Homework Assignment: October!

I'm back! Well, I'm trying for one post, anyway, because The Professor has a really good homework assignment. She says "show us what you love about this time of year," and of course, I love so much about October and fall that I had to come back to this blog to share. (I haven't been offline, though, oh no, I'm blogging up a storm at Frock Flicks, which is why I don't have time to blog here, sorry!).

October in Northern California is a tricksy thing. We may still be having Indian Summer, or as some folks call it, Earthquake Weather (which is a myth, but when the '89 Loma Prieta Quake struck on October 17, the day was bright and sunny). Or we might have delightful crisp fall days. It's a real crapshoot. The weather may swing between the two, and you won't get any notice. So while I *want* to wear sweaters and tall boots every day, it's a better idea to wear layers that I can strip off if the afternoon is sticky hot.

I do loves me a pumpkin spice latte, and if anyone calls me a basic bitch, I will smack them upside the head. I've always loved pumpkin flavors, real and imaginary. It's weird because my mom isn't a fan, so I didn't grow up eating much pumpkin. Sadly, my husband doesn't like pumpkin either, so I can't make or get a pumpkin pie or pumpkin curry at home unless I want to eat it all myself. So mostly, I enjoy the lattes and random pumpkin dishes at restaurants. And decorating with pumpkins too!

Of course, I love all things Halloween, whether or not we're hosting a party (which would be the Famous Dead Person's Ball, an event we do every couple of years). This year, we're trying to renovate our bathroom, so no party here, and the invites are starting to roll in. Not sure what I'll be doing on All Hallow's Eve, but there better be a costume involved :)

What do you love about this time of year?

What I'm Wearing:
Black piped jacket, Spiegel
Black T-shirt, Target
Black & white spiderweb skirt, made by me
Black tights, Haynes
Black cutout leather flats, Zappos
Black, silver, & rhinestone choker necklace, random accessory store
Gunmetal skull earrings, Walgreens
Prada bifocals

The Professor's Homework: Sewing Projects

My current to-do list in the sewing room.

I freakin' LOVE The Professor's latest homework assignment of On the Cutting Table. As she says:  "Show your crafting / art / sewing / knitting / crochet works in progress and the projects that you want to tackle in the next few months. What's on your cutting table? What's in your knitting basket? Did you just buy four new skeins of yarn for that shawl you've been meaning to make? Is there a canvas in the corner of your room just begging for some paint? Show us what you've been up to and what you are planning."

Except I can't tell you what I'm working on. Not the stuff right now because it's SEEKRIT!!!

But here's some hints...

The local costumer's guild is having a Game of Thrones themed event at a winery that has a perfect recreation of a 14th-century castle. A bunch of friends and I are going, obviously, and some of us are making specific characters from the TV show (or book, though admittedly, I read the first book and hated it, but I love the show). Other friends are making "inspired by" costumes.

My planned costume is of a TV show character. A main character. And I can't tell you any more because I want to show up at the event and make people say "wow!"

I can say it's a very popular character, and almost all the materials are from my fabric stash, so the costume won't be perfectly screen-accurate, but it should be recognizable.

In the meantime, take a look around my sewing room -- I totally reorganized and painted it over the summer. And I have a post on my costume blog about a longer-term project for this summer where I want to recreate a gown worn by Charlotte Bronte. I've only started the research, not the sewing for that one yet.

What creative stuff are you working on these days?

The Professor's Homework Assignment: Fur Babies

Since I recently added kittens back into my life, how could I resist The Professor's latest homework??? After the passing of my baby boy Toulouse earlier this year and our beautiful Melusine the year before, my husband and I were almost desperate to have the pitter-patter of kitty feet in our home again. And Bellatrix, Hermione, and Luna are freakin' adorable and wonderful and cute as pie! They're sweet-natured with us and visitors, and they're litter-mates so they like each other. We love the heck out of them.

Hermione & Luna in the mail basket.

Bellatrix in the sewing room.

Hermione playing with a mouse toy.

Me with a Bella 'stash.

The Professor's Homework Assignment: Halloween!

This month's assignment is specifically about Halloween at home -- how you decorate, treats you make, how you spend the holiday with family and friends. So I thought I'd show some scenes from the Halloween party my husband and I have hosted, off and on for the entire time we've known each other. We call it the Famous Dead Person's Ball -- where everyone comes dressed as someone at least marginally famous and at least temporarily dead. I've collected and crafted decorations for decades, and we put things all over the front yard and porch, and all throughout the house. It's a huge production, so we don't do it every year (the last one was in 2012 -- we're due to hold another one soon!).

Here are some views of the decor we've done...

Welcome to the FDPB in 2005

Frank the Skeleton promises a good time!

Our spooky walkway from 2008.

A deadly buffet is laid in 2005.

Candles, cobwebs, & roses on the living room mantle.

In 2010, we didn't have a full party, but we had another couple over for a spooky dinner. I set the table with our best gothic linens and china and made a fall-themed menu.

 

The Professor's Homework Assignment: Musical Inspiration

For this month's homework assignment, The Professor asked how songs or music inspire your dress, mood, art, writing, etc. This was a little hard for me, in that I'm not all that into music. Yeah, bad goth! For me, goth is more about the aesthetic and history and literature than the music. And my musical interests pretty much stopped around 1995 anyway -- I only listen to '80s new wave and goth, with a smattering of Lady Gaga and RuPaul.

So you're getting a little flashback here, musically at least. And in time... The video below was filmed and edited by my husband, and it features me and my dearest friends at a chateau in France, a little over a year ago, doing what we do best. Being silly and historical! We were inspired, that's for sure :)

The Professor's Homework Assignment: Tiki Time

She said "Dog Days of Summer" & I said "Welcome to my cabana!" The Professor brought back her homework assignments by asking us to recall our summer days & how we cope with the heat. Well, my husband & I turned our lifeless little backyard into a tiki oasis over the past couple years.

Tiki bar with a few of my favorite repro cups.

You can see how we did it in this article on Offbeat Home, because that's where I got the idea originally. We used a temporary carport structure to provide shade & then decked it out with rugs, furniture, a bar, & tropical decor. Over the past two years, & especially this spring, we've upgraded & fully decorated to achieve our dream of a Hawaiian- / Jamaican-inspired touch of paradise hidden away in Silicon Valley. I bought a ton of themed crap on eBay & Amazon, plus we found things at the local hardware store. I sewed pillow covers & crafted floral touches. And those neighborhood cats have made the cabana their home, which we don't really mind.

Last year, we started hosting Tiki Thursdays & have continued this year. Basically, one Thursday evening every month during the warm season, we invite friends to come over after work for fruity rum drinks & snacks out in the cabana. Just a chance to chill & socialize. It's been a lot of fun!

My husband & I also grill dinner every so often in the cabana for ourselves & even for friends. Last year, we had a Fourth of July BBQ, & we were all surprised to find out that the street behind ours was having a block party with HUGE fireworks (which are usually illegal here). So we got quite a nice show. And we pulled out a couple of our own sparklers too, bought out of state (don't worry, we used them in the driveway, nowhere near vegetation :-).

The cabana with tiki torches lit.

A sparkler on Independence Day 2013.

So that's my favorite way to deal with the dog days of summer, at least at home. How about you? Join in with your homework assignment or share in the comments below!

The Professor's Homework Assignment: What Makes Your Heart Sing

I fully admit, I was not going to do this assignment. I'm in a dark place right now -- while I finally finished cancer treatment, a bunch of other crap has piled up in my life, & nothing is really making me "sing." I hear it's not uncommon for there to be a bit of a reaction after all the fighting to get through treatment, you can suddenly feel more easily overwhelmed by problems & unable to deal with stressors. Something about the fight or flight response finally letting up. Anyway.

But precisely because I'm feeling so down, I'm forcing myself to write about something that (usually) makes my heart sing. I've mentioned costuming plenty of times before, but what I enjoy most about it isn't the sewing (ugh, I kind of hate that!) or the research & design (which I do love) -- I adore being dressed up in costume with my friends. That's what it's all about. I don't make art in a vacuum. My costumes are a means to an end. They're part of what transforms me & the modern setting into the past or a fantasy where my friends & I can let loose & have a fabulous time. The so-called real world melts away, & everything is right, if only for a few hours. It's no coincidence that my husband & I met working renaissance faires. That's the kind of atmosphere where my heart sings & I feel closest to my higher, better self, the me I want other people to see & love.

Even during chemo, I had to go out to a few costumed events, & they were more energizing than exhausting. While sometimes creating a new costume can be daunting, the prospect of a costumed event with friends always perks me up.

me & my husband at Venetian carnevale

me & my best friends at an SCA event

me & my best friends at Colonial Williamsburg

A Little Dotty

I forgot I had this scarf back when the Professor had a Monthly Assignment for polka dots. Oh well, just consider this one months late :)

What I'm wearing:
Black T-shirt, Target | Dark grey pinstripe vest, Newport News | Black twill skirt, MetroStyle | Black & white polka dot scarf, Express | Silver & black teardrop earrings, random accessory store | Black kitten-heel slingback pumps, Payless Shoe Source

Professor's Homework Assignment: Rain

She said "rain" & two things came to my mind: my favorite umbrella & my favorite rainy song, "Happy When It Rains" by The Jesus & Mary Chain. Admittedly, this umbrella isn't very goth, nor particularly corporate, but I love it to bits. It's starting to fall apart inside, so I don't use it as much as I used to, but it's so pretty. It makes me smile. I've had it for, oh, a decade or more. As many may recognize, it's printed with part of one of Claude Monet's "Water Lilies" paintings.

To make up for this non-gothiness, here's the best rain-themed song ever, imnsho. I love every little thing about this song. The lyrics are fantastic, & the tune kicks ass. "We lived our lives in black," indeed!

Professor's Homework Assignment: Spring

What does "Spring" mean to me? That's actually a tough one, because I'm not much in tune with the natural seasons. I don't garden (I have a totally black thumb -- plants come to my house to die!), I don't eat with the seasons (frozen Lean Cuisines are a mainstay), & I only barely have to dress for the seasons since I live in temperate Northern California (snow is something we drive 4 hours to visit). So Spring as a time of year simply means that it's light when I finish my workday, & the rains are less likely.

But the calendar *does* effect my projects -- because from April through October, that is, the dry-weather times, it's costume-event season for me! About two weekends most months, I have some kind of historical reenactment event to attend, often a Society for Creative Anachronism tourney or renaissance faire but sometimes an 18th-century picnic or party. They all require complete historical costumes that I make or assemble for myself, from shoes to undergarments to gowns to wigs.

During the winter, I plan out what events I'm going to in the upcoming year and decide if I need new outfits or can repair/revamp old ones. I look through my fabric stash and make any purchases to fill gaps. By the time spring rolls around, I'm ready to rock 'n roll in the sewing room!

That's where I am right now, deep in Project Land. Spring means getting a jump on the year's costume to-do list, and this year's list is BIG. I'm essentially making a new 18th-century wardrobe for both myself and my husband because we have a big event coming up in May. I've drafted patterns, purchased materials and accessories, gotten help draping one gown, and even farmed out the sewing of a few items to a friend. My current progress is documented on my costume blog here. The deadline is May 1. Wish me luck!

Gothidays 5 - DIY Giftmas

To close up the Professor's theme, I thought I'd share some holiday tips. My immediate family decided some years ago that, instead of buying a ton of gifts for each other at Christmas, we would give handmade gifts &/or charitable gifts, & just one each or one per couple.

Now, we don't have any kids in this group, so maybe this wouldn't work for your family (I know I loved getting toys when I was little!). But there comes a time when adults just realize we don't need more stuff cluttering up our homes, & the holidays are made more stressful by spending so much money & running around buying things that people don't honestly need. And yet, it's still a great deal of fun to unwrap presents on Christmas morning & share some little surprise with those you care about. We can get that same experience by making something & donating to favorite causes.

Of course, this does add the complication of "what to make?" (Charities are pretty easy to select & give to.) Our family is kind of creative, & my mom, in particular, pulls out all the stops, so we've had a wide range of crafty, homemade goodies.

The old standby that everyone loves are food gifts. It's hard to go wrong there -- breads (sweet or savory), cookies, candies, seasoned nuts, granola, infused cooking oils, sauces, you name it! Even better is when someone includes the recipe or suggestions on how to cook with an ingredient, in the case of oils, sauces, etc.

Food "kits" are popular & fun to receive too: You assemble all the non-perishable ingredients for a dish & print out the recipe, then put it all together in a basket, bowl, or maybe a pot. This is easy to do with bean soups, hot chocolate, cookies, & breads, anything where the recipient of the gift only has to add one or two more ingredients, like water, milk, or an egg.

Finally, here are instructions for crafted things similar to gifts I've given in the past. I tend to gravitate towards sewing projects, because that's easy for me, but I only do ones that are fast straight-stitching. And none of these projects require special tools, & they don't cost much in the way of materials. Set aside an afternoon, get crafty, & have fun!

• Stamp-decorated candles
• Sachets for drawers
• Coffee-cup sleeves
• Fabric grocery bags
• Stamped cloth napkins
• Heating pads
• Travel-photo calendars

You can always goth-ify these gifts by choosing dark colors for the materials, adding bats or skulls, & such, as appropriate to the recipient. For example, the sachets are great made in Halloween cottons, & last year, I made the heating pads with faux-fur covers so they were wonderfully luxurious.

More DIY gift ideas from Offbeat Home, make sure to read the comments too!

Gothidays 4 - Sentimental Favorites

More from the Professor's theme...

While I do goth-up most of my holiday decor, some things must remain the same as when I was a kid. Certain traditions, a few foods, but mostly, the special ornaments. I treasure my small collection of Christmas tree decorations made by my mom when I was little, way back in the early 1970s. She gave them to me when I moved out after college. Here are a couple faves...

A Winnie-the-Pooh decal Mom added to a blown egg. So fragile!
All the other egg ornaments she made have broken.

Totally psychedelic partridge in a pear tree.
I didn't even understand what this one was as a kid.

Slightly multicultural Santa Claus. It's because the wood was a dark color,
but, as a kid, I figured this was just our hip Santa.

Do you have sentimental favorite holiday decorations? Share the memories in the comments.

Gothidays 3 - Decking the Halls

And the Professor's challenge marches on!

Every year, I debate with myself about whether or not I'll hang the garlands. It's a hassle to do so -- they always come out of the box tangled, it takes an hour or so to fluff them back into shape, I have to get up on a step ladder to hang them, & they shed little bits of noxious plastic everywhere for me to hurriedly sweep up before the cats eat it.

But the effect is SO pretty, I can't deny it. That's why I almost always do it, unless I'm absolutely, entirely pressed for time. Everyone who comes into the house compliments me on them, even tho' they're the same garlands I've had for 10 years now. Just plain old plastic greenery that I wrapped in with purple or white mini-lights, burgundy wired ribbon & silver wired ribbon (both rescued from our wedding decorations), & silver star-wrapped wire. Seriously not rocket science when it comes to crafting. But great results.

Gothidays 2 - the Angel

Continuing with the Professor's holiday theme ... While we haven't gotten an Xmas tree yet, I know what will top it. About a dozen years ago, I made this gothic angel to top our tree, & here are some photos from past holidays.

I wrote up the instructions for how to make her for my Gothic Martha Stewart site -- you can easily make your own! The materials are inexpensive, & by using different scraps of fabric & trims, you can customize the angel to fit your decor.

If you have a tree at the holidays, what do you top it with? Is there a story behind the tree-topper? Share in the comments!

Gothidays 1 - the Gargoyle

The Professor has a holiday challenge this year: "Show us how you celebrate or don't celebrate the holidays. Do you completely 'goth-ify' the season or do you opt for a more traditional holiday? Show us what you celebrate and how you celebrate it."

I love this idea! However, I rarely get my holiday decorations up this early in the season -- too busy &/or lazy. I've never been one of those people who decorate for Christmas the day after Thanksgiving. I'm lucky to have everything decorated the week before the holiday! But oh yes, I do mix up a liberal dose of Halloween style with Christmas, always have, so this week, I'll share some pix of years past...

This gargoyle watches over our living room year-round.
At the holidays, he gets a Santa cap & watches over the stockings. With care.

Just a little example of how my everyday gothic decor gets a touch of Christmas sprinkled around. Do you add holiday touches to things that are always in your house?

The Professor's Monthly Homework: Purses & Bags

The Prof asked about our purses & bags, so first, my everyday purse: a big, black leather slouchy hobo bag by Jessica Simpson, decorated with some nice, punky metal accents. It has a bunch of pockets inside (vital for me!) & is holding up pretty well after a year of use.

I pretty much use one bag every day & am not a fan of switching out purses. I carry too much junk essential stuff to move it from one bag to another very often. For the last Fashion Beauty Friend Friday meme I participated in, I showed what I carry inside my purse & that doesn't change much -- check it out here.

But ... every now & then, I do change my purse to go with an outfit. Particularly if I'm going out for the evening. I will use this little leather baguette-style bag which is precisely big enough to hold my wallet, iPhone, & a little makeup. A friend gave me this purse in a clothing swap, & I love all the buckles.

For specifically gothy occasions, I might break out this big vinyl bat purse. It's not very practical in size, but it does look cool. This was a gift from a very sweet coworker.

Then there's this funky, punky little bag that's an army surplus bag I decorated. I don't use it much because I'm not a big fan of crossbody styles. But every now & then I'll drag it out since it's a good all-weather casual purse.

The pins are, from left to right, a "sleep" tab from Doctor Who, the Greater Bay Area Costumer's Guild membership pin, a toreador rose from Vampire: the Masquerade, "Runs With Scissors" (a joke because I sew), & the Pacific Division Championship banner for the San Jose Sharks hockey team, all surrounding a peace symbol patch, because I'm a damn hippie :-)