They just love to make plans that interfere with festival, don't they?

My mom just called. My aunt has made my cousin's bar mitzvah opening weekend of MIRF. The worst part? It's in VERMONT.

I want to try and get my parents to maybe just allow me to fly home after services. It probably won't happen but I wish I could. I wish I could just not go, to have that choice, like I had the choice apparently to not go this past weekend to Florida for another cousins bar mitzvah. I was never presented with that choice though, no matter what my mom says she told me.

I just wish that for once my family life would not interfere with festival. All I'm going to be able to do is sit there in services and just think about what I'd be doing instead. Then I'm sure I'll start to cry. 

I don't want to miss opening weekend. :(

 

 

I've gotten a bit more done on my new court garb. :) Got my bodice mostly finished, just need to add tabs, shoulder treatments, lacing, and fix a few things. :D But having a dress dummy helps out SO MUCH. I would not be this far without it. And it's sad, but I'm really proud of how the back of the bodice looks. It looks NORMAL. My other ones didn't look so good but now - it's awesome! :D I wasn't planning on the velvet being so wide but I like how it's turned out. :D

Next step is replacing the boning material in my hoopskirt. Gonna trip out to Home Depot or Menards (whichever is closer out here) and get me some of that plastic tubing everyone is apparently loving so much. I figure if it doesn't work too well in Florida, it's ok. I can just order some hoop steel before MIRF starts up. I'll get together the overskirt while I'm waiting. And I'm almost done! :D

So to recap:

I got the corset, bumroll, bloomers, partlet blouse, forepart, and hat done. Bodice is almost done. All I need to do is the overskirt, hoopskirt, and hem the forepart (since I kinda need the hoopskirt to do that :P)

 

 

ALSO - I've been looking at birthright trips to Israel for this summer. I am SO EXCITED! Hopefully I'll be over there May 11th-21st!

I've had a pretty slow week and so I've gotten some stuff done. I really finished my corset about a half hour or so ago - I had been waiting to put in the grommets but then I really didn't want to go outside to pound in grommets as it is snowing and my dorm room would not be the best place to do so either. I'm on the top floor - I'd get so many complaints. :P So I was browsing the interwebs and saw that someone had simply used a machine made buttonhole. Score! :D I took my corset for a test run and it seems fine. My suitemate laced me in as best she could but the problem was really that I had forgotten the laces I used last year at home and had just tied my two (ridiculously short) shoelaces together. Unfortunately they didn't reach the bottom. But I still like how it looks. :) 

 

On Monday, after slaving away over a paper, finishing it, and then learning that it was not this Tuesday but NEXT Tuesday that a paper was due, I decided to reward myself by trying to figure out my new hat. :P My blonde swan doesn't match the new dress unfortunately, so I decided to make a pillbox hat. Seems simple enough, right? Of course right. I just made the frame and temporarily covered it with some extra forepart fabric (I think I'll use it for the final version though, I like it). I just don't know if it looks just right...I think it looks fine. Of course I could be totally wrong...  

 (Sorry it's so huge! It just won't shrink! DAMN PICTURE!)

The new garb is going to be made from these -  

I cut out the forepart last night but then I popped in A Knight's Tale and found that I didn't want to do anything other than sit on my futon and eat some kettle corn. I'll get on that tomorrow after Witch Hunt. Tonight I've got some reading to do and a Meijer run. Also gotta watch Dr. Strangelove for class! :) I love that movie. It's hysterical! 

Sorry it's been so long everyone! It's been a busy few weeks with an even busier start to the semester. 

I've changed my major officially to secondary education: history with a minor in secondary education: english, as medieval studies unfortunately is "not a teachable minor" and so I was forced to change it. *sigh* Oh well. I've got a few interesting classes this semester, one of them is European Witch Hunt, it's a 400 level but I think I can manage it. I also have Intro to Archaeology, which I love so far. I have always been interested in archaeology and especially Egyptology.

Next summer ('09) one of my professors from last semester is taking those of us interested to Russia for 2 weeks, which should be fun! Two of my friends from the class (who are now in Witch Hunt with me) are taking Russian in preparation and they have promised to teach me. :)

I'm in the process of making new garb! :) Yay! I've just finished my new (and improved!) corset and a partlet blouse. I still need to wash my new fabric (I'll do that later today) but overall I think I should be mostly done with it by the time we leave for BARF. (37 days!) I'll add photos as I get things done. And don't worry everyone - I've got a schedule and a dry erase board with my homework on it with a big "HOMEWORK BEFORE GARB". :P 

Anywho - I've got a paper to finish for my English class (the one I was supposed to take last year but never had the time in my schedule for it). Shouldn't take too long, but I want to get it done so I've got nothing to worry about tomorrow for my birthday. :D Going to Ann Arbor for dinner with my parents and sisters. No party this year - that will be for next year! :P 

Snowball fights are the best thing ever. Why don't people actually like snow fights anymore? I just had way too much fun frolicking in the snow with a friend of mine. I ended up semi-soaked in part of his good aim and in part of the snow coming up to my knees and me falling all the time. It was nice to get out of the house and away from the parents for a few hours. I don't know how I'm going to spend a week with them.