Medievaling

Today I got to go to a medieval event for my kingdom, Crown Tourney.  This is where the next King and Queen are chosen, by feat of arms on the battlefield.  They serve as Prince and Princess for 6 months, a sort of training period, and then step up to replace the reigning monarchs.  There was good fighting today, and the victor threw some perfectly lovely shots in the semi-final and final round.  It was a victory well won.

I sat and sewed for the vast majority of the day, occasionally walking the site and seeing old friends, making new ones.  I have another event in two weeks.... one of my favorites, the Holiday Faire.  A great place to buy gifts and procure needed bits and bobs for the coming year.  My favorite merchants are always there, Gryffon Furniture, Eadrik the Potter, and others too.

I am grateful for the weather, grateful for friends new and old, and grateful that traffic was only moderately horrible!
Back to sewing and making Christmas presents and cleaning tomorrow.

Eye See You

Just a little humor for the day.  The picture of Elizabeth I has her wearing a dress with ears and eyes on it, symbolizing her ability to see and hear everything everywhere, the all knowing monarch.  The giant eyeball pincushion was inspired by this portrait.... we were given a challenge to make a pincushion inspired by something medieval.... a bit wide open, eh?  This is my response.  I really am not in a serious mood, I need some levity.

A Gift Indeed!

I was having trouble visualizing the pieces for this skirt for my daughter.... she simply drew a picture, we hadn't a pattern, and I wanted to make it for this weekend's event. I was working on a couple more projects simultaneously, so felt a bit overwhelmed. As I was talking with a couple of the ladies where I work, who are amazingly talented, I said (facetiously) and you can have this done for me by next Friday, right? Mahtaub, a lovely woman from Iran, looked seriously at the pile of fabrics, then at me, and said, yes! Skipping many details, 6 days later she presented me with this finished skirt, exactly what Meghan drew, and after squeals of glee and big hugs, I showed it all around where I work. Before she left, I asked (not for the first time) what I could pay her, and her reply was that it was a gift, that for her friends, those she loves, she makes things! Makes things! What an understatement! I am still reeling from the generosity of this amazing friend I have made. I am very fortunate, very fortunate indeed.

The coat, somewhat anticlimactically, has been an ongoing project for some weeks, patterned after a couple of Pictish carvings on stones in Scotland. The coats there were short, I wanted mine long, and I added the collar for sheer pleasure and warmth, but the bones are there. It is all hand sewn, a lovely soft purple wool, lined in a navy silk. I will be warm at all my winter medieval events this year!