It's Been a While

     ...but we're doing Pennsic again! Finally! Several years of the plague, and very few events, but we're making it happen this year. :) The big thing we're doing is buying a new tent this year. We have a really nice one, but it's circular, and not great for warm weather as it has no windows or large openings to allow for air flow.

    As of right now, I've been working on drafting a packing list. Once we have the tent and have set it up, we'll have a better idea of how much stuff will fit inside, and what all we need to pack. We may wind up borrowing a trailer from my dad, too, if necessary. We're gonna do things in style, this year! 

    Last time we went to Pennsic, I made a list of things we should do differently the next time we went, so I'm going to be using that as my guide for what projects to do this year. The main thing is going to be new garb, though, as neither of us has much that's suited to the high temperatures of summertime in Pennsylvania. To that end, I've already ordered some new linen, and will be making a few short sleeved tunics for Norr, and at least one dress for myself. I also ordered some handkerchief weight linen for underclothes and veils, that sort of thing. 

  I think, after garb, my next biggest goal for this year is improving our encampment. We've had a very rudimentary, mostly mundane, setup for all the years we've been in the SCA, and it's time to step it up. Solar lights for around the camp, better shade situation, a proper table to eat meals at, that kind of thing. Some decorative elements, too, I hope.

    Until next time!

Two Weeks!

Just a little bit over 2 weeks till Pennsic, and still sewing. Realized I had only made long-sleeved dresses for myself, so I'm throwing together a few short-sleeved ones.

Also have started packing, but everything is going to get a last going over before I call it done.

Mostly figured out the drama of getting the time off from work, too.

Storage Stools for Pennsic

I would caution that I don't think these stools have a terribly high weight capacity, but they seem to work well for us. :)

Cats + Sewing

They love to help...

Yet Another Tunic WiP

Started the next tunic. A little on the long side again, probably going to do the split front thing again, too, but with shorter sleeves this time. Still have to cut out side gores and a neck hole. :)

Current progress took about a half hour, so obviously these are really quick sewing projects. Trimming it will be what takes it from a fast project to an average speed one.

...I hate trimming. But it's still preferable to hemming, because at least with trim you sort of get a two-for-one deal: nice finished edges, and some decoration. ^__^

Long Tunic

The tunic is finished! and a bonus pic of my sweet kitty being super helpful and assessing the linen for maximum comfort levels.

Another Tunic Post

Finished (except for the neck hole, which I'm gonna trim!) one tunic, got another all cut out.

I've had a glass and a half of wine, so hopefully I cut the edges straight. XD

It's gonna be a longer one, should reach just below his knees, and slit up the front for mobility (and some *gasp* scandalous glimpses of his legs!) and I haven't decided yet how closely I want to tailor the sleeves. Might leave them a little loose so an undershirt can peek at the wrists. I'm contemplating a V-neckline, but have to do a bit more research. I saw someone else's that I liked, though, that had one, so that's what I'm leaning towards.

Unfortunately, because I made the tunic long, there isn't enough of the linen left to make pants out of. I'll think of something for the scraps, but I'm still a bit bummed.

Will post photos eventually. ^__^

Grey Wool Dress

I don't know why this dress is taking me so long, but maybe I'm just feeling a little burnt out on damn tunic dresses...lol. and I cut this one long, so the seams just kinda go on foreeeevvvver. Bored of pinning. But aside from maybe one or two accessory pieces, I think I'm pretty much done with stuff for me. the other few dresses I have written down that I want to do aren't really necessary.

The Wardrobe is Shaping Up

Started another dress, this time in kind of a heather grey, still that same tunic dress pattern. (I wasn't kidding when I said new favorite pattern!)

Craig officially has two full outfits, and ten yards of linen on the way, which should make three or four more tunics for him.

So far, this is all the finished (or mostly finished) pieces we have for Pennsic. The left side is mine, the right side is his. He was teasing me the other day, after I finished the bliaut, all like, "so you have ten outfits now, and I have....one?"

No. No, he has TWO whole outfits. Lol. I need to hem the one shirt still, but he definitely has two complete outfits. and really, when you mix and match, isn't that more like four complete outfits...?

He'd bought fabric a while back, some brown and green linen. I used the brown to do a  pair of pants for him, and the green was enough to do a hood and nothing more. Next time he buys fabric, I'm in charge of yardage. Yeesh.

Actually, he just ordered two more linens from fabric.com, so hopefully those come in a timely fashion. Last time I ordered from them the fabric took almost two months to arrive. :/ Luckily, tunics are fast. 'Bout four hours to make. And I want to get some heavier weight stuff for pants, which I think I can just get from our local JoAnn's. He wears through pants like there's no tomorrow, so even though Pennsic is hot as blazes, heavier material will wear better, and hopefully last him the two weeks it needs to. XD

And in the meantime, if those fabrics are slow in arriving, I'll just make him more bedsheet tunics, like this one. The pants are also a sheet. Both are 100% cotton, which will make them nice and cool to wear, but I'm worried about durability. Still want to add a button to the top of the keyhole neckline, too.

Bliaut Part 3

FINISHED!

It took 8 hours, almost exactly. :)

 

The kitten likes the sleeves, at least!

Bliaut Part 2

Facing around the neck, and watching Project Runway on Hulu.

UUUGH so many panels to sew. :/

The neck facing (UGH)

Turning it right-side out...

 

Sewing gores and stuff together. Easy, but SO. MANY. GORES. 

I decided last minute to line the lower portion of the sleeves. It means I won't have to hem, witch is awesome, but is going to add some extra time to the total it takes to finish this dress.

 

 

Bliaut Part 1

Well, I managed to burn myself in the first 10 minutes, but I started a new dress...

Doing a bliaut, though I haven't done one before. Had already cut the sleeves out before I thought of a better way to do it. Oh well.

Also decided to do an extra full skirt, so cut extra gores. Wasn't aware I had so much fabric!

Took just under an hour to cut all the pieces out. Now to start pinning!

(I hate pinning...)

I have some trim to use as a belt and sleeve embellishment, which I think I bought almost 8 years ago, so I've been holding off for the perfect dress. I hope this is it!

 

Yards and yards of green! Gotta iron the whole lot.

    

The huge sleeves. They're gonna be a bitch to do anything in, while wearing this dress, but I will feel so damn pretty in them! :D Did them fitted till the elbow, because I have bands I want to put around there for embellishment.

Gusset bits for the armpits. 

Gores, four per side, for a total of eight. The circumference of the skirt is going to wind up being just about ten feet.

Here's the whole dress, all laid flat! Haven't put in a neck hole yet, but that's okay. This is probably one of my favorite shades of green. I've been sitting on this fabric for a few months now, maybe over a year? I dunno, a while, anyway. 

 

Seriously, fuck pinning.

 

 

My hoarded trim! I used to have this trim in brown and gold as well, but I can't for the life of me find it, which is a shame, 'cause a brown and gold version of this dress would also be lovely... 

Viking Outfit

Here's the finished viking outfit! well. the first one, anyway.

I made the beads on the brooches detachable so I can mix-and-match with different dresses eventually.

Made a Hood Today

Made a hood based on this: http://www.medieval-baltic.us/skjold.html

I think it turned out ok? It's a little tight I guess, and next time I'll make it longer so it comes down further in the front and back, but not bad for a first attempt.

Finished Another Piece

Wound up using some old heavyweight linen to make a simple apron dress. Don't have brooches for it yet, but I think the color is lovely with the red tunic dress. Took maybe two hours to cut, sew, and hem. No trim or decoration on it yet either.

Another Tunic Dress

But this one isn't made from a bed sheet. It's a linen blend, and I got it about half off. Wound up being $5 a yard, so that's not too expensive. Basically I can make one of these dresses in around five hours, and they look lovely and are easily modified to fit a variety of centuries. New favorite dress pattern, hands down.

Bed Sheet Tunic Dress

Decided to make a tunic dress out of an old bed sheet, just to try out the pattern. So far so good!

I think if I like the way it looks when finished, I may add it to the Pennsic heap, just for at-camp wear, or if I manage to rope a friend into going, they'll have a head start on garb.

Pennsic Prep

2016 will mark 8 years since the last time I managed to make it to Pennsic, but we're really trying to get back "home". Call it my New Year's resolution, I guess. I'm cleaning and reorganizing my craft room later this week, and then I want to start working on some Pennsic storage solutions first so that I can pretty much pack everything as soon as it's completed.

Before I start cleaning and rearranging, though, I need to take down the Christmas tree. It's kind of in the way, and I'm going to trash the living room while I empty out and clean the craft room. BF is gonna haaate it. Lol. Well, if he doesn't like it, he can just go to Pennsic naked then.

I'm also going to try and keep close track of spending and project notes, hence the little notebook.