The shortest explanation for why I've not updated in a little while is that I've had my nose in a sewing machine!

As I told a friend, it's like I've got a fever! And the only prescription is more cowbell costume sewing. I mean gee, I wish I could be this way about writing: wake up, get right to it, do it all day, make significant progress, go to bed satisfied and already devising my next steps. But that certainly doesn't happen.

( Lots of pretty pictures under here... )


Besides this costume? There is a *chef-kiss* beautiful lack of events in my life, and I have no problem with that. Nothing is going wrong. I'm more comfortable with work and everything that must be done there, I discovered that more CBD really helped, doc has me on a different triptan medication for migraines and it seems to work better, and the Boysenberry... also behaves. I love that car.

The license plates just arrived, too, so in due time, probably after Halloween, I will register for DoorDash and see what all that is about. See whether I can make some extra $$$.

I also got a raise - everybody did.

It's actually Autumn now, and it's pleasantly chilly, and all the delightful foods... Don't judge me, but I just eat the caramel sauce by itself. I bought the apples that go with it, but I find that they ruin the caramel because they're too tangy and watery, and to me it's not a good combination. lol So I eat a slice of apple by itself. Then I dunk my finger in the caramel. It's a thing that I do. I also slice up cheese, and instead of putting it on crackers, I eat a cracker and then a cheese, cracker, then a cheese. fff

Well, this entry is getting stupid now. Tata!,
🧡J

Today was a really nice day at work. I took more CBD than usual and noticed the difference it made: I was calmer and more clear-minded, and had lots of easy interactions with customers. I also really enjoy talking with some of my coworkers, and one of them I gave my number, so she and I can get together, have a drink and a treat, and read some of our writing aloud. We were both saying we enjoyed doing that.

Anyway, yes, as stated in the title of the entry, the cosplay is coming along.

Yesterday, the test square of fabric arrived for the Hatter suit, and like... you have no idea how happy I am that it was suitable for the costume. All the work I've been doing to draft the suit pattern, including making the mock-up, was going to be for naught if I didn't find the right fabric. I decided on something called "Ponte", short for ponte roma, which is often a mixture of polyester, rayon, and elastane. There is a blazer in my closet with this combination, and I liked the way the fabric felt, so I googled those three things until I found a name, and luckily that sort of thing was available on a custom print fabric website. P R A I S E  T H E  L O R D 

The company, Contrado, is also really quick with its orders, so I have confidence that I can order the suit fabric and have it by next week, and start making the actual thing! ahhhhhh! In the mean time, I just have to finish painting the buttons (and buy more to paint), and problem solve with my pants pattern. Last weekend was my first time drafting a pair of pants, and they turned out... not terrible, but not great. 

Also arriving by next week is the vest fabric. So I imagine a lot of exciting creation is going to happen soon. 

Besides all that, I will need to sew spats. Not super concerned about this. 

I will also need to trim the bangs off the wig (which are not needed and would have been hidden under the hat), so I can craft some fake eyebrows. hahahaha It is rather hilarious, the lengths I'm going to, with this one. 

One may think I still have a long way to go, but it doesn't feel like it. It feels like I'm over the hump, because I knew ever since the beginning of the year that I would need to spend all this time learning how to make the clothes I needed, and do practice garments -- and I did! I made three practice garments, even. I've learned so much, and I'm, well, a little proud of myself for that. I feel like I am not really a beginner anymore with sewing, and I have skills to build off of, and projects don't seem super scary and confusing. I used to not even be able to imagine that, but here I am. 

2021 has just been a really great creative year so far. A lot got done, and I helped myself grow. Well anyway, I'll shut up now. It's my weekend now, and I just want to chill out with my purple lights and ambient videos, get a good rest, and wake up to start tackling my new to-do list. Which includes: 

1.) Ordering the suit fabric.
2.) Cashing the check the junk yard gave me for Betty *snifsniff* sorry Betty 
3.) Groceries
4.) Buy moar buttons and paint them
5.) Make the spats
6.) Do my research on Doordash so I can get ready to register as a driver (woot!)

Also, this weekend, I really want to make some lasagna. Sounds tasty. 

-J

I'm not sure how, I'm not sure whyyy, but for my entire weekend I didn't get any migraines and had a surprising amount of energy. I also had an ability to focus and a genuine passion. Maybe the passion is what gave me the energy.

Anyway, I haven't followed my own advice about getting to projects that might bring me closer to a career. No, instead, I spent three days working on my AIW Hatter cosplay. 'Cause I just apparently really want this to be done by Halloween. Will it be, is another question because so far I've only ordered the fabric for the vest. Spoonflower otherwise doesn't have what I need. 

The work I've been doing, for months, is too much to go over right now, so I'll just talk about this weekend's project: the vest.

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