Finished Blue Necklace

Here is the finished necklace, made from the components I showed in the previous post. This one turned out really nice, very elegant, and it's a hard one for me to let go of because I really like it. However, I need another piece of jewelry like I need a hole in the head.  Also,  I think it's already sold. I put pictures up on Facebook, and a friend loved it and wants to buy it. If that falls through, I'll put it up on my Etsy site.

Center component is a vintage bracelet. The rest is "gold" chain, blue drop crystals, and dark blue glass beads.

Back to Projects

Now that the ARC mounted archery event is over, I can go back to my normal (?) life of working on different projects. Here are the latest. These are being done simultaneously with the Riding Costume, but I like variety and hopping from one project to another. It's the same reason I read two and three books at the same time.

Here is number one. I apologize of the lousy quality of the photos, but trying to take pictures in my house in winter is like trying to take photos in a cave without a flash. Usually I take things outside to photo, but it's pouring rain today, so that option was out.

My latest Goodwill score. A Christopher & Banks cropped linen jacket, bought for only $4.99. New they run over $40. I think this is the natural, un-dyed color of the linen, but not sure. It's a soft, sorta greenish beige. It has same-color machine embroidery in a leaf pattern up the front, on the collar, and a detail on the back. There is also what looks like narrow, pulled thread work up the front along the buttons and buttonholes. Rice, over at the Voodoo Cafe, would dye this some bright, zingy color, but I'm not really into the whole dyeing thing. I will, however, add more thread detail and beading. I might also swap out the buttons, if I can find some others I like better, which shouldn't be hard, as these are pretty bland. I really liked the gold thread work I did on my red bolero, and I think that would also look good on this jacket. Maybe small gold beads, or shiny rust colored ones. Not sure. I will have to play around with stuff to see what works best.

Anyway, I love the feel of the linen, it's pretty heavy, but very comfortable to wear. I did laugh when I bought it though, as the cashier lady made the comment, "Oh, this will be really nice when you iron it." Yeah, like that's ever going to happen!

 

Here it is hanging in my bedroom. The machine embroidery actually shows up better than I thought it would.

Here is the detail along the front, and on the collar. Now that I really look at it, I think the pulled thread work is just more machine embroidery. Oh well. Still looks nice.

Back detail.

So, that's one project.

Project number two is a necklace.

The main section is an old vintage bracelet, with lovely sky-blue crystals. The end link is missing the main stone, and I will remove it, maybe find a stone later and use that piece in something else. I have three blue teardrop crystals, some darker blue glass beads and will probably hunt up some other small metal detail beads or spacers. To extend the length, I'll make links with gold wire, add a dark blue bead to every link, and if I have enough, make the extensions a double strand of links. The links will be hooked into these really wonderful peacock-blue jump rings I found. The teardrop crystals will hang from the vintage bracelet.

Overview of the components.

Closeup of the vintage bracelet.

And that is project number two. Can't wait to do this one. It will be an experiment in mixing vintage with the modern, more flashy jump rings. I've had that section of vintage bracelet for ages, just waiting for the right other pieces to fall into place. It was finding those peacock blue jump rings that sparked inspiration. Funny old world, isn't it.

After Event R&R, then Moving On

It has been a week since the ARC event. It has taken Robert and me that long to detox and get our place back to normal after concentrating on nothing but ARC for over three months or more.

ARC (Ancestral Remembrance Celebration) turned out to be a ton of fun, but in retrospect, a ton of work. And as usual with such things, mixed messages and human error or misunderstandings were part of the territory. In the end, it all worked out and everyone had a grand time. I kept thinking of the lines from the movie Shakespeare In Love, "It will all work out"..."How will it work out?" ... "I don't know, it's a mystery." Friday evening I was in a panic because folks hadn't shown up to get qualified to play, the lady who was supposed to bring the equipment for them to qualify with didn't get to the event until after 6 pm – too late to do anything— which was moot, since there was only two riders on site by that time, and they had already done a "going through the motions" type qualifying with borrowed weapons. Then I heard that the man who was to make the prize for the hunt didn't come to the event, and there was no prize. To say I was in a high state of anxiety is an understatement. However, by late Saturday morning, everything had smoothed out, the prize was indeed on site, and the qualifications went just fine. Truly...it was a mystery. 

Here is the group photo of the riders right before they started the hunt course. They were out for over three hours, trail riding and shooting targets. Everyone had a good time, which in the end, is the real goal of any event organizer. That's me standing next to Robert on Apollo. I didn't ride the hunt, as I was manning one of the last obstacles, and toting up the scores. Robert and I did ride the course on Friday morning, which was nice, we just didn't shoot.

The Monday after the event Robert and I went back to the site to take down all the targets. When we got to the one of the crane, we found a little surprise. This is the back of the target.

Apparently the local bear took an exception to fake cranes in his territory.  While clearing the course in the weeks previous to the event, we had spotted quite a few piles of bear poop on the trail, so this wasn't a total shocker.

So, now that ARC is over and life has gone back to normal, whatever that is, I can get back to the projects that got put on hold while I drew targets and organized a hunt. First will be finishing the riding costume, and then I need to make an SCA period winter cloak or robe for Robert, who needs one badly. After that, not sure, but lots of ideas in the works. I also want to get back to playing around with the Alabama Chanin-type T-shirt adaptations and of course, making more jewelry. It helps that winter is setting in, and outdoor chores will be nothing much other than cleaning stalls. Oh, and I also want to get back into writing, and doing some artwork.

So, that's it. Event recap and the projects lined up for when the Dark Days have socked me in for the winter. Hopefully, they will keep me from going insane until the sun comes back next May.

Still Working on Targets...Gah!

I'm still buried in the preparations for the mounted archery hunt coming up fast...Oct. 5-7. Probably won't get much posting done here again until after this event is over. But here are two of the targets painted, and ready to glue to the insulation foam. And yes, that is the rabbit you think it is.

The wolf didn't turn out looking quite as fierce as I wanted. Actually, he looks like he's falling asleep, but...oh well. The poor thing is just going to end up full of holes anyway.

So, between one thing and a zillion others, I will sign off for a bit, and be back after Oct. 8.

Making Targets

I've mentioned it briefly here a few times, but come Oct 5-7 our local SCA (Society For Creative Anachronism) group is holding an event, which this year includes a mounted archery hunt, target mounted archery, and a pumpkin shoot. Since I am the Equestrian Officer for said local group, I am in charge of the horsey stuff, and also since the hunt was my idea, I am responsible for making the targets for the hunt, which is a course of about a mile, with aprox 15-20 targets. A friend is handling the target archery part, and we will both run the pumpkin shoot. So, to get to the point of this entry, here is what I have been working on instead of jewelry or sewing projects. I've been drawing and making animal targets.

Here are about half of them, drawn on cardboard, cut out, and now positioned on insulation foam. I drew around each shape with a black marker, took the cardboard animals off, then cut the shapes out of the foam. The cardboard will then be glued to the foam shapes, and the animals painted a bit more life-like. Once in place, like theater standies, they will be taped to wooden stakes in the ground and ready for the hunters. Not all the targets will be made his way. Some drawing will be attached to large cardboard boxes painted to look like background. These will be in the forest part of the course, and will hopefully prevent arrows from becoming lost in the woods. Some will only be painted straw bales with cardboard faces (a boar) or draped with a hide (the bear). These and the standies will be for the open hay field part of the course, where the arrows will be easier to find if the target is missed.

It has been a challenge to figure out the best, and also the least expensive, way to make these targets, get them drawn, and now ready to paint. Once these are all finished, I can go back to my regular schedule...whatever that is.

BTW, the Bud Light empties belong to the husband. I never touch the stuff! LOL

Necklace and Earring Set

This necklace had been sitting around my studio for a few months. It was finished...sort of. I decided after completing it, that it needed teardrop pearls. I only had one. So it sat until I could find some, but apparently teardrop pearls are not big sellers, and I couldn't find any at either Michael's or Joann's. That's when I remembered I had a bracelet I had made a year ago, with quite a few vintage teardrop pearls. The bracelet had been up on my Etsy site several times, and never sold. So, I pulled it out, took it apart, and added the pearls to the necklace and earrings. Perfect.

Here is the result.

It's made with black wire, black wire-wrapped beads and hearts, small black beads, silver hearts, small crystals, large drop crystals, and vintage teardrop pearls. Voila!

Riding Costume...Shirt

This is the first piece of the riding costume to be almost complete. Only thing left to do is add elastic at the wrists. I tried very hard to use the design of the vintage linen tablecloth to the best advantage, and to waste as little of the cloth as possible. I think I did a pretty good job. I still have two center medallions, and two small scrolls, left to play with or to add to something else.

In the photos, the shirt has been ironed, so looks all nice a smooth. Once worn and washed, it will be wrinkled...and will stay that way, as I have no intention of ironing it every time I wash it. Besides, it's meant to look a bit "rough."

This old linen feels lovely against my skin, and hangs beautifully. When you pick the garment up, it feels a bit heavy, but once on, you don't notice it at all. I am really sold on this whole recycling of old linen, so will be looking for more at the Goodwill and antique/thrift stores. I need another big one to make the skirt for the costume, so the hunt is on!


Here is the front of the shirt. The sleeves are waiting for the elastic at the wrist. Also, I positioned the pattern pieces so that the hand-crocheted edging of the cloth got used on the hem and sleeve edges. What I didn't use, I have kept for use on other garments. It's just too precious to toss away.

Front close up.

Back view.

Detail of back. I especially like the way I got the scroll to fit on the collar piece.

This is a detail of the sleeve. In order to get the design to work best, I had to cut the sleeves in two separate pieces, rather than place the pattern on the fold. In doing so, I ended up with a seam down the top of each sleeve, but that doesn't really bother me, since the design was too nice to lose. You can just see the casing for the elastic on the left side of the sleeve. That will give me a wrist ruffle of about two inches.

Next in line after the shirt will probably be the jacket, or the waist chincher. I'm really having a lot of fun putting this costume together.