "He hates shopping, period. Besides, he'd probably kill me. I spent a lot more than I was supposed to. But it was worth it."
While Marines hang cargo netting and other decorations to prepare for the ball, their spouses hit the shops to get ready for the biggest date night of the year -- Nov. 10, the day the Marine Corps officially was created in 1775.
For some of them, this will be the most expensive thing they do all year, said Magic Moments owner Donna Castellano, herself a Marine wife.
Her business picks up by almost 70 percent in late October and early November, she said. In two months, she can sell 1,000 gowns.
"We've sold so many our racks are empty, almost."
Most of her dresses cost around $225, but some officer's wives won't blink twice at dropping $900 on a specially made gown.
Including the cost of a gown, haircut, manicure and tickets, it's fairly easy for a Marine spouse to blow through $1,000 to $2,500 preparing for one night of cake and Corps tradition, Castellano said.
Keyes was a pretty congenial customer, she said. She came in, dropped $200 on a dress and was out the door. But some girls -- ballzillas, she calls them -- treat the Marine Corps ball like a grown-up prom, and they are ruthless when it comes to sizing and making sure they have a unique gown.
Store manager Chantelle Gancerez, also a Marine wife, says there are several gowns in the store with busted seams and zippers that are casualties of denial.
"When you walk in the door, we ask you how we can help and what size street clothes you wear," she said. One woman insisted she was a size 4. Gancerez discreetly handed her a size 6.
"As soon as she looked at the label, she said, 'Oh no, no, no -- I'm a size 4,' Gancerez said. She relented and handed the woman a size 4. The zipper popped almost immediately.
"They all try to stuff themselves in," she said. "It's unreal.
Women on the other end of the spectrum cause their fair share of havoc as well, Gancerez said.
"You have the girls who come in who are severely thin and say things like, 'Oh, this dress makes
me look fat.' I'm like, 'Really? Can you show me where?' Then we have some girls who seem to think the gowns were made to fit them, and I tell them that no one's got a mannequin's body. Everyone's got too little on top and too much on the bottom or vice versa. You're going to need alterations."
This is the year of the Disney princess gown, Castellano said. Everyone wants a puffy bottom with frills and lace. Castellano said she has to keep a record of which gowns go to which unit to prevent a ballroom fracas.
"We try not to sell carbon copies to the same unit," she said. "Especially to the officers' wives. Oh, do they get irritated."
Ballzillas looking to avoid paying through the nose for a gown are shameless negotiators, she said.
"They'll come in and say, 'My husband will only let me spend 60 bucks.' I look around and tell them that's not going to work. It's all about who can look the best without spending the most money."
Monica Queen, wife of Gunnery Sgt. Eric Queen of Marine Recruit Depot Parris Island, said she and her 10-year-old daughter Morgan plan to attend a non-commissioned officer ball Friday.
Preparing for the ball has been a $400 hassle so far.
This will be her fifth ball, however, and it's well worth it, she said.
"We've been married five years, and this is our fifth ball," she said. "It's kind of routine. We know we're going to need extra money this time of year. The biggest hassle is the dress, by far. Nobody has the same size, the sizes are always wrong, and I'm big on matching his uniform, so I have to find a black or red dress. It's hard to find a dress in those colors that is appropriate for the ball."
Last year, the straps on Queen's dress snapped from the constant sitting up and standing down during the Marine birthday ceremony.
At least her shoes survived the ordeal.
Lance Cpl. Rene Mejia's wife Iovana had just spent $30 on a new pair of shoes for this year's ball when her pit bull chewed them to a pulp.
"I went to try to get them fixed, but they were so badly chewed the clerks couldn't fix them," she said.
Mejia plans to get through the Marine Corps birthday relatively cheaply. Overall, her costs will be about $200.
"We've been together for seven years, so it does remind me of the homecomings and proms I used to go to with my husband," she said. "It'll be nice to have another picture in our house."
No matter how fun it is to get all dressed up and spend an evening carousing, the Marine Corps birthday comes down to a celebration of honor and tradition, said Shawn Sutton, the wife of Marine Corps Air Station Sgt. Maj. James Sutton.
A former Marine herself, Sutton said the money and pomp surrounding the ball takes a back seat to 232 years of Corps service.
"I'm sure people spend unbelievable amounts of money, but anytime you get up that high, it's purely by choice," she said. "Dresses can be had second-hand, and there's no law saying you've got to get your hair done. There's very few people there wearing real diamonds and stuff like that."
In addition, the ball is a salute from the Marine Corps to the spouses who keep its fighting men and women supported on the home-front, Sutton said.
"They give us a chance to be involved in that celebration. They could do it dining in, something that wouldn't involve the spouses, but they don't. I think they know it's good for the spouses to go and see their husbands taking pride in the Marine Corps."
Ellie