Cloth of Gold - Post Two (with pictures!)
Okay, now that I've slept for 15 hours, I can actually write a coherent post, and even include pictures!
So, as I am sure you can surmise from my previous post, Cloth of Gold was a blast. We made it to the site in plenty of time, leaving us with about half an hour to set up and get everything ready. We started right when the autocrat said GO! First thing - I went to the washroom and wet my hair, and then Elise and Sarah but the front half of my hair in rag curlers. This meant that I had an amusing hair-style for 18 hours (see picture below)... I could always tell when someone new arrived at the event (people who were coming as judges or simply to observe started trickling in at about 8-ish a.m. and later) because they would do a double take as I walked by. Most entertaining.
At about midnight (or maybe two in the morning... who knows? I wasn't really keeping track of time), I was sitting at the table, sewing the coif, my hair in the rags, wearing a white underdress, and someone put on 40s music. One of the autocrats looked at me and burst into laughter. She said all I need was a cigarette.
We didn't have an major problems, that I can remember. I think the closest things to 'problems' were that Brenna accidentally cut out the pattern for one sleeve upside down and she had to make it again (but she hadn't finished it yet, and we had plenty of fabric leftover), and we ran out of time for putting all the trim on the overdress and were hemming it literally at the last minute. Also, because the fabric for the overdress was a remnant, we couldn't make it as long as we'd like, but it looked nice anyway. We were thinking of doing a velvet border at the bottom, out of the velvet for the dress, but we decided against it, which is a Good Thing considering we were sewing down to the last second as it was. I may or may not add a border later. I will be putting on the rest of the trim, though. I spent $18 on the trim alone, so damn it, it will be used! I will also probably be making a second set of sleeves out of the leftover brocade.
Speaking of price, never ask me how much this outfit ended up costing (answer: way too much. More than that, i.e. an exact cost, I don't care to know).
It was a true team effort. We all had one or a couple pieces that were our focus, but we also helped each other out on other details. I made the simpler things - the necklace, and most of the coif (headpiece) since I had to keep trying things on, but I also sewed the bodice pieces together, hemmed the hose, and hemmed part of the overdress. Sarah did most of the underdress (Brenna ended up putting the final touch on it because Sarah, Elise, and I were madly hemming the overdress), Brenna did the dress (and made beautiful cartridge pleats, by the way), and Elise did the hose and the overdress (and the pattern for the coif). We absolutely could not have done it without the teamwork we had going. Truly a fantastic experience.
The kitchen staff kept us well-fed. There was never an empty table, so you could go and snack any time you wanted to (and given how quickly I get hungry this is also a Good Thing). They also had lots of coffee, tea, and pop, so I survived the event by drinking tea and Coke. No naps for me - I knew I wouldn't sleep under the conditions so I didn't even bother trying. I was surprised at how animated I was even at the very end. I was probably running on adrenaline.
After the judges started arriving in the morning, we had to explain what we were doing a lot as they each came around and observed and asked questions. It felt a bit weird because honestly I'd forgotten that we were competing in all the craziness of the event. But it clearly went well with the judges, since we won for the Novice category. I think they also appreciated that we had done my hair as part of the outfit. There were a total of six teams, two in advanced and four in novice.
As our prize for winning, we got a basket full of sewing-related items. We opened it on the car on the way home and split up everything. I ended up with a bone needle (as did Brenna and Elise - Sarah said she'd break it so she didn't want one), a little bone box with a carved lid, a pair of tiny scissors for snipping threads and whatnot, and a few glass beads. Brenna got two wheels of pins, a painted wooden box, a bone needle, and a few glass beads, Elise got a reproduction Roman thimble (of which I was rather fond, but I got the bone box so I was willing to give up the thimble, which she really wanted), a bone needle, and a painted wooden box (maybe something else but I can't remember now), and Sarah got nice sewing scissors that actually work (huzzah!) and a whole bunch of glass beads (so now she can make some Viking accessories, yay!), and maybe something else too but I'm not sure. We also all got a little notebook. Site token was a folding linen tester (so you can do a thread count), and from the Baron and Baroness of Septentria we also each got little thread snips. All in all, a good haul (also considering I ended up with a freaking awesome outfit).
And now since I'm sure you are all bored and possibly have only skip-read the above, on to the pictures! More are posted on Facebook, for those of you who are my friends on there, and also on Photobucket (name: carnemerethwen, password: comeandsee). I've only picked a few for this. More will be coming later once Sarah gets hers up (we had two cameras and we kind of just grabbed whichever one was close when we wanted to take a picture).
Our team, just before we started.
Sarah working like a machine on the camica (underdress)
Elise starting on the hose and Brenna working on either the sleeves or the bodice.
The beading on the coif - my project! Hurrah! I was so proud.
Yay for rag curls! And yay for the bodice fitting properly over the camica!
Checking the sleeves.
Brenna working madly on the cartridge pleats.
Cenedl sarting on the giornea (overdress).
How many people does it take to hem a giornea? 4.
(Brenna ended up helping too, at the very last minute. Literally.)
Starting to take out the rags. Ringlets ahoy!
The final product, front.
The final product, back (mostly).
And for kicks, my hair this morning, after I'd slept on it:
If I look tired, it's because I was.
And my hair now, after combing out (which involved a LOT of pain - sooo many knots). I remind myself of Shepherd Book. I also find this amusing because only half my hair is frizzy.
And that's all for now. I think it's more than enough, don't you? ;)
Hmm. This post took me almost three hours.
So, as I am sure you can surmise from my previous post, Cloth of Gold was a blast. We made it to the site in plenty of time, leaving us with about half an hour to set up and get everything ready. We started right when the autocrat said GO! First thing - I went to the washroom and wet my hair, and then Elise and Sarah but the front half of my hair in rag curlers. This meant that I had an amusing hair-style for 18 hours (see picture below)... I could always tell when someone new arrived at the event (people who were coming as judges or simply to observe started trickling in at about 8-ish a.m. and later) because they would do a double take as I walked by. Most entertaining.
At about midnight (or maybe two in the morning... who knows? I wasn't really keeping track of time), I was sitting at the table, sewing the coif, my hair in the rags, wearing a white underdress, and someone put on 40s music. One of the autocrats looked at me and burst into laughter. She said all I need was a cigarette.
We didn't have an major problems, that I can remember. I think the closest things to 'problems' were that Brenna accidentally cut out the pattern for one sleeve upside down and she had to make it again (but she hadn't finished it yet, and we had plenty of fabric leftover), and we ran out of time for putting all the trim on the overdress and were hemming it literally at the last minute. Also, because the fabric for the overdress was a remnant, we couldn't make it as long as we'd like, but it looked nice anyway. We were thinking of doing a velvet border at the bottom, out of the velvet for the dress, but we decided against it, which is a Good Thing considering we were sewing down to the last second as it was. I may or may not add a border later. I will be putting on the rest of the trim, though. I spent $18 on the trim alone, so damn it, it will be used! I will also probably be making a second set of sleeves out of the leftover brocade.
Speaking of price, never ask me how much this outfit ended up costing (answer: way too much. More than that, i.e. an exact cost, I don't care to know).
It was a true team effort. We all had one or a couple pieces that were our focus, but we also helped each other out on other details. I made the simpler things - the necklace, and most of the coif (headpiece) since I had to keep trying things on, but I also sewed the bodice pieces together, hemmed the hose, and hemmed part of the overdress. Sarah did most of the underdress (Brenna ended up putting the final touch on it because Sarah, Elise, and I were madly hemming the overdress), Brenna did the dress (and made beautiful cartridge pleats, by the way), and Elise did the hose and the overdress (and the pattern for the coif). We absolutely could not have done it without the teamwork we had going. Truly a fantastic experience.
The kitchen staff kept us well-fed. There was never an empty table, so you could go and snack any time you wanted to (and given how quickly I get hungry this is also a Good Thing). They also had lots of coffee, tea, and pop, so I survived the event by drinking tea and Coke. No naps for me - I knew I wouldn't sleep under the conditions so I didn't even bother trying. I was surprised at how animated I was even at the very end. I was probably running on adrenaline.
After the judges started arriving in the morning, we had to explain what we were doing a lot as they each came around and observed and asked questions. It felt a bit weird because honestly I'd forgotten that we were competing in all the craziness of the event. But it clearly went well with the judges, since we won for the Novice category. I think they also appreciated that we had done my hair as part of the outfit. There were a total of six teams, two in advanced and four in novice.
As our prize for winning, we got a basket full of sewing-related items. We opened it on the car on the way home and split up everything. I ended up with a bone needle (as did Brenna and Elise - Sarah said she'd break it so she didn't want one), a little bone box with a carved lid, a pair of tiny scissors for snipping threads and whatnot, and a few glass beads. Brenna got two wheels of pins, a painted wooden box, a bone needle, and a few glass beads, Elise got a reproduction Roman thimble (of which I was rather fond, but I got the bone box so I was willing to give up the thimble, which she really wanted), a bone needle, and a painted wooden box (maybe something else but I can't remember now), and Sarah got nice sewing scissors that actually work (huzzah!) and a whole bunch of glass beads (so now she can make some Viking accessories, yay!), and maybe something else too but I'm not sure. We also all got a little notebook. Site token was a folding linen tester (so you can do a thread count), and from the Baron and Baroness of Septentria we also each got little thread snips. All in all, a good haul (also considering I ended up with a freaking awesome outfit).
And now since I'm sure you are all bored and possibly have only skip-read the above, on to the pictures! More are posted on Facebook, for those of you who are my friends on there, and also on Photobucket (name: carnemerethwen, password: comeandsee). I've only picked a few for this. More will be coming later once Sarah gets hers up (we had two cameras and we kind of just grabbed whichever one was close when we wanted to take a picture).
Our team, just before we started.
Sarah working like a machine on the camica (underdress)
Elise starting on the hose and Brenna working on either the sleeves or the bodice.
The beading on the coif - my project! Hurrah! I was so proud.
Yay for rag curls! And yay for the bodice fitting properly over the camica!
Checking the sleeves.
Brenna working madly on the cartridge pleats.
Cenedl sarting on the giornea (overdress).
How many people does it take to hem a giornea? 4.
(Brenna ended up helping too, at the very last minute. Literally.)
Starting to take out the rags. Ringlets ahoy!
The final product, front.
The final product, back (mostly).
And for kicks, my hair this morning, after I'd slept on it:
If I look tired, it's because I was.
And my hair now, after combing out (which involved a LOT of pain - sooo many knots). I remind myself of Shepherd Book. I also find this amusing because only half my hair is frizzy.
And that's all for now. I think it's more than enough, don't you? ;)
Hmm. This post took me almost three hours.