...but it never occurred to me to blog about it until this weekend. Seriously. Which is kind of dumb because I seriously could talk about this stuff all day, but I'm pretty sure no one around me gives a shit.
My grandmother taught me to crochet when I was 10 or 12. I built upon the things she taught me and ultimately ended up making this:
This is a little dress, jacket, bonnet and booties that I made for my niece's baby dedication back in 2005. There's also a matching blanket. I actually had to make a second blanket to put into rotation, because it ended up being my niece's favorite. I think she was not quite 2 years old when my sister-in-law asked me to make the spare, and I gave it to her when they came down to our house for Easter. My niece's face lit up like a Christmas tree when she saw it. That was a pretty incredible feeling.
I also really like to do needlepoint, but with those I have a tendency not to finish them. I have at least two unfinished needlepoint projects laying around right now. One is a Christmas sampler. I might get back to that eventually. The other is the birth announcement needlepoint I was making for when my niece was born. In August of 2005. Soooooo yeah, that one's probably not going to get done. It seems a little silly at this point. I'm sure there are others, but it's been long enough that I don't actually remember them anymore.
Not too long ago I decided to add sewing to my skillset, to make the trifecta of crafting awesomeness. I had been wanting to make myself, my husband and our friends some new garb to wear to the Renaissance Faire for a long time, but I didn't have a machine let alone know how to use it. Then one day this past spring my friend Elyssa announced that she was selling her sewing machine because she'd gotten a fancy new one for Christmas. A price was negotiated and delivery date set, and I was the proud owner of a slightly old but well-cared for sewing machine.
My husband taught me how to use it, because evidently the Milwaukee Public School System rocked back in the day. They actually had Home Ec, and that's where my husband learned to sew. I'm like, "The fuck, dude." But he made me little sheets of paper with different shapes on them so I could practice using the machine before I started working with actual fabric. He showed me how to wind a bobbin, and thread my machine, and was generally helpful and a very good husband. I think I will keep him for now.
So once I had that under my belt, I hemmed a pair of dress pants for my husband. I sing with the Philharmonic Chorus of Madison, and I hemmed my concert dress for that. At that point, I decided I was ready to leap into the world of historical costuming.
It is my intention to use this space to chronicle my experiences as I learn and gain skill. I have already completed several projects, which I will share here as time goes on. I hope you enjoy reading about this stuff as much as I enjoy making it.
No comments:
Post a Comment