Best Text

Erica Hijazi constructed a bow from a 1939 Willamette College newspaper she unearthed while picking up a VCR purchased on Craigslist. Hijazi and her date, Frank DeFrancesco—who wore a tie constructed from the same newspaper—took home the Costume Contest’s grand prize for Best Text.

Image: Georgia Perry, Georgia Perry

This year marked the 5th annual Text Ball, organized by the Independent Publishing Resource Center and an integral part of the Wordstock festival. This year’s theme, "Text Appeal," inspired a variety of alluring costumes—all home-made—ranging from clothing and accessories made from newsprint and book pages (including fiery Dante’s Inferno), to punny getups focusing on letters, phrases, and book titles. Watch the slideshow for more costumes.

The IPRC welcomed over 100 guests and featured the costume contest, a dirty limerick contest, crossword puzzles and a silent auction. Hostess Viva Las Vegas performed a reading from her new book, “The Gospel According to Viva Las Vegas.”

The Text Ball raised $2,600 for the IPRC, a non-profit that strives to encourage community and self-expression by providing the tools for individuals to create independently published media and artwork. Learn more about the IPRC at iprc.org.