Tiger Lily's Threads

The Challenge: Blue The Fabric: 100% Wool yarn Pattern: Hand Knit Garters Pattern by Gloria Sheu Year: 17th-19th century Notions : none How Historically accurate is it: Knitted garters were very common in Europe and Colonial America during the late 17th century and well into the early 19th century. They were a form of fashion and practicality; they were also sometimes woven on a loom. I'd say that this pattern is very accurate. The only inaccurate thing about my project was that the finished project was dyed with blue food dye, but then again, what wasn't dyed with food dye back then? Hours to complete: I'm going to figure at least 4 hours each garter First Worn: Only to try on for this picture. I may wear it later for reenactments in the near future. Total Cost : Since I already had both materials in my stash, it's really hard to pinpoint how much I paid for both. I'm going to figure that it was $3.99 for the un-dyed 100% wool yarn, and $5.20...

After 2 years of reenacting the War of 1812, it's safe to say that the Bicentennial is finally over!  So, In honor of the Ratification of the Treaty of Ghent by Congress on February 18, 1815, the Federal Era Society, hosted an afternoon Tea party on Sunday to celebrate. It was a lively "Big Wrap Party" with lots of surprises.  It started at 11:15 AM at St. Anne's Episcopal Church in Annapolis, MD. Sadly, I was very late arriving to the historical church for Mass, so I went to the Knight-Bartgis house where the reception was being held, to wait for the rest of the congregation. The house was very charming and dated back to what I believe were the early 1900's. The hosts laid out sandwiches, chicken salad, carrot soup, cookies, homemade breads, and 2 kinds of punch. One alcoholic and the other nonalcoholic. I can't recall what was in the alcoholic punch, but the nonalcoholic punch consisted of pineapple juice, ginger extract, and lots of ginger soda. Hist...

Katsucon was a pretty fun convention. My husband and I have been going there for several years (in fact, that's where we first met in 2007, and where he later proposed to me in 2010); In a big way, it's become our family tradition to continue to attend that convention. As usual, the convention was held at the beautiful Gaylord Resort at the National Harbor. It's more than enough space to hold 3-4 conventions all at once.  Anyway, for the entire weekend I took a lot of pictures of some awesome costumes. Such as Freddie Mercury, the Queen of Hearts, Super Man and Wonder Woman. On Saturday, I assisted my husband with his panel: The 2nd Annual Katsucon Pokemon Game Show. It was a huge turn out, with the Maryland Ball Room filling up with more than 300 people. Next year, we will be hosting the 3rd annual game show (hopefully the panel will be approved by the convention panel staff), and If I can get my sewing and knitting started early, I can star...

A little preview of Chel's progress for next weekend's Katsucon. My wooden bangles finally came in the mail today, so I painted them a 4 shades of turquoise paint, and let them dry. The outcome came out pretty good, and if I can get my hands on some Modge Podge or sealant, I won't have to worry about the paint ever coming off.

Well readers it's the first week of February, and for the Historical Monthly Challenge and I've been making a list of what to make for the second challenge (mostly because I couldn't make up my mind). Ideas such as petticoats, a long sleeved regency-style dress, a 40's style dress were conceived, but due to the lack of resources and money (bills, rent, groceries), I settled on just knitting a pair of garters out of some blue yarn that I hand-dyed a few years ago; I've considered re-dying the finished project royal blue so it would match most of my colonial/regency outfits. 100% wool yarn soaked in distilled white vinegar, and then dyed with 1-2 packs of ice blue Kool-Aid The pattern I used for my  18th century garters , were from my friend Gloria's website, "In The Long Run". I absolutely love the outcome of the garters because they were easy to follow and quick to knit up. This time, I used McCormick food coloring to dye my garters a da...

With Katsucon being next week, I've decided to do the crazy thing and make a last minute cosplay from scratch: Chel from El Dorado. Surprisingly, the construction is going a lot easier than I anticipated. After spending almost 3 hours in JoAnn Fabrics ( lol ), the fabrics I finally chose were linen, and the pattern was hand drawn based off of my body type, and TONS of references from the movie. While I had some help from my good friend who has a sweet aspiring career as a costume maker, we were able to get a lot done with the loin cloth skirt, while watching the Superbowl. By day two, I had my top cut out, hemmed, pinned, and sewn. I'll definitely post some more pictures on the construction as the convention gets closer; I have more work to do with sewing, plus painting my wooden bangles (when they will arrive though the mail). The front and back pieces to the loin cloth skirt The zipper I purchased was too short, so I'll have to try agai...