The WordPress.com stats helper monkeys prepared a 2012 annual report for this blog.
Here’s an excerpt:
The new Boeing 787 Dreamliner can carry about 250 passengers. This blog was viewed about 1,500 times in 2012. If it were a Dreamliner, it would take about 6 trips to carry that many people.
One of my goals for this summer is to sew as much as possible. And since I am a terrible procrastinator, this hasn’t happened very much. I did, however, get a pair of shorts sewn.
First showing project in a long time. I feel so 50’s when I wear these!
Well, shorts are practical for about 3 months in Wisconsin.
I was out shopping with my mom and grandma when I had a whim to go to the fabric store. Lucky me found out that there was a sale on Simplicity Patterns. $1 each! So, knowing that a vintage reproduction pattern that I have been coveting is a Simplicity pattern, I snapped it up. Along with two other vintage reproduction patterns.
The three patterns that I picked up. The top two are 1940’s style, the bottom is 1960’s.
I’ve been working on the top pattern’s shirt for the past couple weeks. I’m not very good at sitting down and doing it all in one or two days. I figured this is OK, because it’s a 3/4 length sleeve that I won’t be wearing until this fall.
A better photo of the pattern I’m currently making. The fabric that I picked out is an embroidered batik, and it makes me feel like a fortune teller.
I’m actually really excited to learn how to do a lot more sewing techniques. So far with this blouse I have hand-stitched the neckline. I used to be horrible at hand stitching, so I avoided it as much as I could. I realize I do need to know how to hand stitch, and the only way I’m going to become better at it is by practicing.
I’m also becoming a fan of darts. I worked with them in the shorts I made last month, and now I’ve put in eight darts (all in the sleeves) for the blouse.
I think my next project will be a skirt. The other 1940’s pattern has a skirt that has a darling waistband that is scalloped. Hopefully by the time I finish the skirt, I’ll be ready to make some Katherine Hepburn-style trousers.
Last week I mentioned that a friend of mine would be hosting a 1912 Titanic themed murder mystery party at the end of July. Since I believe it’s never too early to start planning for themed murder mystery parties, I’ve already began to research hairstyles. It’s really best to start from the top.
A drawing by Charles Dana Gibson. This shows the basic hairstyle that the Gibson Girl wore. From Loyola University.
The first hairstyle that I am thinking of going with is a Gibson Girl hairstyle. The Gibson Girl was created in the late 1890s by Charles Dana Gibson, and embodied the ideal woman of the turn-of-the-century. Gibson called her ‘the American girl to all the world.” The Gibson Girl was supposedly based off of Evelyn Nesbit, a artists model and chorus girl from that time. Nesbit had quite the life, and rumor has it that L.M. Montgomery used her as an inspiration for Anne Shirley of Anne of Green Gables fame.
Evelyn Nesbit at age 17. Said to be the model and inspiration for the first Gibson Girl. From Wikipedia.
Since I’m not the best at figuring out how to do hair (and by “not the best”, I mean I wear my hair the same all year long), I found this lovely tutorial for a Gibson Girl hair style on Locks of Elegance.
I think this turned out well on my hair, despite it being my first time trying this tutorial. I don’t have the thickest hair, so it may be best if I gave my hair a little curl before trying it again. It’s a little messy, but I think it gives me a mischievous “first class – Nouveau Riche” look.
My first try doing a “Gibson Girl” hairstyle. I have very fine hair, so this look isn’t as full as a real Gibson Girl look.
An easier version of this hairstyle is from Simply Stardust. I’ve done this version many times before, and it’s a really easy, really nice hair-do. I think for dress-up parties it needs some dressing up itself, though.
I like to dress up the “Simple Gibson Tuck” with a bejeweled comb. Or you could choose flowers. Whatever suits your fancy.
Historical Hairstyles is a nice blog for looking at different hair from all eras. It doesn’t have very many tutorials, but it’s a good source for ideas.
Finally, here are too hairstyles that I think would look really nice and really unusual for a theme party.
Irene Castle, circa 1910. I really love that she was one of the first women to have a bob. This could be easily done on shorter hair with a curling iron, and longer hair with a few tricks and tucks. From Pinterest.
Wedding site BHLDN has a nice look-book with downloadable tutorials on how to create these hairstyles. This one is very romantic and could easily be modified (a ribbon around the head instead of a feather) to look Edwardian.
Now that summer may actually be in full swing for most people, I’d like to talk a little about my goals for this summer. I’m excited for this summer. Once I’m done with the mass media ethics class I’m taking I’m hoping on volunteering more at the local museum, where I mostly volunteer as a soda jerk. It’s lots of fun, but on slow days I have to make sure that I bring something to read or write.
Besides my class and my volunteer job, I have a lot planned that I want to do this summer. Should we start with my reading goals?
Here’s four books off of my reading list. I’ve managed to make it through two other books. Lots to go!
My big reading list book is Ulysses. I’ve read a lot of James Joyce’s short stories, but only read the first two pages of Ulysses before this. I think I may have grown into this book now, as opposed to when I was 17. Have any of you read Ulysses? What did you think?
I have a lot of mysteries on my reading list this summer. It’s one of my favorite genre of books. Elizabeth Peters and her Amelia Peabody series are great.
And then I have my sewing projects. I’m currently working on a pair of short. The pattern is from the 1970s, but I think they have a 1950s style to them.
The shorts pattern cover and fabric. I think this print is just great. Who else has shorts like that?
I’m currently just basting together the patterned fabric and the lining, but I’m hoping that this weekend I’ll be able to work some more on them.
My other sewing projects include a lovely 1952 blouse that I got at our gigantic antique store in Eau Claire. It looks simple enough to make, so I might be doing that once I get my shorts finished. I also have a 1912 themed party that I’ll be attending in late July, and even though I have a 1912 dinner dress that my mom made me a long time ago, I want sew up something for that party.
A mood board of what I’m thinking of sewing for a 1912 themed murder mystery party. 1 and 2 from OMG That Dress, 3 from Mothic Flights and Flutterings
I’m partial to the Irene Castle dress. It may be the fact that it looks so much more cooler and comfortable than the other two. I’m not sure if my friend has air conditioning at his house, so it might be in my best interest to go with something with not sleeves to stay cool. My guess is deciding on a costume will be a lot easier once I get my character.
I’m working as much as possible on my writing this summer.
And finally, there’s writing. I’m currently working on what is supposed to be my historical mystery novel. It’s chugging along better than I had planned, which makes me happy. Other than this, I do want to do some family research and interview my grandpa and grandma. I think a written family history would be great, especially with the stories that my grandparents tell. I also have a couple ideas for scripts floating around, so I might have to do some outlining of those this summer.
I’m excited for the rest of this summer, and even though I’d love to be back at UW-Eau Claire, I don’t want July and August to go by too fast.
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