Friday, May 6, 2011

The Gossip Guides' 3rd Blogiversary Celebration!


Psssst PSSST! *Touches finger to tip of fan* Did you hear? *raises fans*  It's The Gossip Guides' blogiversary!

The colors may have stayed the same
but the blog certainly hasn't

Three years ago Lauren and I began our blogs.  Were any of you reading when they looked like this?  Yikes! Look at that moldy oldy!  Since that time, so much has happened with this little internet project and I've met so many wonderful people thanks to all this 18th century gossip.  Thank you so much, all of you!


*Snaps fan* But enough of this sentimental hoo-ha! How have you all been doing with your fan challenge?  Have you been practicing your fan language?  Yes, no? Well, perhaps there's a good reason for that....and perhaps Lauren and I could help you in your fan culture *Snaps for champagne* No one should attend a party without a fan, especially our blogiversary celebration so Lauren and I want to do our part by having a fan giveaway to our fans!

The Prizes
Participating in Georgiana's Gossip Guide 3rd Blogiversary Giveaway qualifies you to win one of five fans!  Four of the fans are sandalwood; perfect for snapping at rakes or making into a mildly harmful weapon when smacking those attempting to put their hands on your cocktail.  One lucky reader will win a white silk fan which comes with this cute Too Face Marie Antoinette cosmetic bag, but in order for that lucky reader to win they mustn't be a stranger to this blog (ie: I will recognize their name from their history in leaving comments- Yes, I pay attention!).


How to Enter
Leave a comment on this post explaining a situation where you have needed a fan (or leave a picture, how cool would that be!). 

Example: Have you found yourself grabbing for a magazine in order to whisper something to a friend?  Perhaps a playful swat at your guy-friend turned out more violent then planned and a closed fan would have been a safer bet?

Five comments will be chosen at random a week from now (Friday the 13th, yikes!) and announced.  If you are chosen you have 5 days to write back to me with your address before you forfeit your rights to your fan.  Good luck!

31 comments:

  1. I could have certainly used a fan to block the lip readers as my new husband and I rode to the palace in the recently refurbished 1902 landau. The media did not need to relay our conversation. And I would have appreciated using the fan to spell out "feck you".
    Retro

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  2. Link to photo: http://www.neverlight.com/~madame.s/Me/TyrusFlynnsml.com.jpg

    I use a fan not only to keep myself cool at a hot, stuffy ball, but to create mystery and intrigue where ever I go!

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  3. Well I could have used a fan last week at the ball. Gossip is no good if the person can SEE you're talking about them. I was telling my dear friend, look at Mildred over there. Can you believe she is wearing panniers? That is so 1770's. I mean. Come on, it's 1795. Youre supposed to be able to see our girlish shapes. Although, with those hips....she does need a camouflage of some sort. And don't even get me started on that mole. Well wouldn't you know it, I didn't have a fan and she heard us. Awkward.

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  4. Oh my, you're all much cleverer than I, but I'll play! As a woman of a certain age, I always carry a fan (a necessity for me!), whether strolling through Vauxhall Gardens of an evening, attending a crowded musical evening, or picking strawberries in Mr Knightley's patch. I hope you remember me!

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  5. PS Congratulations to you both on your anniversaries! I love visiting your blogs each morning, makes a lovely start to my day.

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  6. Congrats on the bloggiversary, ladies! The picture of the sandalwood fan in the lower left of this post? I have one exactly like that! My great-great aunt owned it and I loved to play with it when I was little (I still kind of love to :).

    A fan would be v. useful to have when I want to sleep in class. ;)

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  7. My wedding, last June 13. It was a sweltering day and pictures were taken outside. As the wedding centerpiece, I had to pose for just about every picture, when everyone else (including the groom) got to go inside to cool of for periods. You can see my smile gradually fade as the album progresses.

    Though, I did have a fan when I was posing for my Roller Derby photos last month (my derby name is Loco Rococo). :D

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  8. On our first official date (accompanied by friends) my now DH and I were leaving the theater when he attempted to draw me close by placing his arm around my shoulders. Unfortunately, I'm 5'9", he's 6'5", he wasn't paying attention and clocked me in the temple knocking me unconscious to the ground. Due to my lack of a fan, he was forced to wave the theater's program frantically in an attempt to revive me while the friends who'd gone with us laughed hysterically at such a ludicrous situation.

    Fans aren't only for hiding behind and should be carried at all times ;o)

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  9. The closest I've come to appreciating the effects of a fan is in the throes of childbirth as my husband frantically wielded one of those little wicker leaf shaped ones in an attempt to cool me off. As I recall it just made me snarl even more at him. Ah well, twenty years later and that little fan is still around and somewhat worse for wear. (I guess I could say the same for my husband;-) Congrats on your blog. I remember when you were brand new!

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  10. At a white tie event at the rialto theatre!I was there dancing as much as I could, but felt the need for a fan, as I was sick and though my friends were amazing dancers, it would have been nice to communicate to them discreetly that I was about to pass out!

    btw here is a picture of the theatre!(certainly plays a part in needing a fan!)

    http://www.legendsofamerica.com/photos-illinois/RialtoTheaterToday.jpg

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  11. I would just use it when sitting here, at my little computer, giggling over whatever gchats you send me. /hides behind fan.

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  12. At the ambassador's reception, some scoundrel bumped into me causing my champagne to spill onto my stomacher. I could have used a fan to cover up the spill. So embarrassing.

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  13. The art of flirting with a fan is still quite important. Some of my gowns would look absolutely splendid with the fans that you are giving away! More options for covert flirtation!!!

    My congratulations on the anniversary.

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  14. My and one of my friend have this habbit of miming to one another, but lately people have start to notice. On one accasion a very handsome boy had caught my friends attention and she wanted to tell me in miming, but unfortunately i could not see what she was telling me. The music was pretty loud at the party and she thought it was safe for her to litterally scream it to me. And so she did, right when the music stopped.. She was so embarrased. I need to purchase an fan and learn her how to communicate with me in fan language! (:

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  15. Oh, and you must check out these videos from the always lovely cast of Horrible Histories!

    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pY3npLFwCYs
    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Pv_PYfBZDHM&feature=related

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  16. Thanks Rebecca I hadn't seen those yet! I will have to post them.

    Thank you for all the entries everyone. You all have me tittering politely behind my fan!

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  17. It arrived...it finally arrived and I had to try it on. It didn't matter that it was 90 degrees outside. Out came the champagne, the pearls, the diamond earrings and my brand new 17th century period dress! Two hours later when my husband came home from his trip to L.A., I was still drinking the stars...in the dark!
    Unfortunately for our comfort factor, but fortunately for the romance that all the candlelight brought, our power went out for the evening! What was 90 degrees outside quickly became 90 degrees inside. Romance and heat...definitely a night for a fan!

    Congratulations on your blogiversary. The site is lovely!

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  18. I never leave home without a fan, and I have gotten some stares as a result. I tell the curious that I am trying to bring it back in vogue. I think that more people would love to be brave enough to carry one. I even gave a special fan to a friend that I had not seen since high school, we were at out 30th year reunion and she was suffering from the "change". Celebrating outside in Florida on a hot summer evening did not prevent us from dancing and drinking! I will send the photo via email. Congrats!

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  19. During the summertime, a fan is a must. I never leave my home without one in the heat of the summer. A fan is a fun and stylish way to cool yourself - at least much more elegant than flipping a magazine in front or your face!

    The only porblem is, that my other, faithful fan broke last summer. So, now I have only one fan left, which is very pretty and everything... but I would prefer if I could sometimes change my fan according to my mood or the outfit of the day. So that is why I need a new fan! :)

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  20. In the Spring, my friends and I will sit outside for lunch. However, we are often forced to sit in the direct sun and we ladies are without any fans. If I had fan I would certainly use it to cool myself, as well as perhaps prove to a be a lady-in-waiting and fan my friends!

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  21. A fan is absolutely indispensable for my summer walks... :)

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  22. Congratulations on your blogiversary!

    A fan is a must for me to carry in summer. The heat is brutal on me & I really do faint, to put it politely it's frustrating. My faux silk dollar store fan is worn to the point of no return, holes & polyester threads sticking out everywhere. With summer soon upon us it would be a treat to have such a lovely fan to help deal with the summer warmth.

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  23. The last time I used a fan was ages ago when I was a little girl staying with my grandmother in Venice. She carried one with her everywhere. She would let me use it in church. I loved to play with it since I was so bored (but used the excuse that I was melting from the heat;)
    But- although I don't use a fan much anymore- I still collect them as a hobby. I love the artwork and craftmanship on some of the older ones especially.
    Great giveaway! thanks:)

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  24. I would have loved to have had a fan during my Mother's Day parlor game fest, so I could sneakily ask my husband, sitting beside me, when Larry Byrd's NBA debut was.

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  25. Ah! If only I'd had a fancier fan for my Winterhalter portrait!
    http://www.abcgallery.com/W/winterhalter/winterhalter18.html

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  26. I need a fan... For the children! If my students were able to communicate via fan, perhaps they wouldn't lapse into text speak on exams. The moment I knew I needed a fan was when an extra credit question had "idk and idc" as an answer. Surely a fan could cure this! Sadly, the fan could not be used to thwak the offending hand.

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  27. Congrats!

    Hmm, well, this is very obvious, but I need a fan for reenactments in the summer, for sure! :D Fans are also terribly flirty and I love to play with them ;D

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  28. Congratulations! Reading everything on this blog has entertained me so much, I can't even tell you!

    Some of my closest friends and I are language buffs or come from a multicultural background, so we've often synched up our knowledge of certain languages in order to, well...talk about people without them understanding us. Mean? Yes. Sort of unnecessarily elaborate? Yes. A fan delicately covering our faces while we gossip would definitely be more effective.

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  29. I could have used a fan when I was gossiping about the aweful hats and dresses at the Royal Wedding...

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  30. All of this "fan talk" has me unable to picture my next figure skating routine without a fan as a prop! The few times I've seen a fan on the ice, it has always proven itself a most creative device!

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