Preparing for the Ball (Franz Xaver Simm)

Preparing for the Ball, Franz Xaver Simm, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons

Oh, the details in this painting are fantastic! And, I think, the way she is looking at the gentleman who is reading to her is sweet. However, those are not the only reasons I chose to share this picture this week.

We are starting a new Thursday’s Three Hundred story tomorrow, and in it, Mr. Bingley is getting ready for a ball. So, yes, 🙂 the title of the painting is my justification for pairing this image with the short story excerpt below.

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“That is the plan. If all goes well, I shall host a Yuletide ball to celebrate my betrothal to Miss Bennet. Darcy will, of course, attend, and he and his sister will join me for Christmas. And then, well, then, I suppose, we shall see what can be done about improving Miss Elizabeth’s opinion of my friend.”

“Well, then.” Mr. Bennet stood and straightened his jacket. “I feel a need to visit my friend Sir William and share some gossip concerning a particular officer.” He lifted a hand to forestall Bingley’s comments. “I shall not reveal my source, nor will I mention the attempted seduction.”

“I had not thought you would, sir. I was only going to agree that indeed, a little gossip might be our solution.”

Mr. Bennet chuckled. “Do not let the parson hear you say so.”

[From Mr. Bingley Plans a Ball, a Teatime Tales novelette]

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Leenie Brown

Leenie Brown fell in love with Jane Austen's works when she first read Sense and Sensibility followed immediately by Pride and Prejudice in her early teens. As the second of five daughters and an avid reader, she has always loved to see where her imagination takes her and to play with and write about the characters she meets along the way. In 2013, these two loves collided when she stumbled upon the world of Jane Austen Fan Fiction. A year later, in 2014, she began writing her own Austen-inspired stories and began publishing them in 2015. Leenie lives in Nova Scotia, Canada with her two teenage boys and her very own Mr. Brown (a wonderful mix of all the best of Darcy, Bingley and Edmund with healthy dose of the teasing Mr. Tillney and just a dash of the scolding Mr. Knightley).

8 thoughts on “Preparing for the Ball (Franz Xaver Simm)”

  3. I wonder if that is the valet? He looks like he knows what he is doing? She is adorable and listening so intently. Maybe that was the only way to keep her still. That has to be a brother or relation as no male can be in her chambers unless a relation. She appears to be getting ready for her ball. That might be her brother and his valet. Anyway… speculation aside, it is an adorable painting. Thanks for sharing it with us. I look forward to seeing what happens to a certain SBRB after Bennet talks to Sir William. Then see what Bingley has in store for ODC. This sounds like fun. Blessings, stay safe, and healthy.

    1. Well, hopefully, it’s not her younger brother trying to cut something out of her hair that he “accidentally” put there and is trying to fix before his mother or father finds out. 🙂 Elder brother might be entertaining her as payment for secrecy I suppose if that is the case. LOL It’s a fun picture to look at and imagine about for sure.

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