Posts Tagged ‘polka’

Posted on June 9, 2009 - by deborahfillmer

National Polka Festival 2009

Things around here have been so crazy that I have been unable to post this years collection of images from the Polka Festival.  Now that the mid-terms are over and the grandson has returned home I can finally turn my attention to more entertaining subjects.  Ebby enjoyed the trip to Dallas.

The trip back was another story.  There were three of us, Me, Scott, and our three year old grandson William in the front cab of our little truck for the 14 hour trip back home.  Ebby lived in my lap the entire ride back.  All is well though.  We made it home without incident, unless you count the first hour in the truck when William turned to me and basically lost all his orange juice he had taken in before we left.  It was a mess, but we survived.

This year my dad and I competed in the King and Queen Dance again.  There were 21 couples competing this year and we didn’t even make it past the first cut.  We had fun though and the couple who won were far superior dancers and will represent the festival well in the year to come.

Here is the video of our 2009, meager attempt at stardom…

On Saturday, we went to the parade as usual, but the parade was a huge disappointment this year.  Not only did it start about an hour late because of an inadvertently parked train across the intersection, but there were bands included in the floats that had absolutely NOTHING with Czech heritage, except perhaps that the members were residents of the greater Ennis area.  These bands were beyond metal in flavor and there was not a polka to be found.  Sad, really.  If Ennis wants to do something to promote the Polka Festival in the future they might want to try updating the website and begin thinking “nationally” again.  They are, after all, the National Polka Festival.  Ok, rant is over…  The best part of the parade for me was seeing Ebby all decked out in her costume.  She is truly a Czech/Mex dog!  Ha Ha

We will not be attending this festival next year (or probably for a few years to come), mainly because we want to go visit some other festivals in other parts of the country.  Now that I have my supply of costumes, we can dance in style throughout Wisconsin, Nebraska, Minnesota, and Ohio, to name a few.  Stay tuned here for updates on our adventures to a polka festival near you.

Posted on January 29, 2009 - by DK

Czech Kroj – Men’s Vest

Finally, I am off and running on this year’s costumes.  I have been procrastinating about the construction of this year’s costumes, partly out of a lack of time and partly out of a lack of enthusiasm.  But now I have the first finished piece to show you and I’m back baby!!

Here is the vest that I asked you all to help me with choosing the trim colors and configuration.  I went with option #2 and then spiced up the configuration to give the vest a “look at me” quality, an essential quality when involved in a dance contest.  Let me know what you think…good or bad, constructive critisim is always welcome!

Posted on May 29, 2008 - by DK

National Polka Festival 2008; Ennis, TX – King and Queen Dance Contest

Too Much Fun

There will be no knitting content this week. Instead, I will be updating this blog with several posts throughout the week about the festivities throughout the 2008 Memorial Day weekend. If you are interested in Polka music, Czech culture, or Costume design, you may be interested in these posts.

The weekend went by way too fast. We all had such a good time and, personally, I wish the fun could have continued for several weeks, months, or years. We are researching the possibility of going on the Polka Cruise, or even attending one of the other “national” festivals, like the one in Wilber, NE in the near future.

The Contest

Dad and I entered the contest and, although we did not win, we made it through the second round and had a blast! We have already made plans to try again next year. The new costumes are already in my head and you can watch their development this year on this blog. My father and I are the couple in the purple costumes, in case you didn’t know. Many thanks to my aunt Twina for taking the video. I hope you enjoy it.
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Posted on April 21, 2008 - by admin

Czech This Out

Ok, I couldn’t resist that one. I am so excited that I have finally finished the costumes for the National Polka Festival that begins in less than 30 days.

The dress ensemble is mine to wear in the King and Queen Polka Dance Contest. The slacks, shirt and vest combination are for my father who will be competing with me. Let’s face it, I would look pretty silly out there dancing alone!!

I also made a vest to match my dress for my husband, Scott, who, although he likes to dance with me, does not embrace the same competitive gene that my father and I possess. Last, but not least, the little vest at the bottom left belongs to my grandson, William, who, if I have anything to do with it, will be learning some really cool dance steps next month.

This project was a lot of fun. There was no knitting involved, but the sewing, lace, hand embroidery, and trim work allowed me to be creative and do my own thing. I already have my color scheme picked out for next year’s costume. We are seriously going to have to investigate going to Illinois, Nebraska or Wisconsin for some other festivals during the year. Why save these costumes for only once a year?