It really was 'a tale as old as time' here not so long ago!
Surrounded by thick forest, within the walls of Beast's castle. the faces of many a fairy tale character glowed in the flickering light of the fire. The table was elegantly set and the smell of a delicious feast wafted in. From the outside looking in, it was no more than another fairytale ball; a shoe left abandoned on a step, the pages of a book fluttering in an empty library, a clock chiming midnight and an evil witch lingering in the shadows, poison apple in hand. But this night was far from the happily ever after that you might expect! What unfolded instead was a timeless tale of treachery, treason and, half way through the night, murder!
Relax, no one was hurting in the making of this evening! I got together some of my friends to enjoy a Murder Mystery Party and thought it would be the perfect opportunity to style a romantic, Disney's 'Beauty and the Beast' themed event. Why Beauty and the Beast? Simple, for this evening I was Belle! A book loving, kind heart belle with a dark shadow cast over my marriage with beast.
The entire styling of my event was based around the enchanted rose, hidden in the west wing that, while slowly losing petals, counts down the time for the beast to break the spell upon the castle and find true love. Atop a stack of Belle's books, the enchanted, red rose, hung mysteriously in the air, protected by it's glass case, creating the focal point of our table. The magical feel of being deep within the enchanted forest was created by rows of real life pines encompassing the room and vines of ivy climbing down from the forest, across our table and draping back down to the floor. The room was lit from the golden glow of the fire, two tall candelabras framing the rose and a scattering of tea lights, lit up inside stray tea cups, next to a forgotten stack of books, beside Cinderellas forgotten shoe and atop sleeping beauty's spindle. Upon an ivory table cloth sat an assortment of vintage style crockery and cutlery, straight from the cupboards of beasts castle, perhaps a chip in a cup? Each guests seat was designated by a vintage name label, and waiting at this seat should they dare, a shiny, poisonous, toffee apple, left behind by an evil witch.
I wont tell you how our story ended, but take a step into our enchanted evening and check out the photos in the gallery below!
