For many of us, Twinwood is one of the highlights of the Vintage calendar.
Quite a turn out
Held over the August Late Bank Holiday weekend, it is always a tricky one given the penchant for dodgy weather!
Thankfully the years that I have attended Twinwood, have as a whole been quite kind, with last year being so bloomin’ hot that you could barely dance!
Twinwood 2019
However, people attend by the thousand, in their vintage finery, ready for a weekend of dancing, meeting old friends and new, and having a jolly good time listening to dozens of amazing bands and musicians.
Dastardly Dickie
People start planning for the event months in advance. Getting the perfect dress, with accompanying gloves, hats, shoes, bags and jewellery. Well, you do if you are anything like me!
Twinwood 2018
So, towards the end of the year I started thinking about what style I wanted to wear to the event. I am one of those people who like to have a day and a night outfit for each day; Saturday through Monday. I also like to have options should the weather be inclement, and of course a good parasol can double as a brolly if needs be.
Vintage Pals
I had settled on a couple of outfits that I wanted to try and get made, including a Pake Muu and a Forties style suit.
The Best of Ladies (and me)
And then COVID hit.
To start with, it wasn’t so serious. Well, it was around the World, but not really here.
Awesome Andy
Twinwood would still go ahead, wouldn’t it?
Well it was only the beginning of March and there were almost six months to go. I had people to catch up with and music to dance to. I carried on getting the odd Vintage wonderment or frippery to make my wardrobe up.
What a weekend!
Then came a dreadful turn of events. COVID took a great hold on to the UK. England went into Lockdown and people were stuck inside their houses for weeks on end. People couldn’t see their parents, friends or loved ones. Everywhere shut down.
Always well attended
No coffee shops, pubs, shopping centres, gyms. Everything was shut including dentists, doctors surgeries and opticians.
My first Twinwood Weekend
We lived in a state of perpetual waiting.
Waiting in single file for shops, two metres apart.
Waiting for news on the television.
Waiting to hear from our friends and family who we were unable to see.
Waiting for food deliveries.
Waiting for the statistics of how many deaths had happened that day.
Waiting to hear news that one of our loved ones was the next person to suffer with COVID.
Simply just waiting.
And in the waiting there was always a light at the end of the tunnel.
Hope.
The hope that everyone would be ok.
The hope that the virus would abate.
The hope that people would be safe
The hope that life would go back to normal.
Alas, umpteen weeks into lockdown and there is still little change. The death rate has dramatically slowed down, lockdown has released a lot and the queues aren’t so bad now.
Get your Dancing Shoes on
But we still can’t have a large group get-together, take in a show or go to a gig.
To be honest, even if all these things were available, I genuinely don’t know if I would be able to make my anxiety calm down enough in order to attend.
Strollin’
Talking to a lot of my friends, they feel the same way. The risk is not worth the result, if you know what I mean.
So, it is probably a good thing that Twinwood is postponed until next year.
Perfect Match
Well, it does give me a whole extra year to get my outfits together.
OR to buy new ones…
Till then,
SPSG xxx