Okay, I admit I should be sewing right now. I should be pinning the sleeves back onto my husband’s fighting tunic (after seam ripping them off–lining & all–because the shoulders were too tight). I should be going over the checklist of stuff for the war that we need to get finished. But I’m not.
I’m reclining in bed, feet stretched out, back propped up on some pillows, and it feels nice to take a breather. I’ve made two pairs of pants, a tunic (that I had to take apart because of fit issues), painted banners, embroidered things, mended stuff….It has been a lot these past few weeks, and the days leading up to war are tick-tick-ticking away. Time. Is. Short. Shorter and shorter.
It’s not that I’m procrastinating on purpose. I just needed to give my back and shoulder a break after some early morning sewing. I’m also taking into account the fact that I only work in the morning today, so I’ll have all afternoon and evening to work on the tunic. I think I can get it done before war, but we’ll have to see. At worst, my husband will have to deal with using the tunic he already has for fighting, though I know he doesn’t like it much. I’m not super proud of being behind like this, but I also don’t want to kill myself with pain doing all this. Because I damn near have already.
Painting banners is not comfortable. Sewing, despite my familiarity with the machine and my current “work station,” is not comfortable. Embroidery? That I can do comfortably, provided I’m, like, lying down or something. So a lot of work that has been done and has yet to be done, all of which can aggravate my RA. I’ve been trucking through so far, but now I’m losing steam on things. I have to book it. I have to get all this done.
Just a few more things, I tell myself as I prepare to go back into the craft room. Just a few more things.
I’m working as fast as I can, but I’m going so slow….
Category: SCA
Countdown continues
Sixteen days. I have sixteen days, minus work and sleep, to finish my husband’s rapier jacket and make two pairs of Viking pants.
The jacket is all cut out and stamped and one arm is put together, but the problem is I decided in my infinite wisdom to try to make a proper lining instead of just three layers sewn together. I’m sure I can figure it out, but it’s going to be different than I’ve done before (without a pattern, anyway). And while simple, the pants are time consuming. Lots of pleats.
I may have to seclude myself these next couple of weeks and just forgo social activities to be able to finish. I can’t allow myself to be sewing at the very last minute to get finished.
But I probably will be, sadly.
I just can’t seem to get anything done on time anymore.
Slow burn
It’s starting to happen…gradually, but it’s happening. I am starting to get burned out from all the SCA and crafting and writing and work and life in general. I’m hoping the few days off for Estrella War will help, but only time will tell.
I’ve kinda lost interest in a lot of activities. I have to force myself to get my sewing work done. I drag myself through the work day. I avoid exercise when I have the slightest ache or pain whereas before I’d look forward to the chance to work out those aches. I don’t want to go to SCA baronial meetings or do my officer job. I just don’t wanna.
Part of it, I think, is that things have become so stale and routine. Yeah, some of the meetings and events may change, but for the most part it’s work/SCA/sleep. Lather, rinse, repeat. Day in, day out. All. The. Time.
I’m trying to motivate myself. I’m trying to tell myself, Hey, if you get this tunic done you can knock out those pants and then it’s just some embroidery and a couple sleeves to go. I’m trying to tell myself, but I guess I’m not listening.
I hope this is just a brief funk and not a true depressive episode. I have too much on my plate to wallow in self-pity or whatever.
Speaking of that tunic, I guess I’ll get back to work.
Oh, what a tangled web we…stitch?
I’m slowly but surely whittling down the Estrella War projects as I wait for the latest edits to come back on Book 1. Bee trim sewn to my fighting tunic: done. Embroidery on one of my husband’s tunics: mostly done (hoping to finish today, in fact). Stamping of top fabric layer of my husband’s fighting tunic: done. Assembly of said fighting tunic: up next on the docket once the tunic embroidery is finished. So hoping to start on that today.
Still to do: some miniature embroidery for a couple of my husband’s projects (they’re now joint projects–gotta love teamwork!), two pairs of linen pants, and … Oh yeah, I have to find time to make sleeves for my husband’s Italian Ren doublet and figure out some way to attach them. Those are the pre-War projects I have for now.
It seems like a daunting list (especially to those of you who don’t sew or craft), but I am confident that I can get most if not all of it done. The sleeves are the most concerning for me, as I had not originally planned to make them so I skipped the step in the pattern where you make tabs for attaching sleeves, so I have to engineer something for that. Otherwise, between off days and half days in the interim I think I’ll be fine.
The embroidery on the seams of my husband’s tunic is turning out nicely. I still need to couch the stitches, but here’s what I managed to do this morning:
The coloring is a bit off, as the red is more a true red and the yellow is brighter, but what can you expect from a closeup on a cell phone in a room with weird lighting? Lol I do see a few minor flaws, places where the stitching isn’t 100% even, but I’m getting better with each project.
Speaking of which, if I hustle I can maybe get at least half of the couching done before work.
Until next time!
Resting on my laurels
So I’ve finally figured out what arts I want to focus on for the SCA…now I just have to get up the nerve to talk to several different peers (Laurels specifically) so I can get to know them and hopefully find a mentor.
Don’t get me wrong; I’m not fooling myself into thinking I’ll be at Laurel level any time soon. Years. Many years. But I think I’m ready to start getting to know different Laurels and hopefully find one who will be a good fit for me. Then there’s the ask-vs-being-asked dilemma…some Laurels want you to approach them about apprenticeship, while others want to get to know you and your work and will then eventually ask you. So I have to test the waters on that a bit before diving in. Don’t want to offend a potential Laurel by being too forward.
As far as peerages go, Laurel is the most likely one I could potentially get. Yes, there’s Master of Defense for rapier, but I’m probably decades off from that one, if ever. And of course I’m not going to be a Knight (because I am too weak for hardsuit fighting), and Pelican (the service peerage) isn’t really for me. Not that I don’t mind helping people or anything, but I just don’t have the intense drive to serve that a lot of good Pelicans have.
I’ll get there eventually, but first thing’s first.
A sword deferred
I had so been looking forward to getting my next tattoo yesterday…unfortunately, the artist I scheduled with had a change in plans, so I have to wait until next Friday. 🙁
I’m still getting the tattoo, but the wait is a bit annoying. What tattoo am I getting? Why, I’m glad you asked. Let me show you my Photoshop masterpiece:
You have no idea how difficult it was to get the sword and wings straight and even when the images I used were at angles that just would’t have worked. I spliced two different images, a geometric sword tattoo I found on Pinterest and a a geometric bird I found on Google.
Yay for Photoshop! Sword is no longer nearly as crooked, and the bird wings are nice and even.
Now, if the final image looks familiar, there’s a reason: in a few lazy Google searches, I found several winged images that said they were traditionally symbols of Valkyries. Here’s an example:
Some of the images I found had a sword in place of the downward lines. Those weren’t necessarily actually related to Valkyries, but since I swordfight in the SCA and since my SCA persona is a Viking, well….yeah. A sword. With wings. The geometry isn’t too SCA-period-y, but I liked the style.
Next Friday. Perma-sword time. 🙂
Project-ions for the future
I’m not quite sure how it keeps happening, but my project list for Estrella War and beyond keeps growing…not that that’s necessarily a bad thing. 😉
This is how my sewing project list began (a few weeks before Christmas):
Sewing projects:
- Italian ren
- Doublet
- Shirt
- Belt loops/buttons/buttonholes
- Fix snaps on stomacher/dress
- Hem dress
- Underskirt?? (if time!)
- Christmas gifts
- Makeup bag
- Wine bottle bags? – make anyway, if no time save for later gifts
- Bento boxes for carol/titia??? (if no time, belated gifts)
- Garb/sca
- Linen pants x 2
- Fighting tunic (chris)
- Viking coat (aimee) ??
- New fighting hood (embroidered/layered)
- Feast gear utensil holders?
- Thread snipper holder (leather?)
- Belt favor? (embroidered?)
- Leather cover for sword guard?
- Accessories
- Wallet/card holder/checkbook cover
- Purse organizer
- Key case thingie for keychain
- Mug caddy thingies
- bento box for tourney prize
- knee pillow thing
- moar headbands?
- Notions bags?
- Cosplay
- Re-make phoenix corset!!
This is the new(est) version:
Sewing projects:
- Italian ren
- Doublet
- Shirt
- Belt loops/buttons/buttonholes
- Fix snaps on stomacher/dress
- Hem dress
- Underskirt?? (if time!)
- Christmas gifts
- Makeup bag
- Wine bottle bags? – make anyway, if no time save for later gifts
- Bento boxes for carol/titia??? (if no time, belated gifts)
- Garb/sca
- Linen pants x 2 **
- Fighting tunic (chris) **
- Viking coat (aimee) ??
- New fighting hood (embroidered/layered)
- Feast gear utensil holders?
- Thread snipper holder (leather?)
- Belt favor? (embroidered?)
- Leather cover for sword guard?
- Embroider Chris’s fighting hood
- Embroider pieces for ends of belts for gifts to visiting king/queen **
- apron dress/underdress
- embroider apron dress
- cup covers (embroidered)
- Viking-style hood for Chris (embroidered)
- Another Viking hood for me (not for fighting) – embroidered
- Sew trim onto garb
- Accessories
- Wallet/card holder/checkbook cover
- Purse organizer
- Key case thingie for keychain
- Mug caddy thingies
- bento box for tourney prize **
- knee pillow thing
- moar headbands?
- Notions bags?
- Cosplay
- Re-make phoenix corset!!
While I have made it through some of the list (the crossed-off items), I seem to keep adding more and more things to do, particularly in the SCA/garb category. Notice a pattern to the new things on the list? Yep, I have decided that embroidery will be my “thing” in the future, so now I want to embroider as much as I can before the Baronial Arts & Sciences competition. I still can’t decide what I’m going to submit as my embroidery piece, but I want it to be one of the newer pieces (so I’m not wearing the stuff and consequently spilling on them before the competition).
I’m in the middle of two projects at once: the bento box that’s to be used as a tournament prize (I had to put it aside until I could get plenty of binding, which I now have) and my husband’s new fighting tunic. I accidentally got the sleeves on that a touch really big, so I have to take them in before I finish. Thankfully, I hadn’t fully assembled the tunic before I had him try it on, so that’s a blessing. I do, however, need to acquire buttons for it. I guess he wants buttons.
I feel like I’m missing something in this list, but until it comes to me I’ll just have to keep working until the list is more manageable. Ah, who am I kidding? I’m going to keep adding to it until I physically can’t sew any more. Lol
Listing forward
Remember that list of things I have to make before Estrella War? Well, it’s still there–and not much has changed. :/
I started on my husband’s fighting tunic, but I made the sleeves a tad too big so that has to be altered before I can put the pieces together (thankfully I assembled the lining first, so I don’t have as much undoing to do). He also wants buttons, so I have to make adjustments for that. The embroidery is coming along but slowly. His rapier hood is larger than mine, with more seams to stitch, so even though I’m nearly done there’s still a good bit of work left on it. I have to stitch the trim he made for my fighting tunic onto the garment before I finish his. I have pants to make still (not complicated, but involved). And there’s a scroll I have to complete in addition to the sewing. I’m hoping to get a good bit of the prep work on that done today between my pre-work waking up time and the scribal class this evening.
There are a couple of things I had wanted to complete that I don’t think I’ll be able to this go around. I had wanted to make a coat of some sort (Viking style, of course) to wear at Estrella, but that’s not going to happen. I won’t be able to get decent material for it prior, and it’s just going to take up too much of my time. So it’ll be a cloak to keep me warm on those cold Estrella nights, at least this war. I had also wanted to make a Viking apron dress and under dress to go with the Viking “treasure beads” I got for Christmas, but that too will take too much time. I suppose the latter is for the better though, because now I can take my time on it and use those as one of my Arts & Sciences entries.
That’s right; I still plan on entering in the A&S competition for our barony, and despite some peoples’ reservations, I plan on competing for Champion. Go big or go home, right? Besides, I have confidence in my abilities, and I have a secret 3rd project in the planning stages that I think will at the very least be interesting to the judges. It sure as hell will be interesting to me to research, and any learning is a good thing. Yeah, there’s always the chance I won’t win, and I might be judged more critically if I enter for Champion and not a couple of Novice pieces, but I don’t care about either of those. I’m in it to prove that I can do it at this point. Go ahead and naysay; there’s enough stubborn Leo in me to push on and keep working towards my goal. And if I win? It’s all cherry at that point.
I keep telling myself that things will slow down after Estrella, but who am I kidding? I’ll be busy busy busy right up until and after A&S. That’s okay, though. I can do it.
Out of time
Life is like a TARDIS, and right now my life is a bit wibbly-wobbly.
Let me clarify: I’m existing in multiple eras at the same time, and it’s kind of weird to think about.
I’m living in the past (the SCA). I’m working in the present. And I’m writing in the future.
So, depending on the day, I could exist in three different “times” in less than twenty-four hours. For instance, right now I’m doing medieval-era embroidery. Later, I’ll be doing some modern kitchen clean-up and laundry. And spaced throughout the day, as I’m doing these other things, I’ll probably be writing a century or so into the future. Kind of cool, but kind of confusing if you’re not used to it.
Part of the way I deal with my temporal dysplasia is by compartmentalizing. Not the most healthy of psychological mechanisms to use, but it’s one that seems to work for me. When I’m at work, the SCA and my writing are at the back of my mind at best. In the SCA, I’m oblivious to the work aspect of things, and I only write during times when I can pull myself away from the past. When I’m writing, forget the rest of the time stream; I’m in the future of my own creation, and that’s that.
Well, maybe not quite that simple. Sometimes, despite my best efforts, the streams cross. I have sword jewelry that I wear to work. I carry my phone with me at SCA events. And that future? It’s based on tidbits of the present.
I guess the reason that I can’t completely separate things is because time isn’t a straight line, at least not from a non-linear, non-subjective viewpoint. It’s more of a big ball of wibbly wobbly, timey wimey stuff.
Viral influence
It took getting hit like a ton of bricks to get me to slow down, but I finally took a weekend “off” from the hectic life I’ve been living.
Here’s what happened: I overdid things, as I am wont to do, and I ended up contracting one of those strains of flu not covered by this year’s vaccine. Yep, that’s what it takes to get me to grind to a halt when I’ve been going going going. No events for me, no war practice, no rapier practice, no nothing. Just staying home from work yesterday and staying home from war practice today and tomorrow. Home. No running. No doing…just being.
Okay, maybe a little doing. I’ve been embroidering and sewing, but I’m keeping my activities limited to at-home things that don’t require going out. My body clearly needed the rest, so resting I am.
It feels a bit weird. I have nothing that I absolutely have to be doing right now. As a matter of fact, I’m lying in bed, watching a movie in the dark. No responsibilities. So strange. And you know what? It’s the middle of the day. Almost 3:30 in the afternoon…and I’m not doing anything of worth.
The coming weeks won’t be like this. It’ll take another viral attack to get me to slow down again. There will be more practices, more projects, more more more. I should probably take advantage of this disadvantage and relax as much as possible.
I won’t get an opportunity like this for a while.