The 2019 season for the Mystic Krewe of Nyx has begun and our Summer Social Meet and Greet is next weekend. The event is one of my favorites. Not only is it a wonderful time to meet new members and reconnect with current ones, it’s a festival of sisterhood. Nyx Sisters come together to share a night of dancing, food, and libations. The positive energy in the room is always palpable and off the charts.
Being a born and raised New Orleanian, Mardi Gras is in my blood. I began marching in parades at the age of twelve and continued until I graduated from high school. I would look at those riding on the floats and wonder what it was like up there. When my children graduated from high school, I looked for a carnival krewe to ride in. I wanted a krewe that rode at night and because I wanted to be a part of a sisterhood, it had to be an all-female krewe.
When I researched the Krewe of Nyx and found that their mission was ” to unite women of diverse backgrounds for fun, friendship, and the merriment of the Mardi Gras season,” I knew that I had found my krewe.
The Mystic Krewe of Nyx is more than just a carnival krewe and a sisterhood, it’s leading the way in terms of diversity and inclusivity with a significant number of women of all races and backgrounds riding. Since becoming a member, I have many friends from all walks of life that I am proud to call my sisters.
This season is sure to be a great one and I can’t wait to attend krewe events. The many functions for Nyx Sisters and their families to gather and celebrate our 8th year as a Mardi Gras krewe will definitely create memories that will last a lifetime.
The Mystic Krewe of Nyx motto is, “Friends come and go, but a sister is forever.”
I like that motto.
I love this krewe.
Hail Nyx!
Alison Frazier is a five year member of the Krewe of Nyx. She is also a Float Lieutenant. You can read more about Allison from her blog, http://www.bayoucreole.wordpress.com.
The last time I saw my 115 riders, mostly everyone was huddled together under tarps in the torrential downpour during our Wednesday night ride. This was our absolute best year and we can’t wait to showcase our love for the krewe through our made-with-love-and-a-little-wine 2019 Title Float Headdresses.
Members of “Jody’s Float” and winners of the headdress contest at the Nyx pre parade party 2018.
Jody’s Float is a community of women, sisters, who spend time getting to know each other through social events and weekly, sometimes daily, headdress crafting parties. We are a float of mothers, students, wives and friends who sometimes take the lead, and sometimes help support. We have the biggest float in the krewe and we believe in the power of sisterhood. We ARE NYX sisters.
I have been a Krewe of Nyx Float Lieutenant for the past six years and we have always been Jody’s Float. Over the last seven years, as the floats have grown from 30 riders to 60 riders to 80 riders and 100+ riders, float names have become an important part of the riding experience. Members take a lot of pride in their float names, giving each float its own sense of identity. Glitter Girls, Leading Ladies, Ladies of Mystery, the Glitta Hittas, and Blingtastic Krewe are just a few examples of the creativity riders bring to their float names. Our float flirted with the idea of changing our name to something more creative, but we just couldn’t think of a new name. So, we are Jody’s Float, the 2019 Title Float. And we have alot of pride in that name.
As I turn the page on this year’s ride, I’ve had the opportunity to reflect on this past year. My float was the biggest float in the parade and I embraced that honor with pride. However, managing a Mardi Gras Float full of women is a labor love – alot of love, ALOT OF LABOR and more love. This year new leaders emerged, and it was easy for me to delegate responsibilities. We have a Rock Star Treasurer, a different lead for each of our events including float meetings, holiday parties, happy hours, and many more engaged members who stand ready to lend their time and support to creating an amazing experience. Our Headdress Chair is one of the most creative people I have ever met. She is calm, yet authoritative (in a great way!) while engaging everyone who shows up to help paint, glitter and glue. One rider orders the wigs, one rider is in charge of music, one rider oversees the swag and another rider can always be counted on to bring extra food and drinks for our events. Different riders host events in their homes while other riders volunteer to help with costume pickup, float loading and more. I love having the awesome responsibility of building a community for my riders, but we all play a role in making that happen.
At every event, whether it be a NYX Newbie 101 meeting, Wacky Sweater Holiday Party, or the upcoming Brunch, we ALWAYS do an “icebreaker.” My riders may roll their eyes to each other, but I know they love it and appreciate it. It’s how we start the connection that turns into a community and a sisterhood.
In the middle of last year, I was asked to join the Mystic Krewe of Nyx board. I have been at both ends of the table when it comes to board involvement. I have sat on many boards and committees throughout my career and I run my own board as the Girls on the Run Executive Director. Being a good board member is not an easy task. And being a Krewe of Nyx board member is no exception. Running an organization of over 3300 women is extremely demanding and the Mystic Krewe of Nyx board members volunteer hundreds of hours behind the scenes to make it happen. Learning how to work closely with different types of people and learning how to trust each other has been both challenging and rewarding. And FUN! It has been an honor to work together with eight dedicated women who take time away from their families and friends and jobs to make sure every detail is perfect.
“Jody’s Float” will ride on Float 5 next year, the title float.
I have learned alot this past year as a Mystic Krewe of Nyx board member. Although there are the frustrations that go along with any type of board work, the blossoming friendships, the unwavering support of sisters, the fun times and the laughs make it all worthwhile. As the Krewe grows, change is inevitable. Great changes are ahead and I’m sure some mistakes will be made along the way. But I can promise you that when you walk into the 2019 NYX MYX Ball, you will experience a sense of awe and amazement. I promise the board spent time brainstorming ideas to make sure you throw the most unique and sought after throws. And I promise you your board spent hours planning and executing events so members can get to know each other while raising money for charities and Nyx sisters in need. It’s a privilege for me to be a part of it.
Krewe of Nyx Title Float
The Mystic Krewe of Nyx is more than a parade, more than a social club, it’s a family and a true sisterhood. Year seven was my best year yet, so I can only imagine what year eight will bring as the winner of the Title Float. My volunteer role and work as a Nyx board member helped me to truly appreciate the magic of Nyx. I am honored and humbled to lead the 115 sisters on Jody’s Float as we take our place on the Title Float in 2019.
Jody is a Charter Member of the Krewe of Nyx as well as a Charter Float Lieutenant. She also serves on the Nyx Board of Directors as the Director of Fundraising. You can read some of her other writings about the Krewe of Nyx which have been published in her series: Goddesses of the Night and Goddess of the Night My Secret Life .
In the Spring of 2012 I made a life changing decision when I decided to join the Mystic Krewe of Nyx. I really wanted to be a part of a women’s krewe and had watched the very first Nyx parade roll in 2012 in the pouring rain. As my first months passed I attended any event that I could to meet people. The Krewe’s signature throw was a decorated purse and I was very intimidated by the thought of having to do these. I attended my first purse decorating party in October with absolutely no clue of what I was getting involved in. The thought of glittering a purse frightened me but I knew I needed to do it. During that party, as the group chatted away, the idea of having a way to track where our purses went was born. I walked away from that event with my very first decorated purse and went home. It was after that event that I sat down one day and created on Facebook a new page called the Nyx Purse Tracker.
It began small and the first year only had a couple hundred followers. The idea was that riders could add a card, label, or tag that asked the recipient to take a photo of themselves with their catch and post it to the Purse Tracker page so that we could see where and to who our creations went to. I remember getting up the morning after the 2013 parade and taking a look at it. Posts were going up. That year we only had a relatively small handful of posts. About 50 people posted their photos on the page.
The next year I decided to start posting teaser photos of purses prior to the parade. This was a fun way to feature some of our creations and get interest from the public to attend the parade. That year I did a purse countdown to the parade and posted a new photo each day for the 50 days prior to the parade. I have always been very stringent on my self-imposed rules on posting photos. Photos had to be unique to the page and not have been posted previously. So if a rider posted a photo to the page themselves I would not repost that as a feature photo. I was careful to seek permission from the creator to post their photos. Some riders gave me carte blanche permission to use any photo they had. I love those riders! It makes the job so much easier. Gathering photos for a countdown is the hardest part. As the 2014 parade approached I was getting messages from all over asking “How can I catch a purse?” So I started telling people to make signs. It was a thrill that year to see Purse Tracker signs on the parade route.
That year we had about 150 people post photos. The excitement was also building with the riders who search Nyx Purse Tracker trying to catch a post of one of their creations. The whole idea is completely voluntary on both ends so there is no requirement to put a card on a purse and of course there is no way to ensure that even if there is a card on your purse that the recipient will post a photo. But after that 2nd year the site was off and running. It was growing practically by the minute. Interaction between riders and followers grew as more and more teaser photos were posted. By 2015 the followers had grown to almost 2000 and instead of a 50 day countdown I did a 100 day countdown. I learned along the way that posts that I made at 6 am had more impact than one posted later in the day. Based on that information I began scheduling posts to hit early in the morning to have the most reach possible. I have connected with people from all over the world through Nyx Purse Tracker and photos have been posted from many different countries. We even had one recipient take her purse along with her on her travels. We never knew where the traveling purse was going next and it was fun to find out when she posted a photo.
I also met a number of people through Nyx Purse Tracker. Two really stand out for me. One was a lady that reached out asking how could she catch a purse. I of course told her to make a sign. We conversed back and forth a bit on what that sign should say. I finally told her to put “Jackie From Maryland” on the sign so I would know who she was. As we rolled down Napoleon there she was with her sign exclaiming who she was and I managed to throw her the bag I had prepared for her. After the parade she posted her picture and we continued to converse and became friends on Facebook.
The 2nd person that stands out that connected with me is a lady who posted a photo. As we rolled down Magazine Street a man came up to me begging for a purse for his wife. You KNOW that story. I laughed and said “You really have a wife? Where is your wife?” He pointed back to a lady in the crowd who was waving away. I gave him that purse! Later Pamela posted a photo and we also connected and became friends. I had never met them in person. One lived in Maryland and one in Michigan.
This past year both of those ladies rode a couple spots away from me in their first Nyx parade as my Nyx sisters. So the bottom line is that Purse Tracker now has over 5700 followers and is growing every day. It has become a place for people to connect all over the love of Nyx and catching purses. It has even helped get a rider’s actual personal purse that she accidentally threw off the float back to her when the person who caught it posted asking for help in returning it.
This past year we had hundreds of photos posted from all over the world. Seeing a creation you made in the hands of its new owner and loved as much as we loved them provides a feeling like no other. We would love to have thousands of photos posted next year. Please follow along on our purse journey by liking our page. https://www.facebook.com/NyxPurseTracker/
Del Hamilton is a seven year member of the Krewe of Nyx. She is also a Float Lieutenant and assists the krewe with its preservation of archives. Additionally, she is a connoisseur of purse decorating! Watch her making some beautiful Nyx purses for the 2018 parade .
