VIVA RIBOLISIN!

81 blocks in two evenings... okay, they are really simple but still – for cutting and sewing even the simplest one needs eyes so yes, people, I’m back in full! I love my new eye drops! 

What else I managed today? Survived the shopping tour with my youngest (three pairs of skinny jeans, two jumpers and five tops) and paid a visit to my bellowed dentist (does words like “root canal” brings nice memories to you too?).

Shopping with my grumpy tomboy who is going through “purple” phase right now was much worse than the dental appointment. Jeans were the easy part, all we needed to do – select the right length, and then choose. Jumpers also were easy as she likes big ones with polo necks, but the tops... Why all of them, nearly all have so low neck lines, designed only for big bosom? On my skinny 11 yo who is still far away from even considering about her first bra, all these tops looked hopelessly stupid.  Draughty, I would say. Finally she managed to find few ones in which she felt comfortable enough, but it was a lo-o-ong search!   

So all in all it has been a rather busy day and quite productive one as well. 

 Tomorrow I’m planning to sew it all together and sort out the borders as well. And my main challenge for tomorrow is – will I get the batting delivered or not? I found online one offer, a real bargain, and now just keeping my fingers crossed.... 

Happy again

So now I’m happy. I was turning the house over and over as I was missing one important thing. The crown of the national costume. I did find all other parts but not the crown. OK, it’s just an old embroidered piece, falling apart and no big value but I hated the idea that it has been lost. Now I found it – alone a drawer in completely wrong company, but it’s survived.  It has lost it big glass beads on top which my granny has replaced by small round pearl-shell bits (but I still have the bag of original glass beads) so I will be able to find similar ones to replace the missing ones and repair it properly one day (or I will leave it to my daughters, they need some fun as well LOL).

Our national costume is basically the traditional festive outfit of peasants, craftsmen, fishermen, and other ordinary folk as worn through the centuries, approximately up to the 1870s.

 The traditional costume or rather stylised variations of it became a symbol of Latvian culture in the 1880s, as part of the national song festival. To this day, the traditional costume is an essential element of the song festival. Picture on the left shows a modern day copy, available on market for about $ 200.

The full outfit was not thinkable without a headdress: a crown, a hat or a headscarf. As far as we know, so for at least a thousand years, the head covering served to signify the wearer's marital status. The symbolic covering for a maiden was a wreath or crown ; in some regions, a ribbon served the same purpose

The little girls usually were wearing just a ribbon in their hair for an important event, or a wreath of wild flowers. Early teens started wearing an embroidered ribbon, a smaller, flexible version of a crown, and only grown up girls, ready for marriage, were wearing a full crown. Each area has it’s own style and patterns thus it was like an address book, telling from which part the girl comes. 

The teen stage “little crown” is already gone – I remember wearing it sometimes as a child and it was falling apart then but the main crown is still alive.  

And the best news – I’m back, digging in to my stash now and choosing the colours! Hey, sewing machine, glad to meet you again!         

Autumn in the air

By some unknown reason I can smell the autumn in the air today. Autumn in the air doesn't mean school only. It's also about knitting and other wool things for me. I love knitting but never in the spring. Spring for me means sewing, a quilt or two, and maybe a dress. Autumn comes with knitted socks and mittens, and sometimes something special, just for fun.

My youngest is moving into her "new" room. I can't say that I'm extremely happy with the outcome, but again - it's HER room and she is ecstatic about the outcome. She had the final say on everything and for her first design - not so bad. But it also means that I'm not doing anything with the sewing machine. So I thought that I can share one of my last year's creations.

 I was obsessed to make a cape for a while. Always wanted one, never actually had enough time to consider to make it seriously. Last autumn it was the right time. I already reduced my job amount and time in office, slowly getting into "stay at home mum" mode when I stumbled upon a large woollen blanket at the thrift shop. It was high quality wool, made in UK, large enough for my project. The only fault - it was pale yellow - way too light colour for what I wanted so I hand dyed it and then dig through my yarn stash... The rest was just into making.

So materials are:
1) a blanket from thift shop;
2) yarn leftovers from stash;
3)the only thing I bought was lining for the cape.

I used an old woollen skirt  for the base in the shoulder part so cape sits stable there. Quick stitching to make it stable and then just all the different autumn colour yarn lines.

 Sewing machine was not used at all in this project. All just a thread and a needle, very old fashioned way. LOL

Ancient bikini

I do not write fashion - there are so many who do it way better. But! I told at the beginning - I love history. And this again proves that history is worth to be loved. Fashionistas, hey, we all know about bikini... How it was invented and all that... Also a history, and a well documented one. Then...
how about these knickers?

A bit worn out for a 60 years old bikini? Well, yes, they are a bit older - date back to the 15th century!!!

And the whole history of bra now must to be rechecked as - again - recent discovery in a vault beneath the floorboards of Lengberg castle in East Tyrol, Austria shows a great linen bra, dated about 1480.
So no, it' not about our grand grandmother's generation - now this find takes us back into comfortable fashion designs of 15th century!
Read more here and here, it is well worth it.
.
 And even more! Look at these wonderful laces!
.

The info about them here for more detailed read.
And if you really want to know more, there will be a chance for these of you, who will be in UK in October.

..................................................................................................................................................

Saturday, 27th October 2012 9:30 am

Well Worn Weeds: Underclothes, Linens and Vegetable fibres worn next to the body.

Venue: The British Musem’s Stevenson Theatre.

The Conference will examine numerous aspects of vegetable fibre underclothes, from fibre production to medical philosophy. Highlights include the recent discoveries of 14th & 15th C linen undergarments from Lengberg Castle in Austria, including the two bra/bustier garments.
Doors open 9:00am for registration.
9:30-10:30, MEDATS AGM. Members only.

11:00 Conference begins.
Sessions throughout the day include;
Linen production in the Low Countries – Frieda Sorba
All indecent! – 15th century linen underwear from Lengberg Castle, East-Tyrol, Austria – Beatrice Nutz
Documentary Evidence of the Linen trade in Florence in the mid 15th C – Jane Bridgeman.
Linen and the Plague. – examining the medical beliefs surrounding linen in the period prior to 1600 – Susan North.
15th and 16th century linens, Evolutions in Cut – Jenny Tiramani
5:00 Conference ends.
.....................................................................................................................................

I think I have decided what I want for my birthday! LOL

And something just for fun... Carry him home! Carry him home!

What colours for the dress?

I was searching for suitable summer dress all spring. I had two strong requirements. It must be some kind of natural fiber - cotton, linen, whatever, no viscose or other synthetic materials. The second - my size and age must fit to the style of the dress. No strapless. Nothing really short. And nothing too girlish with little flowers.

Do you think I did find one? Nope. There were hundreds of dresses, even maxi dresses, but all had at least something wrong.

Linen is a bit complicated to sew because seams must be done very strongly so material will not rip apart after few days (no simple zigzag technics), but that's the only bad thing about the material. Colour is nice - quite dark and bold. And design feels very comfortable, indeed. I loved, I really, really loved making this dress.

But then I started think what to wear with it, and now my hapiness is gone LOL... Wardrobe woes!

 It's dark red. What I already have? A bright orange silk vintage jacket... would really cheer the dark red. A matching silk equestrian scarf, the same dark red as the dress with blue edges and yellowish golden beige for the carriage wheel in the centre.

Accessories? Dark blue shoes, bangle and earrings... Looks like all must match but I'm not really happy.

Picking up a dark blue jacket - all looks so dark...Orange shoes - well, I'm picky about my shoes so I would not shop online...
Then there is a possibility to combine beige pashmina wrap and straw hat, decorated with that silk scarf. Again, not exactly right combination...

I also have open toe sandals, exactly the same colour as dress, but then  I have problem with earrings and some kind of bracelet....And the main problem - the handbag. What type? What colour?
Do YOU have any idea how to better accessorize this dress?  I really would like to see your ideas.