Peacock Shawl Finished!

I finished Mom's shawl!  I'm really glad that I don't have to say "I started this last year." 

Look look!

Before Blocking

During blocking, pinned to the floor.

This thing is big.  it hangs down to my fingertips when I put it on.  It's probably 5 feet in diameter.  Mom shouldn't struggle to keep it on, at all.  And she's tall, so the size should work out just fine.

True, it's not perfect, but I'm still rather pleased with the result.  I hope Mom is too!

Text and Textiles

It seems that my logo was not as finished as I thought.  As soon as I posted it, someone said that it looks like "Of her" instead of "Other."  I looked at it, and thought to myself "dangit, you're right."  It has been updated, and I'll post the new and improved version soon.  I'm actually very happy with the result!

In other news, I received my corset supplies.  Yay!!!  I mail ordered the coutil, busk, steel ribs, and some twill tape.  Since this is my very first corset, I wanted to keep it simple, and neutral.  Simple to give it the best chances of turning out well.  Neutral because I have no idea what I'll wear it with, or if I even will.  I've been thinking about adding color with the lace, edge bindings, and flossing.  I'm thinking a very pale green or blue, but we'll see.  It will be a while before that decision has to be made.

Our gracious sew-along host has set up this flickr group, but of course, I'll post photos here, too.

The Other Side: Part II

Rachel's been plugging away at the latest project, The Other Side.  I was right there with her, tweaking and adjusting the logo.  When I finally got something she loved, I traced it for a nice clean copy.  After a not-so-quick scan, here's the final result:

The next step will be to turn this into a vector image.  I don't know if I'll ever go to an all digital way of working.  There's something oh-so-satisfying about the feeling of pencil on paper!

Pretty as a Peacock

Now that I've shown its recipient (my mom) the project, I can show you all!

A couple of years ago, I picked up the Pretty as a Peacock shawl pattern, with the intention of making it for my mom.  I thought of her the instant I saw it, and I knew I had to try.  One thing stood in my way: I had never attempted to knit lace before.  So I tried a few projects, and finally, I felt comfortable enough to try it out.

With only a month to complete it, I left myself little room for error.  Not enough, actually.  It's still not finished.  But, it's very close.  Here are some early photos.

The pattern at the beginning of the shawl is not
super obvious.
I think that was the cause of my rough start.

Here, you can see the first "eye" of the feathers,
and the smaller feathers at the top of the shawl.

Check out all the sequins!
I'm not usually a fan, but I like these.

Mom didn't mind that she couldn't keep it.  She's a pretty patient lady.

The Other Side

I'm getting some steam again, now that I'm drawing much more regularly.  Rachel's a big help, for sure.  One of my latest projects has been a logo for her next project.  I got kind of lucky on this one, having come up with a lot of different ideas in one go.  I was pretty pleased with all of them, and Rachel liked one in particular right away.  After that, I just did a bunch of variations on that theme, and fine-tuned it until we arrived at the final versions.  It's a little creepy, a little elegant, and I like it a lot! 

Here's a photo of all the working versions:

1911 Corset Stuff!

Let me say it one more time:  I'm SUPER excited to be joining in in the 1911 Corset Sew-Along at Bridges on the Body.  I just purchased my corset-specific supplies, and I'm already frantic with anticipation.  I ordered from the recommended Etsy supplier, and CorsetMaking.com, instead of the UK supplier.  I'm just hoping their stuff is of good quality.  Of course, I'm too new to this process to really know what I'm looking for.  I do know that shipping stuff from the next state over is cheaper than shipping from across the ocean!  And either way, it will be worth the learning experience, I think.

I'm also a little uncertain that one yard of fabric will be enough for my... ample... frame.  At 56" wide, it should be.  I hope.  Coutil is not cheap, running about $20/yd.  Still, I want to do this the right way!  All in all, I'm looking at spending about $100 for the finished product, which is nothing, compared to buying one already made.

If you've ever wanted to try this, now is the time!

Best Sew-Along Ever

Jo, from Bridges on the Body is doing a sew-along!  That's right, folks.  This is going to include fitting, cause you can't well make a corset without doing that part!  This is for a 1911 style corset.  Jo said it's about as easy as they get, so if you've always wanted to try, this may just be the right time!  It will be for me, for sure!

I'm just hoping she includes a list of providers for the materials, because I have NO IDEA where to get busks.  Yikes!

Projects and Progress

I have been knitting like a fiend, trying to finish a gift (a really ambitious one) that I can't tell you any more about, on the off chance that someone reveals this to its intended recipient.  I have also been working on studies of birds, for my next series of paintings.  They will (still) probably not be anything a person would hang in their living room, despite the beautiful plumage appearing in these pieces.  And I'm ok with that. Needless to say, I'm very excited about life, and keeping busy.

Rachel has been working away as well, both on several projects, and on maxing out all of her levels on Skyrim.  That girl is super ambitious in everything she does!  That's why you haven't heard from me.  When I have something I can show you, you'll understand!