Finally the coat pics... this one is obviously the back of the pirate art coat. You can also see part of one sleeve. The front and back are equally skulled-out. I am pleased with it, and it gets lots of attention. I will see about getting more pics up soon. I have so many ideas - I wish I could just visualize something and have it BE. Although that would take a lot of the fun out of the crafting....

And maybe later I'll get pics up of the test bodice of many colors. It didn't come out exactly like I wanted, but it's certainly bright and colorful!

Skull Coat and XMas Gifts

The skull coat is done and looks better than I anticipated. I have another one in the works already - a phoenix coat. The base is red, and the motifs will be, obviously enough, phoenixes, flames, and feathers. But I am also working on a new quilted coat - as soon as I figure out the motif, I will post more. Suffice to say that the test piece will be something different.

Some friends are preggers, and will be decorating the kid-to-be's room in sealife, a sea mural, and shades of blue. So they will be getting (at some point) a blue octopus. Matt dared me to make a blue-ringed octopus (the color changing kind). I think I can manage with taffeta... I will have to see. (After XMas gifts are done!)

I am also working on a brightly colored fleece blanket - just because. I want something simple and not terribly detailed for a change. The squares will be nice and large, but I still need something like 144 for a single-thickness, and obviously double that for the double thickness. I will bind it will scraps of quilt binding, so even the edges will be different colors.

Other than that, it's prep time for XMas... I've completed two Christmas presents for family already. Only... errr... more to go. Lots of work left to do.

Wow... June....

It's been way too long since I've posted. Too much faire, too little job. The usual. So faire is over for the season, and I have to wait until October to submit any changes for next season. So any of the sewing for next season has to wait until then. Boo. Here I had hoped to get ahead for once! Such is life.

Several people are leaving cast this year and I will miss them dreadfully. Especially Lys and Shado. Lys used to intimidate me, until she consoled me when I had a nerve-related crying jag. After that, she was my hero! I hope that they get what they want, but I know that they will be missed. Shado was my first arch-nemesis, and that will be hard to top - he made such a lovely one, kissing my boots and all. Wish I had a pic of that.

Onto the craft front.

I've started my sewing list on Tada lists. It's quite convenient, and lets me keep track of just about every sewing project I have, in order. And the order is flexible, which is nice, given my tendency to add and re-arrange!

So... my list of sewing projects... http://shayzamn.tadalist.com/lists/824569/public


The current craft of the moment is making bookmarks. Fancy enough, plain enough, made of ribbon or trim and beads, tassels, charms, whatever I can find that looks good! Need to take some pictures, once again. Need to dig out digital camera and take care of that.

The other project is using up all the kimono silks I got from http://www.kyotokimono.com/. Decided to piece all the pieces together and use them for a jacket. Turns out I have more than enough material for a jacket, so I will make a bag to go with. However, I decided that I would never actually wear a jacket that had huge pieces of kimono fabric - why? I don't know. I have another jacket that's not a whole lot more subtle. So, instead, I will make the outer shell of the jacket out of black (preferably silk) and use the kimono silks for the lining. I think I will make it in the style of a hapi coat. Seems appropriate, no?

Other than that, it's nice and warm. Almost hot, but I like it. The contrast between the indoor cool and dark and the outside bright and warm is somehow entrancing. I've been keeping up with my writing as well, feeling more like it than ever. At 112k words, I think I may actually be getting somewhere. Have to keep from working on the other one I want to work on, which would tentatively be called Hide and Seek in Texas.

So, back to crafting and job hunting. Hopefully I'll have pics soon. Hopefully I'll keep up with this better.