Shaking Things Up

This costume has a really funny story involving me wearing a pillow case, but I'm a little frantic trying to read 200 pages of homework, so here's some brief commentary and a picture dump. At some point, I decided I wanted a 1480s Florentine gamurra. And then Katie said "Hey, wanna go to a wedding in a castle where the couple are Rennies and will be in fun costumes as well?" Um, YES.

So on top of planning to wear this to my university's Renaissance ball in March, I figured I'd knock this out and wear it to the wedding as well. You may have noticed I called this a costume. Because this isn't an era I do regularly (or, EVER), I just wanted something fun and representative of the era. It's not bad, but it's not meticulously researched, either. I wanted a quick and fun project, and this was the result. I think the camicia sleeves are a little ridiculous, and make the sleeves overall look pretty sloppy. I might try to reduce them for March to make it look a little neater. A giornea is also on the drawing table...

One awesome thing about this costume is that EVERYTHING came from the stash, except for the camicia sleeve fabric and lacing rings. You might recognize the silk damask from my 1560s English fitted gown and the velvet from my RPFS court gown.

There are a couple more photos over at my Livejournal. 

Tickled Pink--An Award!!

The wonderfully talented Caroline at Dressed in Time gave me the "One Lovely Blog" Award! Thank you! Time to pass on the love... :)

1. Thank the person who nominated you.

2. Add the ‘One Lovely Blog Award’ image to your post.

3. Share seven things about you. 

4. Pass the award on to seven nominees. 

5. Include this set of rules.  

6. Inform your nominees by posting a comment on their blogs. 

Hmmm... seven things about me?? 

1. I love my goldfish, Lucy/Goldie (a fantail) and Ricky/Blackie (a black moor). I never thought I'd feel so much affection for fish, but I can't imagine my life without them! They have distinct personalities and always make me laugh. But proper care of goldfish is a lot of work, which is why so many goldfish perish soon after you get them from the pet store or county fair. 

2. I'm getting married in July! I have the most amazing fiance and I am so excited to spend the rest of my life with him! 

3. I got a tattoo right after Christmas. "Hapa" means "half" in Hawaiian and has come to mean people of mixed racial heritage.

4. I'm half Chinese. Here's my beautiful family!

5. My birthday is in April. April 4th, to be exact.

6. I was born and raised in California, go to school in Michigan, and will be living in Virginia after my wedding. 

7. I became a Christian on July 18, 2010. I am amazed at the blessings God has poured out on me in just two short years. I hope my life glorifies Him, and that I can be a light to others!

Okay, the seven recipients I choose are.....!

1. Katie Jacobs: I might be a little biased, but Katie is pretty awesome! She has some really helpful tutorials and lists on her blog, along with great costumes. 

2. Gwendolyn Basala: Gwendolyn recently made some truly awesome steampunk ensembles! Plus she is an incredible artist.

3. Sabine: Sabine has some of the most incredible Regency garments I've ever seen. Her construction techniques are flawless and every garment looks like an original!

4. Natalie Garbett: Natalie also makes the most realistic and beautiful Regency garments. A real inspiration to those of us doing this era!

5. One More Stitch: Mostly dedicated to historical KNITTING which is just awesome because it's something I absolutely cannot do but wish I could! Really wonderful historical pieces from original instructions. Sewing is only one aspect of historical clothing and accessories!

6. Sarah Jane Meister: Sarah originally started in Civil War reenacting, but has now branched out to many eras, all of which she does so well! I especially love seeing what she makes for her sweet children.

7. Daisy Viktoria: Absolutely stunning fantasy and medieval gowns! All beautifully photographed, too!

You Know You're a Crazy Costumer When...

You instantly recognize a package of napkins as being based on the famous Eleanor of Toledo gown.

HOLY COW!!!!

Cap for Sale!

If you need a fabulous 18th century cap for your latest outfit, buy this one! 

It is completely hand sewn, with meticulous rolled hems on the ruffles. Made of ivory silk organza and trimmed with lilac silk satin ribbon (completely removable).

$100

Holiday Hiatus

Hello readers!

I just wanted to let you know that things are going to get really quiet over here until January... I am working on some labor-intensive but super boring projects, so I won't have any fun pictures to post. The biggest one is hand quilting Mike's quilt for Christmas! I pieced the top last Christmas, so he's had to wait a whole year for this thing... I also hope to finish the embellishment on my wedding gown and be able to move on to actual construction. But once January gets going, I will again have fun historical clothing pics to share. :) 

I know I haven't talked about this here, but I have changed the embellishment for my wedding gown. Embroidering on the silk gauze is just about IMPOSSIBLE, so I had to think of something else if I didn't want to drive myself absolutely bonkers. Inspired by the following 1790s portrait, I am now sewing literally thousands of real silver spangles onto the silk gauze (SO much easier!). Here's also an updated illustration of the gown itself. 

ETA: Plus a picture of Mike's quilt! It's based on this quilt, among others like it: 

http://www.quiltmuseum.org.uk/collections/heritage/all/198-1840/late-18th-century-simple-frame-quilt.html

Gigantic Gettysburg Post!

Hello all! Since this weekend was so huge, I wrote 3 blog posts over at my Livejournal to make the sharing of images and info easier. So here are a couple of pictures to encourage you to check out the original posts.

Post 1: 1860s Mourning Ensemble

Post 2: 1860s Ivory Ball Gown

Post 3: Fun with Friends in Gettysburg!

Once Upon a Time Belle Cosplay!

So... I have a secret...

I'm pretty much addicted to Once Upon a Time. Especially Rumpelstiltskin/Mr. Gold and Belle! They're definitely my favorite couple/story. I started watching the show a couple weeks ago, and it's been an intense love affair. I went through the entire first season on Netflix in a couple days, and have since been tuning in every Sunday to watch the new episodes. Let me explain that I don't watch TV, let alone watch a show on a regular basis on TV! So it's a pretty big deal. ;-)



Since I love Belle so much, I knew I had to make her adorable blue outfit from her episode, "Skin Deep", for Halloween. It went together quickly and well, and I had a blast making something totally not historical! It's such a fun outfit to wear. Very feminine and light and just fun! I'm even giving serious thought to wearing this to faire in May. I'm worried I might miss being my usual noble self, but this outfit would be SO much easier and lighter to pack!! More room for 18th c and Civil War stuff that I will also need. And by faire, I might be able to have shoes like Belle's, which are a silvery-blue t-strap. I'm thinking of getting American Duchess' new 1920s shoes and then painting them. But that's an awful lot of money for something like this... So we'll see. Also, my hair will be longer and will hopefully turn out closer to hers. I think it came out well enough with what little hair I do have!

I really loved making and wearing this. I don't think I can say it enough! There may be more cosplay type stuff in my future!