Top 5 Crafting Hits of 2018

It’s the end of the year, and that means it’s reflection time!

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Thanks again to Gillian for hosting, even with recovering from a concussion!

Alright, let’s get started!

  1. Diving Deep Shawl

diving deep shawl - wings

I picked up this yarn in January, and my May I had made this shawl and started wearing it non-stop. According to my tracking, when I wear a shawl, over half the time it’s this one! By a large margin too…

2. Cinderella Costume

movement

Two apartments ago I started this monstrosity, collecting the fabric and making the hoopskirt. Then in April I made the skirt and petticoats in a long weekend. Finally in October I made myself the promise that I’d finish the garments, and I came so close to making it. But it is finished, it’s huge, and now it’s hanging in garment bags in a closet, awaiting spring so I can get some awesome pictures of it (instead of remote pictures in my living room, barely fitting between my couch and my plant stand)!

Someday I’ll write up blog posts about the whole thing… But I think I need to get over the shock of it first.

Seriously, this thing is huge.

3. Alanna Costume

pullingsword

This was a quick turnaround passion project. Tamora Pierce’s books have shaped my life so much, and I still regularly listen to the audiobooks for Beka Cooper’s tales and Alanna. So when I was thinking over what to wear for Dragon Con this year, Alanna popped up and stuck around. I made a plywood sword and shield, along with a tunic, shirt, and trousers, as well as retrofitting a cat plushie to stand in as Faithful!  I love how it came out, and it definitely won as an incredibly comfy costume!

4. My Craft Room

overview

This year I was lucky enough to afford an apartment with an extra bedroom so I could have a dedicated craft room, which has been a dream of mine. I’m quite pleased with my organization of it so far, and I’ll be procrastinating on packing up next month when I have to leave for a new place… and hopefully a new job too!

5. Etsy Shop

If you were around since the beginning of my blogging, you may remember that I had an Etsy shop for my handbeaded jewelry. I closed up that shop to focus on my Master’s program, since I was feeling a lot of stress that year… And each year of that degree. This year, however, I decided to open up a new shop to showcase my newest works. Right now it has coloring pages, planners, lunchbags, and a few other things, but we’ll see what the future holds!

So that wraps up my Top 5 Hits! Tune in next week to see some of the misses I had this year…

Craft Room Tour

overview

For this current apartment, I wanted to have a craft space. A dedicated room where I could corral all of craft stuff, and pack it away if I needed my apartment to look nice for company. I was able to turn the “master bedroom” of the apartment into this haven. It has two wonderful windows that catch both early morning and midday sun, so I’ve got a sunny space to work in up until about 4pm these days. Because of this sun, it was hard for me to get good pictures, so this post will be full of ones that look like a grainy filter was used…

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To the right of the first picture is the bathroom and closet, but in front of that is my ironing station (and the junk corner… Please don’t look at the corner.). In the totes between the ironing board and the table I’ve got my bead collection and my coloring page collection.

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This is the table that I do most of my photography on, since it’s got a faux stone finish to it. It was part of my room as a teenager (from IKEA), and is actually a piece of countertop with legs screwed in, so it’s also super duper heavy. Sometimes I also use it for staging parts of a project, or for drafting or cutting… Multi tasker!

The filing cabinet below used to be one of the typical beige versions, but I spray painted it turquoise one summer. It was also my first time spray painting, so I’m pretty sure it was sitting in direct sunlight and windy… Some of my patterns are stored in here, as well as a number of my illustrations and quotes that I’ve written out prettily in the past.

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This is my fabric stash bookshelf, with my yarnstash on top! So all of my fabric that is in full pieces is in this unit. The top section is all lining fabric, and the organization breaks down from there. The second section contains denim, but also lace, and also undyed rayon linen. The third section has some knits and some wovens, but mostly smaller pieces… Etc. I try my best to sew my stash when I make myself new garments, and all plans are from my stash, but sometimes I just go off script.

My yarn stash is in a bin above the shelves, and it’s packed full, and there’s some extra balls in the basket I made above it, and then small leftover bits are in the bag peeking out the side.

Then on the table to the left is my newly organized drawing station. In that segment is all my paint, pencils, markers, and paper, as well as my small cutting mat and black “sketchbook.”

Above that table is the thread holder that I made a few years ago, which also holds my collection of cutting implements, and my hem clips.

comp and scraps

In this corner, we’ve got the rest of the table that my sketching stuff lives on. The monitor used to be my TV, but I rarely used it as that, so I get a lot more use from it this way. It’s hiding my desktop tower behind it, and is propped up on old text books because it doesn’t move orientation well, so I moved it manually.

Those totes in the corner are my fabric scraps. Hear me out. I know two totes is a lot, but only one of them is full, and I needed to divide them into stretch and stable for potential future projects! Which I’ll be figuring out shortly…

On top of those totes are bins that contain ribbon, lace, and then small sewing tools.

 

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And we’ve reached the other side of the room. We’ve got my sewing table, with my trusty New Home, and my vintage suitcase that is holding works in progress that are in time out. And a box on top… I’m not sure what that actually held.

Then the second bookcase in the room. On top is a loom and my swift, both of which were made on the laser cutter at my work. Keeping with that theme, all of the “magazine” boxes you can see were also laser cut, with my artwork on the front. This is where all the supplies and tools for my hobbies that haven’t been mentioned yet are kept. On the top we’ve got woodworking, metallic paint, and generic craft supplies. The second shelf contains fabric dyeing supplies, clay, zippers, and boning. The third shelf has tins of notions, like elastic and buttons, and then embroidery supplies in the boxes. The fourth shelf has little drawers with small sewing supplies, and then the boxes hold sewing notions, and then leather working supplies. On the bottom shelf are my big bag of leather offcuts, with my new sewing ham and sleeve roll on top! Then the two weird-ish wood things are my “toolchests” made from 1x4s that I got from the slats under the bottom of my old bed… I’m not necessarily proud of the design of these, so you don’t get a closeup, but one holds spraypaints, and the other holds adhesives.

Most of the time you’ll find me in the computer/sewing station corner, wrapped up in blankets for the winter… Actually, that’s where I’m at right now. With two blankets.

Moving on.

It’s about a 60-40 split for the art on the walls, with 60% being art prints I’ve purchased from artists in the past couple years, and 40% being pieces I’ve made!

Now that I’ve written this up, I want to tell you that I cleaned before taking these photos…

If you laughed at that (or are my mother… Hi Mom!) I know it looks chaotic in places, and I’ve got a lot of stuff, but I do thrive in my minor chaos!

So that’s my crafting haven! Do you have a favorite spot in your crafty space? Or is you crafty space only a single spot? Let me know in the comments below!

Suki Robe

Over the summer I bought the Suki Robe pattern by Helen’s Closet, printed and assembled, cut two versions, and sewed them up in about a month. (ETA Helen has removed this pattern from the Helen’s Closet roster, so I can’t link you to it. Helen suggests the Lahja Dressing Gown from Named Clothing as an alternative.)

It’s one of the only things I actually finished on my Summer Sewing list.

As I mentioned, I made two. One that’s actually a dressing robe and one that’s more pretty and decorative.

Both were made from stash fabrics, though the dressing gown has sleeves made from rayon leftover from a dress that I cut out at the same time. The decorative one is made out of a delicate silk (I think, at least), and the dressing gown was produced from a polyester that has just a bit of grip to it.

Cutting them out went smoothly, except for not having quite enough fabric for either one. Darn stash fabric. So the dressing robe got contrasting sleeves, and the decorative robe got a slimmed down front panel that just has the neckband, and not the corner detail, like it mentioned in this hack post.

The dressing robe was sewn on a machine with French seams in about 4 hours, and it was awesome. Quick, everything lined up, etc. I did have trouble with the inset corner dealio, but the steps were well laid out, I just got a little cocky. And didn’t follow them well.

After finishing it, I put it on for pretty much the rest of the day, and it was fun swooshing around the apartment. And up until winter hit, I wore it most mornings…

The second one, the decorative one, was slower. The fabric was so delicate that I wanted to sew it by hand. Each seam was sewn with a backstitch, then I roll “hemmed” the seam allowance down to finish the seam. The neckband was only slightly difficult, as I had to match the rolling a couple times that didn’t quite match up. Every edge that was not a seam was rolled as well, except for the hem where I used the selvedge.

So that was the summer. And these robes are great!

But then it got cold… So I bought some fuzzy fleece and some minky (Yay 50% off at Joann’s!) and got to work. (You know… About a month after actually buying the fleece.)

I cut out the full pattern as designed this time, but didn’t look up the instructions because I was honestly too cold to waste the time… I keep my apartment cool in the winter to save energy and money, but it does mean that I’m wearing a blanket while doing pretty much anything… Let’s not talk about how I got powdered sugar on my blanket wrap on Thanksgiving… So I needed this robe asap! I also didn’t press any seams, mostly because I was lazy, but also I gave myself the excuse that I didn’t know if I’d melt anything or lose the pile on the minky.

And I’ve almost never taken off the robe since… Okay. I’ve gone to work. But once I get home, the robe is first step… Maybe second after slippers.

Now let me find my vacuum so I can get rid of all the minky fuzz…

Gifts to Make for Non-Crafty People

You’ve met people who learn that you have crafty skills, and immediately say, “I love that, but I could never do that thing!” (Or you are one of those people, in which case, hi there!)

So what to get for this person if you want to gift something with just a bit of a crafty edge? Or rather, what can you make?

How about homemade cookie mix? That way the receiver just has to dump the mix in a bowl with wet ingredients, just like a regular store-bought mix, but with a more personal and handmade touch! Here’s a website with a wide variety of mixes, and here’s another! They are still making something, just with a little facilitation, and maybe they’ll ask you for the mix recipe afterward!

What do you think of a homemade kit? Say you’re a fan of embroidery, and a friend seems like they’re dying to try it. Why not make a kit for them, with a handdrawn or traced design, embroidery thread you’ve hand picked, one or two of your favorite embroidery needles, a hoop that you know works well, and some perfect fabric! The same idea can work for quilting, or garments, etc!

Make something for their home! If there’s a spot of wall they keep complaining about, or you really need to make them a quilt because they’re always chilly, the home is one of the categories where you don’t necessarily need extensive measurements or reconnaissance, but can still make something super useful for them!

How about something for their pets? I have a friend who would flip out if I made something for their (incredibly adorable and dorky) dog. He wore a bow tie for Halloween, and looked so miserable, so I’m holding off for his sake, but I know my friend would love it!

Make them something for themselves! This one is the ultimate, especially if the item has been requested before, but if you’re superstitious think hard about the boyfriend sweater conundrum… I don’t knit anything for a S.O. I guess I was rather superstitious for a scientist…

So that wraps up my gift guide series!

I didn’t quite expect them to get so philosophical, so I hope you enjoyed them!

As with every post this week, let me know if there’s anything else I should add in the comments below!

Monday – Gifts for a New Sewist

Tuesday – Gifts for an Established Sewist

Wednesday – Gifts for a Yarn Crafter (ie Knitter or Crocheter)

Thursday – Gifts for Makers

Gifts for Makers

Maker is such a general term, but that is on purpose, because it means anyone who lives to make stuff. From textile based people (like me!) to 3D printing gurus, to wood workers, etc.

And in my experience, most of us are somewhat generalists. A lot of sewists also do yarnstuffs. A lot of people who laser cut also do woodwork. A lot of scrapbookers also do vinyl work, etc.

Like the term, this list is also somewhat vague, since I can’t guess what all makers might want to do or try out, but it will hopefully give you a jumping off point.

Sound good?

Gifts of Time

Offer to shop for material with them with no judgements allowed unless asked. Dream killers need not apply.

If the craft is something they typically do alone, offer to accompany them, whether that’s bringing your own project in the room to simply be a physical presence and an idea springboard, or if you ask for lessons/suggestions.

Gifts to Buy

Buy them some hardware or tools that could level up their skills with practice. For sewists that could be a serger or coverstitch, for woodworkers that could be a hand planar, etc. Asking them about their dream tools could lead to the perfect gifts!

Get them a kit for a new type of craft. I’ve personally tried basket weaving (underwater was not mandatory) and dyeing fabric, and growing plants. I made some awesome stuff, picked up one new hobby, and gained an appreciation for craftsmen who do it well.

Get them a spot in a local workshop. If they love quilting, but have never done a workshop, buy them a spot for the upcoming quilted tablerunner tutorial, etc. They can meet fellow makers, and hopefully learn something!

Anything you’d like to add? Let me know in the comments below!

Monday – Gifts for a New Sewist

Tuesday – Gifts for an Established Sewist

Wednesday – Gifts for a Yarn Crafter (ie Knitter or Crocheter)

Friday – Gifts to Make for Non-Crafty People (there’s always a few)

Gifts for a Yarn Crafter

Alright, next up in the gift guide lineup for the day is gifts to give yarncrafters! Anyone who knits or crochets, or generally lives covered in small amounts of alpaca fluff?

Gifts of time:

Accompany them to a local yarn store (LYS) without complaining or dream killing! Only use this at your own risk (if you’re anything like my brother who lives to kill dreams).

Gifts to make:

embroidery bag

Project bag. Your yarn loving friend is going to need somewhere to put their project while they take a break to eat chocolate! (See Monday’s post here, or you can buy the one pictured above here).

Gifts to buy:

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Yarn! Chances are your yarn lover’s stash is already chock full, so any yarn could do, but think about what they like to make and buy accordingly. However if they only knit sweaters, consider a gift certificate to a LYS.

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Fun yarn toy/tool! This mushroom cord tool was a gift from my aunt that I got as a child (before easy internet searching was a thing) and it was just a cute decoration for about a year before my mom and I figured out how to use it, and now it’s both adorable and functional!

knittingstuff

Replacements for some of the small yarn related things that are easily lost. For me it’s needle caps, yarn needles, and stitch holders. The only reason I had these to photograph is because of a really recent organization.

Cute or topical stitch markers. I don’t tend to use them, since I’m either hyper organized or winging it, but some of my friends love them!

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A yarn winder is amazing to have, if your crafter bought a lot of yarn before discovering the magic of caking them…

Anything else to add? Let me know in the comments!

Monday – Gifts for a New Sewist

Tuesday – Gifts for an Established Sewist

Thursday – Gifts for a Maker (people who like to make or craft or build)

Friday – Gifts to Make for Non-Crafty People (there’s always a few)

Gift Ideas for an Established Sewist

So yesterday’s gift guide was for new sewists, but what about the sewist that’s been practicing for a few years? Someone who has all the beginner materials, and really doesn’t need another pair of scissors?

Who am I kidding? I own at least 8 pairs of scissors. Bring another pair on!

But seriously, what kind of stuff should you give to the established sewist in your life?

Gifts of time:

Clean their sewing space (under their supervision). There’s nothing I dislike more than vacuuming threads off the floor, or organizing fabric scraps and ironing fabric that fell off my bookshelf full of fabric.

Clean out their sewing machine(s). Have you seen how much dust and lint is in there? If it has been awhile since the last cleaning, that’s even better!

Ask for a beginner project and tutorial (if you’re interested in learning a bit). I love sharing my skills with people who ask and are truly interested! Word of warning: only ask if you’re willing to put in the time…

Gifts to make:

A project. This one’s a bit abstract, but if you know their likes and dislikes you can put together all the parts needed to make a thing, and give your sewist a ready made project that they’ll love. (For instance, gift some fabric, and a pattern, along with some elastic, etc!

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Some pattern weights. My favorite ones are kinda janky looking, but they’re nothing more than washi tape and washers from the hardware store! I’ve seen cool looking ones made with ribbon in the same way!

A funky/cool sign. Does the sewist in question love sewing more than coffee? Or threaten murder over improper use of fabric scissors? Make them a cool sign/art piece to show them that you were paying attention and will never use fabric scissors to cut paper again.

DO NOT cut out your sign from paper using fabric scissors.

Gifts to Buy:

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A pair of scissors! I jest, I jest…

(Here’s one link and another one) 

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Vintage notions that are in good shape. I love bias tape and vintage lace. The former I use, and the latter I hoard. If your established sewist likes notions, consider going to a thrift shop or resale store to pick up cool looking notions, like bias tape, seam binding, or cool looking zippers!

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A cool tool that’s unusual or new to them. Last year I got these cool tools that have been so neat to have around. The hummingbird is a needle threader, and the gauge has been so helpful with hems! This is the time to look for that thing they lingered on in a fabric store!

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Magnetic wand! So helpful for picking up pins. Telescoping ones are great so you don’t have to aim as well! While we’re on the subject, a magnetic pincushion is pretty cool too.

embroidery kit

Small project in a new “field.” If they’ve always wanted to try embroidery, why not give them a kit? Or if they’ve wanted to try the coloring craze for awhile, pick up a coloring book, or download and print some pages, and some markers!

Anything that you sewists out there want to add to your wishlist? Let me know in the comments!

Gift Guide Lineup

Monday – Gifts for a New Sewist

Wednesday -Gifts for a Yarn Crafter (ie Knitter or Crocheter)

Thursday – Gifts for a Maker (people who like to make or craft or build)

Friday – Gifts to Make for Non-Crafty People (there’s always a few)

Gift Ideas for a New Sewist

It’s almost the holiday season, and it’s the time for thinking about gifts (unless you’re one of those organized people who already has all the presents wrapped… I envy you)!

So I’m taking this week (with an extra post on Wednesday in addition to the regularly scheduled programming) to share some gift ideas for new makers, starting today with new sewists (or sewers or seamstresses or non gendered sewing people) in your life.

Many of you (from what I can tell) are sewists yourselves, so this is geared as a mentoring type of list, and please leave any suggestions in the comments! As part of my job at a makerspace, I’m surrounded by people who are learning to make, so I’m trying to channel that into what I’d give to a friend getting started.

**Other than the links to my own shop, I’m not affiliated with any of these companies. I just like or like the look of the product.**

Gifts of time:

Spend a few hours showing them the ropes. There’s nothing more rewarding for both you and the new sewist than sharing your experiences and helping them through a first project.

Spend some time in a fabric store, helping with choices. I know that my friends who I’ve shared fabric shopping with have been both overwhelmed with all the options, and then underwhelmed with the options for the project they had their heart set on, so having someone experienced can help with both the first and the second problems. I know that if I had someone experienced in garment sewing with me for my first garment fabric trip I would’ve had a much better luck in making it up (I chose very woodgy fabric so cutting it was a nightmare, and then the entire top was too small for my bust, but I didn’t have enough fabric to fix it. Cut to 3 years later before I sewed another garment).

Spend some time shopping through your own stash with them, so they can get some experience with fabrics that you know and have experience with. Plus you get to destash too! (Hide the stuff you can’t bear to part with first though…)

Gifts to Make:

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Project bag/box. There’s always a project that needs to be stored, right?

Pincushion. There’s nothing more fun than an awesome and/or cute pincushion for beginners.

  • Here’s a tutorial for a pincushion on the top of a mason jar!
  • Check out some to buy in the next section…

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A design or pattern all to themselves, or a copy of your favorite entry level pattern. Sharing something you like to make, or one of your favorite easy patterns is a great way to support someone starting out!

 

Gifts to Buy:

scissors

Pair of sharp new scissors. I like the normal scissors option, like these, but some people swear by more expensive brands, like these. Bonus points if you decorate them in some way so that the non-sewists don’t use them for silly things like paper! I like to wrap the handle with yarn.

sharpener

Scissors sharpeners. Optional, but good if the new sewist already has some good scissors that just need to be a little sharper. I bought this one from Lowe’s one day, but here’s a good option that’s similar.

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Book of needles – Handsewing and/or machine. depending on if the new sewist has a sewing machine of their own. I personally think both are good to have in a sewist’s arsenal, but it’s up to you!

seam ripper

Good quality seam ripper. I have both a new one and a vintage one, but I definitely prefer the long handled ones because they feel better in my hand when I settle down for a long, frustrating unpicking session. This one here is pretty close to what I’m used to.

pincushion

Cute pincushion. If your aspiring sewist is a young girl, or generally likes cutesy things, an adorable pincushion is the most awesome gift. My first pincushion was a purple and yellow flower that was gifted to me by some early quilting mentors of mine, and I kept it for 10 years. This one that looks like tomato is my favorite, and it came as a topper to a small storage box, and I can’t imagine another one on my sewing table.

Fabric (or both). Fabric is a tricky gift in my mind. I’m particular about my fabric choices, so it’s rare when gifted fabric actually gets made into something. But if your aspiring sewist is less picky, its a good option.

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And chocolate. Chocolate is always good. Or insert other candy of choice here. Or cookies… Today was a cookie day for me.

If there’s anything you want to add to the list, put it in the comments! I’m sure there are things other sewists would put in a beginner sewing kit!

So the remaining lineup:

Tuesday – Gifts for an Established Sewist

Wednesday -Gifts for a Yarn Crafter (ie Knitter or Crocheter)

Thursday – Gifts for a Maker (people who like to make or craft or build)

Friday – Gifts to Make for Non-Crafty People (there’s always a few)

Hope you enjoy this series!

 

 

 

Year 3 with Ariel

cuteariel

Well guys, it’s my 3rd year of making costumes and actually wearing them (as opposed to year 8 of making long term costumes and not wearing them maybe ever… Because that does still happen… This one’s cheerier), and it’s also my 3rd round of updates to my Ariel costume.

Year 1 was my Ariel with a deep blue rayon skirt, matching bow, and hair extensions.

Year 2 was the Ariel with a pair of light blue rayon lawn culottes, along with Year 1’s bow and hair extensions.

Year 3, or this year, is the year that I made linen-cotton culottes and ditched the hair extenions. I kept the bow though!

Last year’s culottes were awesome! Except, well, except for the hole in the butt. So this round, I decided to keep with the culottes idea, and ditch the way too lightweight rayon. Plus I wanted them to be wearable in real life.

Again, like last year, I dyed the fabric myself. This year it’s this linen/cotton blend as the substrate, though. I dyed it with the same royal blue fiber reactive procion dye, in my trusty five gallon bucket. I’m not sure how much fabric is actually was in there, but it was waaaaaay too much for that bucket.

culottes

I think it was about 4 yards of fabric, though. Those legs are wide…

The fabric is reasonably stiff with almost no drape, which does mean that these culottes come with their own volume. But, since I didn’t bring an iron with me, only a steamer, I didn’t get a sharp front crease at the pleat, so some illusion was lost.

back

It also made problems in the back. See, I wanted to avoid the zipper and corset problem I found last year, and installed an elastic back… But I was a bit willy nilly in the altering, and didn’t think about the large quantity of fabric that’d be gathered on the back, so I trudged through. (I used this tutorial, if you’re interested.)

This was right after Megan Nielsen released pockets as an add on/update to the pattern, so I was lucky to get the huge pockets that I so love about her patterns. They’re fantastic!

Sewing up went quick, and I installed the elastic and tried it on. In hemming I probably cut off at least two inches, and the hem is about an inch and a half deep. But then I discovered that the elastic (two rows of elastic, mind) was not strong enough to keep the skirt up.

So I took off the elastic, cut it down, and then reattached it, and it worked fine enough.

side

When I walk, sometimes the extra fabric “walks” awkwardly in front of me, but I did raise the inseam by about two inches after I noticed that, so fingers crossed that fixed it.

I’m considering unpicking the back and making “artistic darts” to reduce that waistband bulk, but that month is not this month. Maybe next month.

style

My hair was super long this year (comparatively), so I nixed the hair extensions on the day. They always get stuck on stuff and drag my scalp with them, and then I take them off midday anyway.

cuteariel2

But the bow and necklace have held strong! This year, I did stick on some fake earrings, meaning pearly cabochans with eyelash glue. They were cute, and did last all day!

So that’s year 3 of Ariel! I dunno if she’ll make it another year… I had to do some repairs to the corset this year, due to the really cheap “coutil” that I used, but I hope that next year it’ll be around!

 

Alanna the Lioness

Happy Halloween everyone!

start

Let me start by telling you a story of young Jess…

Once upon a time, there was a house down the road that was for rent, the only house in the neighborhood that was. This house throughout the years contained some of Jess’s most unusual friends, but most of that is fodder for another time.

One year a family moved in with two kids, and one of them was Alison. Alison was three years older, and had done and read so many more things, but still wanted to be friends with Jess (even though in elementary school years three years is a decade). She introduced Jess to Tamora Pierce’s books on Halloween (by dressing up as Alanna, if I remember correctly). And changed her life.

The Song of the Lioness quartet was not the first I read… I think Kel was first since I was closer to her age, then Daine, but the character that I got attached to deeply was Alanna.

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She’s a warrior who’s also magical and has a cat who’s also a bit of a god… and she goes on cool adventures in far off lands… And I was a quiet kid that cried a lot and got bullied to varying degrees emotionally, to the point that I’m pretty sure some of it was imagined (which is essentially me bullying myself). Reading all of Tamora Pierce, but especially Alanna, got me through my child and teen-hood.

doesthisposemakemelookfierce

So I decided to show this love as a costume.

As with many of my costumes, I looked to make part of it so I could wear it in real life, which were the trousers I showed you last week. They’re on heavy rotation…

 

And I teased my prop sword and shield as well, though those aren’t real life applicable.

But I realized that I will not be able to use much more of this costume in my real life, so when I recognised it I felt free to just make. It also helps that the shirt fabric and all the bias tape was in my stash. The red linen was a purchase from Joann’s.

Both the shirt and the tunic are based on the Onyx top by Paprika Patterns (yay for TNTs!).

shirt

For the shirt, I added length to the sleeves and added cuffs, and raised the neckline plus added a “v” split for easy pulling on and off. The neckline is finished with yellow-gold bias tape, which was mostly applied by hand (because I didn’t have any matching thread. And didn’t want to buy more). Lots of pick stitching.

The sleeves were just lengthened straight from the armpit down, so I could get some volume at the cuffs, which I mostly just eyeballed. To match the cuff width with the sleeve width I pleated in the sleeve volume. The buttons… the buttons don’t work. I put snaps on the inside, and the buttons on the outside… Just in case I couldn’t actually button the cuffs myself. So… Convenience?

tunic

The tunic was basically the original top, just sleeveless and with the neckline raised a smidge. I lengthened the top until it hit “somewhere between hips and knees” but left slits on either side so I could get to my pockets (highly important at a con) and for movement.

patch

I used an embroidery machine to make a patch for the “breast pocket” area, which was so fun to watch. I love watching needles stab into the fabric… Maybe that’s too much.

Two more finishing touches rounded off the costume: the ember stone and Faithful.

ember

I’ve carried around this pendant for years and years now, not really sure what I wanted to use it for, so it was just something fun that I was able to incorporate.

And finally, Faithful. My companion. He is the reason why I was recognized, most of all. And no one was able to tell that his eyes were purple!

Faithful

First I bought this plushie once I realized I didn’t have the time or bandwidth to make a realistic cat. I made him a little “platform” out of denim and a mustard fabric, which I would then safety pin to my tunic. Then I put wire up his leg and tail so it would stay up. And then I painted his eyes so the irises would be purple, which mildly worked. Not well, but if you’re looking for it.

shieldup

And that’s my ode to Alanna. It’s been a long time coming, but I think this is the best time for me to portray her. I need a little of her spunk in my life right now.

(On a semi-related note, Sara Bareilles released a new song recently, and I have been listening to it on repeat.)

((Also, if you really like Tamora Pierce’s Tortall universe, but want to hear a discussion about it from a group of well read friends who are picking it apart from a 2017/2018 point of view, I’d highly suggest listening to the Tortall Recall podcast. While I don’t always agree with their takes, it’s fun and sometimes enlightening to listen to people discuss some of my favorite books in new to me ways. I’m not affiliated with them in any way, I just enjoy listening to them!))

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