So, I thought I'd get rid of the "Merry Christmas" post from 2009! Haha

 I have decided to take a break from photography, as I have found inspiration to write again. (though i may post some old photos from this year, or some new ones, depending on mah situation.)  I started writing my book, "Like a Rose" a few years ago and got stuck on chapter 2 for a loooong time.  I think it's been at least four years since I started it.  Anyway, I am on chapter eight now and really loving how the story has developed.  I will post the first five chapters as soon as I go through and get them edited and double-checked for typos, etc. C:

     I have also fallen in love with costuming & sewing I'm general.  It started when my friend Jacquelyn and I wanted to make handkerchiefs, (because she sneezes a lot and goes through tissues like crazy.)  So, we went to get the fabric for it, then decided to make napkins as well.  Also, wanted to make some simple aprons, so we got some plain cotton fabric so we could dye it with blueberries (which we did. It looks really purdy)
     So then we watched Pirates of the Carabbean: Curse of the Black Pearl.  It was her first time watching it and she fell in love with it, as any human being with taste would. C;  Anyway, I have always adored the dresses in the movie and now so does she.  So, three weeks before Independence Day, we decided, "Hey! Let's make a colonial dress for the Fourth of July! " So we did. C;
     We bought some cotton fabric, just some cheap lining fabric (the same that we got for the aprons that we still haven't finished), and made a skirt with 5 yards of that fabric, just made it up without a pattern.  First; we took all the fabric and dyed it.  We used coffee.  A really cheap coffee.  (It smelt awful.)  It took a couple days of continuous dying, (though it pretty much all washed out in the end.) But we didn't wash the dye out until AFTER the fourth cause we worked really hard to get it to that color and we were afraid it would wash out (just as it did). So, we smelt like coffee. Haha, but you couldn't smell it unless you were right up to it.  
      Anyway, then we did a "pocket" on the top for a drawstring, all the way across the top of those five yards. Then made a drawstring, like bias tape, except we didn't use the bias of the fabric.  Then! We strung it through and sewed up the back and had a really full skirt that looked really colonial and gorgeous!! C:
     The top, we had the same cotton fabric, un-died, then a really pretty blue patterned fabric for the sleeves, which we bunched up and made look really colonial.  We added lace at the bottom, coming out of the sleeve. (what a PAIN to sew on a sewing machine. Next time; I'm hand sewing it.)
      We added blue (machine) embroidery going down the center on either side of the seam in the middle and also put lace at the top of the bodice and the sleeve fabric around the bottom.  it had a corset back (which could have been done MUCH better if we had more time)
      I'll have to add a picture of it soon.  Unfortunately, I didn't get any pictures of it before we washed the skirts and the dye came out, but my Grandmom did!  So, I'll have to get the pictures from her and put them up.

Soooo!  Now I am making a dress for my 21st birthday!  I love Lord of the Rings and anything Medieval, so I am doing a Medieval/LOTR theme!  We can't afford anything too fancy, so I am paying for most of it and as I am the only one with a lot of free time, I am also making most of the decorations while making my dress. (the decor is hopefully going to be kind of like Bilbo's birthday decor - not quite as awesome or even close to that big of a party.)

      I designed a dress and what I've made so far looks very similar to it already... Though this time, followed a pattern. (I didn't want to buy expensive fabric and waste it by messing up) (the pattern is by Simplicity, the one that's made to look like Eowyn's dress in LOTR (which is the dress my sister's making) and it also has Eowyn's green dress (looks nothing like it though) and Arwen's black & red dress) I got some dark reddish-pink-purple linen fabric and some dark blue linen. They look so pretty together. C:  I cut out the purple linen first then sewed them together to make the dress part.  I got that done in a few hours. Excitement and having nothing better to do helps you get things done! C; 
     Then I cut out the sleeves, I used the dark blue linen.  I sewed all those together and had everything but the yoke (which I decided to add later) and then I sewed that on, also made from the blue linen.  I got that done on the second day.  Now all I have to do is hem the bottom, roll hem the sleeves and yoke, then do the (hand) embroidery.  I've done some of the embroidery, on the bottom of the sleeves and on the yoke. Enough that, since I only have a little less than a month to finish, I am just going to finish heming it first. (doing a rolled hem takes fooreeeveeer!!!)  So anyway, I'll post some pictures of that too, when I'm done with it. C:

Wow, this became a pretty long journal.  If you read all my ramblings... Thank you! d; 

And hey! If anyone has any sewing/costuming tips, I'd love to hear them! c:

-Melissa Reneé ♥