I'm bad at taking pictures..

I used to be AWESOME at taking pictures at events. I would fill up an entire SD card, but lately I haven't really been doing it. Mostly I'm wrangling a child. Or dealing with stuff, hanging out.
In any case, I'm grateful for someone else getting a picture of Sal in his newest Murlotta/Kaftan..
My dress never did get finished, after all that stress it is about 3 inches too big in the chest.. :(

Plan is to rip it out and fix it so we can be matchy matchy for Solstice Court :D

Salam'el ibn Ahmoud

Also, I just happen to think my boyfriend is a sexy sexy man!

I'm fat, your not-- and? WAY WAY off topic

**CAUTION**
This is my opinion. You can read it, and you can give YOUR opinion but you don't get to tell me I'm wrong, or I'm stupid, or what I have written has no merit.


Consider yourself warned.

A few months back I read a post from a lovely Caidian woman who was a bit irritated by the whole fat girl empowerment movement. Her complaint was larger women putting ultra thin females down, using phrases such as "real women have curves" etc etc. I empathized and gave a personal experience of when I realized that a thin person had just as many body issues as I have. It was the moment in my life when I realized that there are very very few people in this world who are happy with their bodies, weight aside.
Yesterday I read a blog on the same topic, and two different notes/posts  -- all from different people (both genders) angry by the Fat girl empowerment movement.

This whole thing has been kicking around in my head for a bit, and I felt like I wanted to add my two cents to it.
-- BTW this is not me saying your opinion doesn't have merit, or I don't empathize with you, if you are the ultra thin woman. This is MY feelings about it. Oh and this is not a campaign for "being overweight is fine, and there are no health risks". Thats crap, being overweight is NOT healthy--

First, deal with it. Yup, that's about as harsh as I can be but its the truth.

For YEARS overweight people have been told to deal with being large, or lose weight.
We've been told thru society/media/school/family repeatedly we have no social value, even less self worth, have been teased, ridiculed, bullied, put down, mocked, hurt and have done worse to ourselves BY ourselves.

Do you know on average, 67% (according to a google search mind you) of men age ranges 22-35 will not ask a woman out if she is moderately overweight? Moderately overweight being anything bigger than a size 10?


You think being overweight is not an issue? Ask the two girls on "America's next top model" who were considered overweight and "plus sized" at size 8 and size 10. Yeah  cause that's fair.

But suddenly there has been this movement of empowerment of overweight women. Skinny girls are crying about being picked on!
SERIOUSLY?
You've never been teased so horribley you cry in the bathroom, AS AN ADULT.
You don't know the agony of having to get yet a bigger size pair of pants because these don't fit anymore and you're not quite sure what your going to do.
OH and I highly doubt you've ever been standing in a group of big girls and got IGNORED by all the attractive men in the room because you're thin.
You don't watch commercial after commercial about weight loss, diet, being thin and healthy, and don't get more depressed by the hour.
You don't think about all of the failed diets and weight loss plans you've followed to the letter only to have it come crashing back as soon as you are no longer following said plan.
I doubt you know the agony of worrying whether or not you'll fit in the seat on the airplane or the ride at the amusement park. You have never worried about the seat belt in a friends car extending far enough, and you don't automatically ask for a table at a restaurant because a booth might present issues.

Also, look me straight in the eye and tell me you have never made fun of a fat person.
You can't do it. Hell FAT people can't do it. We make fun of ourselves so it doesn't hurt as bad when you do it. Watch a stand up of any comedian who is overweight. If they can make it thru the entire thing without mentioning their size, I'll give you a dollar.
Hell I might give you two.
You aren't your childs "fat mom"
you aren't the fat sister, mother, aunt, daughter.
You don't get described as having a "great personality".

But now, you want to whine and cry because fat girls are suddenly standing up for themselves? And you don't like it? It hurts your feelings?
DEAL WITH IT.
I've dealt with your snotty, rude, ignorant attitude my entire freaking life. I've been chubby since before I knew what chubby was. I have been spit on because I was overweight. Did I deserve that? Absolutely not.

Is it time for people world wide to be more conscience about their weight and health? Of course it is. Is it time for us to stop looking at all people with some extra weight and automatically assume they are a health issue?
At my heaviest EVER, when I weighed over 450 lbs, I had absolutely no health issues other than being fat.
I did not have high cholesterol, high blood pressure, I was not diabetic, I was not hypo/hypoglycemic, I could still walk, I could still get dressed, I could still jog though not very far.
Oh and yes I could touch my toes.
I was overweight. My BMI was 64.
I was still healthy, enough so that even my surgeon said he's NEVER seen anyone weigh as much as I did and still be as active as I was.

At my lowest post op weight I got down to 237. Then I flip flopped back and forth and am now struggling again with post pregnancy weight.

But you want me to be sad because you, skinny girl, feel picked on because suddenly large girls everywhere are waking up and realizing that someone somewhere will in fact love them, they have worth, they are not useless and they are just as beautiful?

Not gonna happen.

I think people need to stop using weight as a means of value. Stop using the number on the scale, or the size of pants as a basis for self worth.

You should be size healthy.

Embroidery hell..

Why do I pick projects that excite me, but then I get discouraged by the amount of work required?
In addition to the ACC, I'm also helping Sajah with her pelican ceremony garb (let me know if you want to help!) And I decided to enter the month long idle hands competition. I'm doing an embroidered flag fan. I know bella is doing one as well but I believe she is doing assisi or voided long arm cross stitch (my next project!!), and I'm doing straight out the door embroidery..
My pattern transfered and sized is somewhere in this post (I'm on my phone so it didn't give me a placement option). Its a variable on page 40 from La Vera perfezione del disegno.
It has the enflamed heart that is going to be on my device. This was found by the lovely Hastings months ago, but I wasn't *ready* for it then so it didn't catch my eye.
Now to go home, fit my linen to the frame and assign silk thread colors...

Things I forgot..

Rule no 1 -do not make a new pattern for your sottana the day before you intend to wear it...
No 2 - you are as good a seamstress as you want to be. Cutting corners may save you five minutes now, but it will irritate the hell out of you when you have to go back and fix it later.
No 3- you will run out if bobbin thread at the most unadvantageous moment -- wind two..
No 4- show me where its written you must use matching thread at all times. Whoever wrote that obviously doesnt have to unpick seams very often. White, black, and cream work perfectly fine.
No 5- if you are a big girl, dont think for a moment that heavy interlining alone will give you a picture perfect smooth conical shape. Sorry honey, gravity works both down and out.
No 6- all day sewing marathons are great. Stop to eat.
No 7- give the nine month old your tape measure if she wants it. You have six more.
No 8- procrastination is the mother of creativity in a pinch, but what can go wrong, will. Better have a back up plan...
No 9- ironing, pinning, lining, basting, clipping, and tacking are annoying. But it makes the job sooooooooooooooooo much easier.
No 10- measure twice. Measure again. Double check your figures. measure again. Cut once. Save yourself the headache of fixing bad measuring.
No 11- if the fabric will rip evenly, RIP!!
No 12- there is no such thing as checking facebook fast. Just leave it alone when you are crunched for time.
No 13- background noise is good, but make sure it's a movie you have seen plenty before.
No 14- going to the store for needed supplies on the middle us a pain.
No 15- if you want it bad enough, you'll figure out how to go on less than the hours sleep.

Its almost over.

One more day.
Thats it, just one more day.
No matter what, it'll be decided at that point and we can't do a thing about it.
Baronial polling closes tomorrow. All of the populace's ballots have to be received by their Majesties in Idaho by then.
I thought I'd be more paranoid that this. Figured I'd be a mess of anxiety and chewing my nails.
But I'm not. I'm not going to lie, I would LOVE  to be the next Baroness of my beloved Barony. But the populace will decide. If Sal and I aren't the choice, I can live with that. If we are so lucky to be named as the first servants of BGL, then I can live with that as well.
I'll just need more sleep.

Its odd, I keep getting this funny little flutter in my tummy when I think about the polling. I know what I'd like to happen. I care that deeply about it.
In any case I've started (actually the moment I mailed our letter of intent) preparing myself mentally and emotionally for either outcome. I'm confident we'll be ready to hear the news one way or another.

THIS part is almost over. The next part is just beginning.

Sewy Time with the gals

I love Garb Gals!! Yeah its a page I started on FB for all of those attempting garb on the Wasatch Front of Northern Utah.

Originally it was just supposed to be a regional thing, if someone was going to be spending all day doing said crafty item, and they didn't mind having people over to craft with them, post it as an event on Garb Gals and VOILA! Instant sew buddies.
It  came about because, in case you have noticed already, I'm a bit of a procrastinator. I know I know-- you'd have no idea if I hadn't told you right?!?! :D
After Alyvia was born we went to our first event which was Twelfth night, held in January, and I had garb all ready for it. I noticed how relaxed and calm I was that day with no sewing to do the night before, hoe much fun I had at the event. I know most people have played for EONS and have a metric butt ton of stuff to choose from when they attend events, or some people just super layer outfits that they can mix and match like a pro, and yet others just don't give a hoot about what they wear.

I am not one of these people.

So I have to have fancy stuff, but as I mentioned I seriously wait until the last possible moment which was getting seriously tiresome. In an effort to help curtail that I decided to start Garb gals.

A few months later we're now at 59 members, I keep waiting for number 60. I'm also looking for little G tokens to give to each of the garb gals :) I know we're not a real guild or a club or anything, but I do like the idea of giving something to everyone who participates on the list :)
In any case, yesterday was Sewy Day. Andrea/Maysun hosts it at her house once a month and I LOVE GOING. Even if I don't get crapola done (which is more often the case) I just enjoy the time away from home, with ladies (and her super awesome husband Dennis!) who have common interests with me, who talk like me and are awesome all in their own right.

It was at sewy time yesterday though that I noticed my first pattern repeat is off on my second drawers :(


dammit.

Do you start with what you know or start with what you want?

And thats the question.

Right now I have several options ahead of me. I'm still laboring on the red linen drawers from the IRCC, but at least I'm now onto the second leg!! The blackwork is finished on the first one and WAHOOOOO! The funny part is, as soon as I put the new leg on the loom to start the pattern I was excited! Isn't that amusing?

So I was at an impasse. As I read my book I knew there were two things I was super interested in making. Both a simple farthingale and a high necked partlet.
I need both.

Which one do I start with though?

Note the color of the
guard over the bastoni -
Rather than being the tucked
fabric, its a different color/fabric

Its actually a lot
lighter than this

I've decided to do my farthingale out of the lilac linen/cotton I purchased to do my IRCC underskirt because frankly that's what I have on hand, and will do the Tape/Ribbon/Bias strips method rather than the measure and tuck. After reading extensively in my MaF, and a few website (Drea Leed mostly), I also pulled out my Alcega patterns and I have to agree with DL vs Janet Arnold -- the Alcega dress/skirt patterns are unusually long especially for the descriptions of the wearer. Although Janet Arnold hypothosized it was because, at least in this case, the skirt was measured up roughly 6 inches and then a 1 inch tuck/casing was created in which the bent would be threaded in. Then measure up about 6 inches and repeat. I think I might, in the future try this method rather than the other, as seen to the left.
Originally I toyed with the idea of adding some embroidery on the bands, to mimic that which would frame my Veste, but truth be told thats alot of embroidery for something that most likely will not be seen, unless its not on my body and on a table being judged :)

Notice the pattern
isn't present on the bands?

I'm also going to be using some hemp rope in my stash for the bents. I just don't  happen to have any reed bands, or whalebone on hand (Sal's kind of a crappy hunter that way :D) so I'll be using some hemp cording. After reading several several SEVERAL sites though, I'm going to wash the devil out of the hemp to get it to shrink as much as possible before hand to help with shrinkage.
Also I'm going to utilize a trick Bianca and I used when we originally made underskirts in 2007. Going to do the bottom band with a braided section of rope, just to see how it goes :)

You can find a pretty good in depth look at the farthingale here, and of course you can look at Drea Leed's take on things Here.

Now that we have that settled, I am ITCHING to make my stinking partlet! Its killing me. Thing is, it will need a super duper amount of work, and more importantly it has to be embroidered and sewn entirely by hand (its too delicate for me to trust with the machine). So the partlet on my entry portrait is just your average run of the mill filmy ruffled partlet, see above.

Problem is, whats so spectacular about that?!?!
Maitresse Jaqueline (probably spelt horribley wrong!) is also doing a super spiffy embroidered nifty partlet and has her documentation on her partlet blog entry.

We have tons of examples for partlets though the most famous one is below. EVERYONE seems to use this partlet as a jumping point and there are tons of examples of being done on blogs around the web. Since thats not my dress (and not really my style) I'm going to be using it as a guide though and have settled down between two different pattern ideas for the embroidery. Oh yes, it will have those pearls too!

First.. gotta get the drawers done!