Seize the Stars

And I got one! The BFMC Nicolai doll was the only Silkstone I've coveted recently, and he was my x-mas present to myself after finding him on sale at a discount store. (Along with the Pillow Talk giftset also found on sale at the same store! I nearly had a heart attack when I saw them on the shelf for $30 each, the very last ones, too! Christmas is indeed a season of miracles!)

In the long ages since my last update I've done little besides bake Christmas cookies (and eat them!) and clean out stuff to donate to a church mission going to Africa, which at least makes me feel as if I was doing something worthwhile despite not having finished that darn civil war ball dress (and thus having to miss the New Year's Ball too, drat!). But I went to see Beauty & the Beast when the touring company came thru town, and even though it was lackluster as a show, seeing the ball dress up close and in person made me seriously want to make a Belle-inspired dress for my ball dress. I've been wanting to since I was 5 years old anyway, so now I can actually sew, why the heck not? The other reenactors hopefully won't notice I'm wearing a dress from a Disney movie! ;D

I'm also terribly excited because I bought myself a bonnet from Timely Tresses, and as soon as I dig out the ribbons and flowers I've got hiding in my stash somewhere, I can start trimming it. However, I did plan to make myself a new summer dress for this year's reeenacting season, so I don't know if I should wait and trim it to match the new dress. (I'm kind of afraid I have too many projects on my plate and the bonnet might wait till next year to make it's debut!)

Meanwhile, I'm being led astray by all the great period dramas on TV. I wish they'd make a show set in the 1860's, because between Garrow's Law and Downton Abbey, 19th century clothing isn't on my mind! I marathoned Garrow's Law on DVD last weekend so I could finally see the episodes all the way thru, and I really truly am kind of in love with it now. I've always been a proponent of color in the design of any show or movie, but even though Lady Sarah's wardrobe is disappointingly colorless in keeping with the overall design of the show, I nonetheless have a thing for her grey striped anglaise dress. Thank heaven I don't have any fabric remotely appropriate for it, because I would probably be wasting time planning one just like it!

On New Years I marathoned Downton Abbey in preparation for the new season this weekend, and I'm properly excited about that too. Luckily for my new project roster though, 1910's evening gowns intimidate the heck out of me, sewing wise. They look so simple, but if things aren't cut and draped perfectly, it doesn't end up looking 1910s. Someday I might attempt one, but that's pretty far off.

And I'll try not to go on about how much I miss Lark Rise to Candleford already. (Best show on TV ever!!! *sniffle*)

Okay, well, looks like trying not to neglect LJ has perhaps been less than successful! But everything's kind of crazy; I seem to have a reenactment to go to every weekend, and all the sewing projects I have piling up take their toll. But I'm getting a lot better at the whole 'educating the public about history' thing. The sewing is the easy part compared to that! I'm pretty shy, but I've been interested in the history of the women's rights movement forever, and being able to tell people about an important part of American history that almost always gets overlooked is something I'm really passionate about, and it's totally the best motivation to not be the shrinking violet in the corner, and let the world hear what you have to say! I was a total babbling mess at my first couple of events, but by the most recent one I went to, I think I actually developed a pretty coherent summing up of the mid-19th century women's movement! YAY! Hopefully practice will make perfect!

I'm also taking on yet another sewing project beyond reenacting. Foolish? Probably. Fun? Definitley! I'm making Jane's yellow bustle outfit from Disney's Tarzan! The minute I saw the movie the idea crept into my head, and the more I thought about it the more I knew I had to do it. I didn't have any idea where or when I'd ever get to wear it, but I went ahead and bought the fabric anyway, only to discover a month later that my local costumer's society was planning to do a group of historically accurate Disney Heroine costumes! So voila, a reason to make it! And cut to my first foray back to LJ since this happened, and every other costumer who blogs here is doing Disney heroines too! Too weird, but awesome! So I joined dpcostume and the rest is...well, not history, because I've got the actual sewing still ahead of me! But it's incredibly exciting to be part of this national costumer trend of Disney Princess love, and I think it's going to be so fun to see all these different seamstresses interpret the same characters. :)