What the hell is Mardi Gras?
March 20, 2015 12:03 AM Subscribe
Please help me understand Mardi Gras. So I'm trying to get my fortune cookie business off the ground and a customer recently requested a Mardi Gras theme (despite the fact that the date is well passed) I think she means New Orleans themed. What does this mean? As far as I can tell the colors green and purple are good. Honestly any suggestions for themes with the fortunes or the packaging would be great.
Response by poster: Thanks phoenixy, would a fortune with a picture of a baby doll pay hommage to the tradition do you think?
posted by boobjob at 12:17 AM on March 20, 2015
posted by boobjob at 12:17 AM on March 20, 2015
Best answer: My sense from witnessing it once is that it is an immense and inscrutable quasi-religious city-wide ritual with many parts and layers. Maybe you could ask your customer exactly what she had in mind?
In New Orleans there are whole stores devoted to Mardi Gras paraphernalia; browsing their online presence might give you ideas. Like this page of Mardi Gras themed beads. (A central activity during Mardi Gras season is going to any of the dozens of parades that are held and begging with outstretched arms for folks on the floats to toss you trinkets of one sort or another as they pass. Beads figure prominently in this "throw" but all sorts of other stuff is tossed too, often related to the theme of the particular parade in question.)
Wikipedia has a longish article about Mardi Gras.
posted by bertran at 12:37 AM on March 20, 2015
In New Orleans there are whole stores devoted to Mardi Gras paraphernalia; browsing their online presence might give you ideas. Like this page of Mardi Gras themed beads. (A central activity during Mardi Gras season is going to any of the dozens of parades that are held and begging with outstretched arms for folks on the floats to toss you trinkets of one sort or another as they pass. Beads figure prominently in this "throw" but all sorts of other stuff is tossed too, often related to the theme of the particular parade in question.)
Wikipedia has a longish article about Mardi Gras.
posted by bertran at 12:37 AM on March 20, 2015
Best answer: Laissez les bons temps rouler!
("Let the good times roll")
posted by irisclara at 1:03 AM on March 20, 2015 [1 favorite]
("Let the good times roll")
posted by irisclara at 1:03 AM on March 20, 2015 [1 favorite]
Response by poster: Thank you for the link and the suggestions. My customer is a native New Orleans(is that the right term?) So I don't want to insult her (she's also the CEO of one of the biggest businesses in the LA area). Just to show how scared I am of messing things up. Any ideas on fortunes?
posted by boobjob at 1:04 AM on March 20, 2015 [1 favorite]
posted by boobjob at 1:04 AM on March 20, 2015 [1 favorite]
Best answer: irisclara's suggestion would be a great fortune.
"You will be dancing in the streets"
"You will soon be partying for days"
"Enjoy the party"
"Feast well before fasting"
"Smile when people give you beautiful beads"
posted by gt2 at 1:12 AM on March 20, 2015 [2 favorites]
"You will be dancing in the streets"
"You will soon be partying for days"
"Enjoy the party"
"Feast well before fasting"
"Smile when people give you beautiful beads"
posted by gt2 at 1:12 AM on March 20, 2015 [2 favorites]
You could probably also use some Mardi Gras indians stuff like "My flag boy told your flag boy gonna set your flag on fire" or "Big chief has a golden crown" or "Meet the boys on the battlefront". Lyrics from Meters songs might work.
If you could somehow manage gold foil would be a nice touch. Gold is pretty traditional, but mostly bling is traditional.
posted by irisclara at 1:17 AM on March 20, 2015
If you could somehow manage gold foil would be a nice touch. Gold is pretty traditional, but mostly bling is traditional.
posted by irisclara at 1:17 AM on March 20, 2015
@boobjob Yeah -- I think making one of the fortunes have just a picture of baby instead of a fortune written on it would be cool.
posted by phoenixy at 1:26 AM on March 20, 2015 [4 favorites]
posted by phoenixy at 1:26 AM on March 20, 2015 [4 favorites]
Response by poster: I could do a gold cellophane for the packaging but I don't think I could add gold foil to a cookie. That would up my costs 2x at least.
posted by boobjob at 1:30 AM on March 20, 2015 [1 favorite]
posted by boobjob at 1:30 AM on March 20, 2015 [1 favorite]
Response by poster: I'm also loving the party vibe, this is so strange to me but it's great, thanks gt2
posted by boobjob at 1:36 AM on March 20, 2015
posted by boobjob at 1:36 AM on March 20, 2015
a fortune with a picture of a baby doll
That's _brilliant_! Whomever gets the baby (picture) is king for whatever the event is! In a fortune cookie! You are clearly an awesome fortune cookie creator.
posted by amtho at 4:10 AM on March 20, 2015
That's _brilliant_! Whomever gets the baby (picture) is king for whatever the event is! In a fortune cookie! You are clearly an awesome fortune cookie creator.
posted by amtho at 4:10 AM on March 20, 2015
I googled 'Mardi Gras Fortune Cookies' and yes, it is a thing. Google it! Whatever you end up going with, include tacky beads and those ugly masks in the box. :)
posted by myselfasme at 5:59 AM on March 20, 2015
posted by myselfasme at 5:59 AM on March 20, 2015
Sidewalk side
Neutral Ground side
May all your po'boys be dressed.
May all your Snoballs be sweet.
A doubloon in the hand is worth two beads in a bush.
A Zulu coconut is in your future.
May all your parade skies be clear.
Don't count your crawfish before they hatch.
posted by artychoke at 7:08 AM on March 20, 2015 [3 favorites]
Neutral Ground side
May all your po'boys be dressed.
May all your Snoballs be sweet.
A doubloon in the hand is worth two beads in a bush.
A Zulu coconut is in your future.
May all your parade skies be clear.
Don't count your crawfish before they hatch.
posted by artychoke at 7:08 AM on March 20, 2015 [3 favorites]
Oh, something about catching a sparkly shoe at Muses.
You will meet a beautiful Pussy Footer.
You will be swept off your feet by a Laissez Boy.
You will be dazzled by the mustache of a 610 Stomper.
posted by artychoke at 8:04 AM on March 20, 2015
You will meet a beautiful Pussy Footer.
You will be swept off your feet by a Laissez Boy.
You will be dazzled by the mustache of a 610 Stomper.
posted by artychoke at 8:04 AM on March 20, 2015
To address your main question, what is Mardi Gras?
Many (but not all!) Christians, especially Catholics, endure a period of atonement and self-deprivation before Easter. This time (about 6 weeks) is called Lent. Some places (most famously, Rio and New Orleans) have a big festival just before Lent. In Rio this festival's called Carnival. In New Orleans, it's Mardi Gras.
posted by Rash at 9:39 AM on March 20, 2015
Many (but not all!) Christians, especially Catholics, endure a period of atonement and self-deprivation before Easter. This time (about 6 weeks) is called Lent. Some places (most famously, Rio and New Orleans) have a big festival just before Lent. In Rio this festival's called Carnival. In New Orleans, it's Mardi Gras.
posted by Rash at 9:39 AM on March 20, 2015
I know you're concerned about offending your client, but I'd still ask. Here are some things I'm thinking about doing. Is this what you had in mind, or was there something else you were looking for?
Giving the customer what they don't want is a bigger risk than asking the customer to tell you what they do want.
posted by willnot at 11:46 AM on March 20, 2015 [3 favorites]
Giving the customer what they don't want is a bigger risk than asking the customer to tell you what they do want.
posted by willnot at 11:46 AM on March 20, 2015 [3 favorites]
My customer is a native New Orleans(is that the right term?)
It's New Orleanian.
posted by slenderloris at 1:29 PM on March 20, 2015
It's New Orleanian.
posted by slenderloris at 1:29 PM on March 20, 2015
I just re-read your question - I was thinking it was a party in New Orleans for New Orleanians. (Maybe I thought you did mail order fortune cookies?) If it's a New Orleans person throwing a party for non-New Orleanians, ignore my second list of ideas. If all the people won't be familiar with current Mardi Gras, they won't get understand any of that. They won't understand Sidewalk side or Neutral Ground side either.
posted by artychoke at 2:50 PM on March 20, 2015
posted by artychoke at 2:50 PM on March 20, 2015
Native New Orleanian here, the obvious answer is picture of a baby inside the fortune cookie. That would be really cool. Anyone who is not from NOLA won't get it, but your client surely will.
posted by bradbane at 2:56 PM on March 20, 2015
posted by bradbane at 2:56 PM on March 20, 2015
This thread is closed to new comments.
Traditionally, king cakes, eaten at Mardi Gras, have a little plastic baby in them -- the person who gets the slice with the baby has to buy the next year's king cake. Most places now will sell them with the baby separately that the buyer has to put in the cake themselves, so that they don't get sued by some idiot who chokes on a plastic baby. I don't know how a buyer would put their own baby in a fortune cookie after they were baked, so it would be pretty cool if you could find some way to put a baby in one of the cookies (with a warning included in the packaging, of course).
posted by phoenixy at 12:13 AM on March 20, 2015