My Illustrative Life

Pattern-model style, Christmas day, exhibiting one of the presents my sister and I gave our immediate ancestors.

Boxing day, walking; I love the English countryside. I love it. Quotes from Guthrie in Bloomability by Sharon Creech, one of those books that I might describe as “almost perfect” and only almost because calling a thing perfect seems foolish. You should maybe read it, though, especially if you are feeling unhopeful or hopeful.

Post-walk, building a fire before watching Desperately Seeking Susan. Wearing gift-dress (H&M) and gift-tights. Thanks Mum! And gift-slippers, thanks Dad!

No, my modesty is safe. Knitted shorts.

Peace out.

1 Skirt: etsy

Jumper: Jaeger

Tights: H&M // H&M

Slippers: Fit-Flop

2 (vest: Next, Thermal: M&S, slip: ebay)

Sweaterdress: H&M (gift!)

Sweaterdress: NoaNoa

Suede overdress: Fanny & the Cave

Tights: H&M

Boots: Dr Martens

Hat: RSPB Capercaillie tartan

Coat: Camden

Gloves: Accessorize

3 as before!

The mask in my previous post was made for my sister to wear to a masked ball one of her friends was having for their eighteenth (I think?). She asked me to craft one for her even though I’d never tried masks before because she is a good sister and believes me when I say “I can do anything!”.

I agreed because I also believe me when I say this, and because I figured it’d be fun. I was right! Skill-expansion is awesome! Awesome enough to share.

I had a great reel of aluminium wire from previous craft-based sculpture experiments (just under half a centimetre diameter (I can’t find the box to check exactly!)) and a blue 80s leather jacket I’d bought with Kenshiro in mind and which therefore had no need for its sleeves; the leather is thin and soft and easy to sew by hand.

Well, I say “easy”. My digit-skin might tell you differently. Callouses!

I basically winged it. I find that a very satisfying way to work, because I am full of i-told-you-so pride and like to feel I have won a vicious ambushed battle, not simply made a thing. I wanted to have a finished product that could be worn and taken off with ease like glasses, because I find elastic and tie-based masks are very often extremely annoying, because they mess up one’s hair. And, at a dance of the like that demands new faux-snake heels, messy hair is not in desired order.

I cut a length of wire that would reach all around her noggin and used my knowledge of the human head to mould a basic ears-cheeks-nose outline that would rest on her face like lower-placed glasses (she looked like she was wearing a retainer). Then I took her head, and adjusted the moulding until it sat comfortably. Aluminium bends really, really easily, so you can just do this by touch. After it was comfortable enough to be forgettable whilst on, I cut out a Ninja Turtle-style mask -

- from the leather sleeve that was definitely wider and longer than the finished mask would need. Seam allowance and so forth, you see? You need a leather that’s soft enough to fold in to the contours of your subject’s face. Draw with a pen just around the inside of the wearer’s eye socket (that is, under the brow bone and along the top of the cheekbone). I cut out these holes.

Having sewed the floppy leather mask-piece onto the front of the aluminium “retainer”, cut another length of wire that reaches from the tip of the nose up and back to the crown. Mould this to the wearer’s profile. The ridge of the nose needs to be closely followed, but the remaining portion that spikes back over the head doesn’t need to lie flat. Do as you will with it! You can remove it, even; it’s not necessary.

The rest, I think, is figure-outable from these pictures. The orange arrows (forgive their sloppiness! I didn’t have my tablet available, and Pixen hates touchpads!) are where there’s wire piped in, the lilac ones are where there’s no wire. Just pinch and add darts or channels where they’re needed, to fit it to the face of the intended wearer. If you want a mask to be worn bare-leather, you’ll need to be more discerning in your thread-colour choices than I was. Upholstery thread is also a good bet for a project like this - you can find it in any craft or fabric shop.

As uncomfortable and sloppy as this looks when worn it feels perfect. If you’re striving for perfection, I’d advise lining your finished mask with felt. Just cut out the shapes the front is ‘made of’ and glue them inside.

Here are some useful links!

I’ve mentioned a few times the thought processes that go into my “work wardrobe”; I want to feel like myself but appropriate. For me, this has meant diving from the [1960s professional lady] board. There’s a character archetype that the neat, softened-geometric shapes and clear colours that thick work-grade fabric evokes. When we (I) watch professionally-set stories set in the 60s, we (I) know that:

1. she’s smart
2. she’s good at her job
3. she can handle the people she encounters in the line of duty with grace and skill
4. she’s underestimated

It’s clear why these are aspirational traits, no? The last, in particular, is important, because I do not feel quite comfortable being an “office worker”. This is no slight to those who are - I simply am myself and not them!

Of course it’s no secret that Ms Joan Holloway is the bees knees right now, and it’s certainly true that she is costumed impeccably.

But who is responsible? Who chose the clothes that make the woman? I will tell you know, and you should read these names:

Tiger Curran: costume assistant / wardrobe intern (26 episodes, 2008-2009)

Allison Leach: assistant costume designer (18 episodes, 2007-2009)

Joanne Bradley: tailor (17 episodes, 2007-2008)

Tiffany White: costume production assistant / costumer / … (17 episodes, 2007-2008)

Michael Castellano: costumer (12 episodes, 2007-2008)

Bud Clark: costume supervisor (12 episodes, 2007)

Le Dawson: costume supervisor / costumer / … (9 episodes, 2007-2009)

Kristine N. Haag: costumer (9 episodes, 2008)

J.R. Hawbaker: costumer (7 episodes, 2008)

Kimberly Nickerson: costumer (6 episodes, 2007)

Lynn Ollie: costumer (6 episodes, 2007)

Hannah Jacobs: costume production assistant (5 episodes, 2008)

Thanks IMDB!

But Joan wasn’t the first! Of course she wasn’t. She’s a throwback, she’s created now. She may be a marvelous depiction of a lady of ‘63ish (I don’t actually know.. I can’t watch Mad Men, because I believe I would burst re: injustice, prejudice, social horror) but she’s a product of 2007.

So, who was really there?

I’ll tell you!

Wende Wagner played Lenore “Casey” Case in The Green Hornet, a show I happen to heart. Bruce Lee’s tv break, too. Am I looking forward to the movie? NO.

Casey was Brit Reid’s secretary. Brit Reid was the editor-owner of the Daily Sentinel, a newspaper. He was also by night the Green Hornet, a asked crimefighter who went about his vigilante business by pretending to be a worse criminal than anyone else. I love that. Casey was one of the three people who knew of Brit’s alternate identity, and she was often involved in his cases. There was no romance between them, and he respected her as a professional and a friend. Andrew Pallack is credited in IMDB as the men’s wardrobe master. I will check my dvds to see if there’s any info on the women’s costumier.

Eve Whitfield was costumed by Grady Hunt. She was an Officer on Ironside’s team, an integral member. She was kind of a hardass sometimes, actually. But look how she dressed! So good!

Photobucket wouldnt take the collage whole! I had to chop it, and I was in a bad, tired mood.. :/

The last, smallest wardrobe featured is that worn by Scott Bakula as Sam Beckett as Samantha “Sam” Stormer (yeah, it’s a maze of a show) in the episode “What Price Gloria?” of Quantum Leap. This was probably costumed by Jean-Pierre Dorleac, but Jacqueline Saint Anne also took charge of the wardrobe duties on “unknown episodes”. Produced in the eighties/early nineties, rather than the 60s proper, but OH that episode gives me the envies. Marvelous.

Thanks, costume designers and wardrobe departments. When you do your jobs, you make stories so much better.

I talked about house clothes, before. The ones I showed were mostly of the pyjama-y ilk; they were designed to be worn indoors, or under other clothes. This sweater was made to be “real” clothing, it was made to see the light of day. I think it was bought when so-called Geek Chic was big a few years back.

My sister gave me this jumper because it is 80% wool and it made her itch. I’ve had it in a draw for at least six months. I never wanted to wear it because, again: it isn’t me.

But I am wearing it now! Yes. So I must amend my judgement, I can tell you that it is me but it is only a small part of me. Most of my clothes are always-clothes, really, because I have a pretty good handle on what I “am like” and how I feel that translates visually.

This jumper is, specifically, a bra-less weekend jumper.

I’m not this kind of pale melange grey. I am not these synthetic coarse colours in knitted patterns, I’m not so-uncool-it’s-cool-again nerd-sweaters. I don’t like the way it sits on my torso or how it pulls up off my hips if I move a smidgen.

Except for, on bra-less weekends in winter.

When I have nowhere I need to go, and the weather is cold and damp, and I have typing to do and cooking to plan and it gets dark at four o’clock. When I have/had a confrontation to get past, when we have records playing in the room next door, when I showered at lunch time, when I want to feel like I am dressed but not like I need to represent myself or quite come out of gentle hibernation. At these times, this jumper is perfect because I don’t need to waste something that is “really me” on a day when I just feel like private rest. If I put on a bra, I would hate wearing this jumper. It would be all wrong - once the effort begins being made, choices start to matter. It would change the shape and change the image, and I would hate it.

This jumper is one that says to me “if I am forced, if I really need to, of course I can still be me and project myself through anything. If I have to (what if whatever happened to make Mad Max happen happened? What if: Zombie apocalypse whilst I’m away from my wardrobe? What if I’m kidnapped? & so on)”. It’s a statement of self-assurance to myself (and now, to you).

The trousers don’t go at all, but I love these trousers and I wanted the comfort of them. All those times I have read ladymagazines state “fashion isn’t about attracting men” / “women dress for other women” I hae thought “well yes, but that’s a bit of a simplification, isn’t it? “Fashion” is about dressing for yourself: telling you the story you want to hear. Other things too, but that. Everything just depends on how much you’ve thought about it, and what you’ve decided.

Context is Queen.

Until October, I had never watched a Karloff horror. I know, it’s sort of unbelievable. But nevertheless, I owed him a debt of culture, and not a small one. Through several different channels I had felt the influence of Karloff the Uncanny, and been enriched. I’m going to talk about the various ways I’d felt the hand of Frankenstein upon my shoulder in different posts, and today’s is going to be a short one because i need to go to bed soon.

If you click the play button on the cassette graphic above, you will hear one of four versions of Dig Up Her Bones by the Misfits.I didn’t check which versions when I was making the playlist, because I was in a rush, so there are three electric and one acoustic that comes after a bit of general meandering chat. There’s also an acoustic version on the playlist on the purple tape to the right in my banner-strip. I’d advise fiddling until you’ve heard at least one electric and one acoustic version.

My beloved introduced me to this band. He told me they were his favourite band, and the first time I visited him at Uni he played me a bunch of their songs so I sort of can’t entangle listening to their songs from being awake in the small hours with the person who makes my insides sing, which is score one for my enjoyment of Jerry Only and crew. But even apart from the context, their songs, in all line-ups but particularly Graves-onwards (internet I am my own woman, and I am allowed to have opinions about jewellery Danzig! ..thanks Jackie Burkhart), are kickass good. Just so good.

Dig Up Her Bones is one of the more romantic-sounding ones. It’s a heart-grasper, a sky-reacher, and you will want to sing along. It’s about, research told us, Bride of Frankenstein.

I’ve seen Dig Up Her Bones live twice, and both times it was so good. I don’t remember if it was performed well (live shows, sometimes they sound like crap. This is a fact.).. it was just The Band performing The Song, never mind how dissimilar 2006 Misfits were to 1997 Misfits.

It doesn’t allow me to stay disconnected; I hear it and I want to hear the whole story and someone to soothe the narrator from his pain.

Karloff’s performance in Frankenstein helped bring about Bride, and his performance in that helped bring about this song. Boris Karloff helped bring us Dig Up Her Bones.. so I think we should all say thanks.

Thank you, Boris! It is much appreciated. I have played this song a lot.

Click above to read other people’s Karloff entries, and learn more about the BKBlogathon.

The top half of the 60s office-lady suit I wore yesterday (and thank you for the compliments, ladies!) zips up in the back. If I wear it backwards, and a little un-zipped, it looks like a ’sporty’ (the.. the retro type of sporty) jacket. But still neat and swish! Giving me extra days during my work-week (part time) when I am in the professional zone (in my eyes) but not re-treading. Hurrah!

Everybody visit Muffinkitty’s shop, no?

(Yes!)

P.S. today I was told “I’ll have to start paying you for the work that you are doing”. Victoryyyyy. *fistpump*

Everything I’m wearing bar the boots is second hand or offbrand. And I think the tights are from Tesco?

My mum decided she needed a video resource for her class - she teaches primary school - and that she wanted my aunt, who was visiting for a couple of days, to play the scientist in it. So I wrote this, and filmed it in a very small time! And then edited it at top speed, because she FORGOT COUGH COUGH to tell me when she needed it by! Also, I hate iMovie.

Very much.

Quite pleased with the script, and the logos, though. Despite the fact that I couldn’t find my tablet stylus and had to make the whole of both of them with the click-and-drag shape-makers and the lasso tool by way of my 5×2 touchpad. I cry!

If you are or know a teacher, you or they may feel free to use this at no cost. Please comment if you want a better quality one, I can do it in my lunch break or something! The lesson/homework was to investigate and compile a report on “an invention”, and the class topic is “keeping warm”, so - this combines the two. Happy watching! >_>

Actually, I haven’t. Bought real new clothes in real new shops, I mean. Today. I sort of have, but then I cheated.

Instead of going in real (by which I mean, original high-street retailers) shops and spending more money than I have on clothes that aren’t as exciting as I want (I looked, honest) I went to Cancer Research:

Skirt: Marc Jacobs

Sweaterdress: Noa Noa

I was looking for things that I’d feel reasonable wearing to work. That is, as well as at home; it actually didn’t occur to me to think of work clothes as separate from home clothes. And I mean, a) this is not official paid work but rather extended work experience (I’m making promotional and educational videos for the good people of the science/university nearby) and b) they have no dresscode, but I thank goodness that I’m not somewhere I have to be so smart that I feel like someone other than me whilst being appropriate.

Better haul than usual, I have to say. Charity: it benefits everyone.

These threads are the bees knees!

I gave in a couple of early sketches to a prospective client whilst I was in town. A place I call the naughty shop* want some themed work done for their sandwich board.. hopefully my ideas will spark favour.

*I’ve been in there about this illustration twice, and both times I’ve found my gaze resting often on the rainbow cock’n'balls lollypops.

You might not think, on first assumption, that 1940s British Girls’ School Stories (for young ladies) and 1970s american punk groups would have anything in common. (You might think that they might, in which case hurray for you and you maybe have nothing to learn here. Stick around anyway!)

They do though! I shall tell you some ways how, but in a roundabout fashion.

This above is one of my favourite photographs. I pinched it off punk77’s “Women of Punk” sub-site, which is a good place to visit. Go visit.

They’re so gangly and angle-y and you can feel the momentum in the moment. The black splashes are just right against the high-contrast washed out background colours and the facial expressions are wild-goofy and candid. They look like they’re having fun and feeling their own power; not power over or against something but just the power that it is to have a body that’s yours and enough of a purpose to be able to blow it off for a while and resent having to work if you feel like it. It’s two teen girls in matching bikinis and boots but skimpiness isn’t always exploitative, and even if it’s meant that way sometimes the sheer self-contained awesomeness of the wearer blasts through that and turns a “hey, jailbait’ll sell” bikini into an outfit that actually says “I am so fantastic and alive that I could go naked, but y’all have no right to my privates so HAH”.

Now I don’t know what made that photo, but that’s what it says to me. When I saw it (researching feminism in punk as a prelude to character design) the Runaways became one of my favourite bands. The fact that their music speaks to me and is, actually, really good is just the silver icing on my cloud-shaped cake.

I darned my dad’s jumper earlier:

I wasn’t taught darning at school. We had FT, which was Food (and?) Technology, where we learnt (or rather, did) basic-ish cooking and learnt how to thread a sewing machine and did a couple of fabric projects (make a bag, make a hand-puppet) but darning was old hat, I guess? Whatever the reason, I wasn’t taught it.

When I was very small I read my first “grown up” Enid Blyton book, Claudine at St. Clare’s. It is still my favourite Blyton, though maybe tying with Fifth Formers at St. Clare’s.

St. Clare’s was a girls’ boarding school somewhere in England, and the series of books followed a pair of twins and their classmates through their journey up the school. Claudine was a French girl, niece of the French Mistress, who joined in what I think is year ten and made much charming mischief whilst learning that English-British values are not so outmoded after all. I do not pretend that Ms Blyton was a perfect author, and there are many aspects of her books that make me go “oh, no.” such as cultural stereotyping, bullying and the free ride that Fathers get in regards to their daughters’ upbringing in many of her books (I never read one of her gollywog-featuring stories).

Naturally perhaps, I heroine-worshiped Claudine. She was slight and brunette, just like me, and everybody liked her even though she was a bit naughty. She could get her way quite easily, and she was funny and talented. What she was talented at was sewing. To get out of gym class (she was not one for sports) she purposefully crossed (the) Matron, knowing that she would be assigned darning to do in her sports-time; this was a harsh punishment to the majority of the very Good, English Gels. Claudine did her darning perfectly, and enjoyed it, and finished in good time enabling her to take tea with her aunt before her classmates returned inside.

Darning, for me, is a symbol of capability and charm.

Nineteen-forties British Girls School novels and nineteen-seventies American punk bands have this in common: they are a proof that feminism is not just something you protest for and dream of and work towards. It is something that you have, because of your innate human power. You can come out on top, in the moment, however you go there and no matter what you come from. It’s not all about getting a law changed or a policy implemented; feminist victory is a part of your everyday life.

You Can Do It.

This kaftan, I love it. It’s so comfy! And it flows so nicely, too. It even has a hood. It’s a product of the seventies, of course, I bought it from the vintage shop Second-hand Rose in Worcester. Second-hand Rose is a really nice shop, actually; It’s smallish and cosy and everything’s well set-out. The walls are partially covered with old magazine pages.. the one that stood out to us was the topless teen Scott Baio. Oh, Bugsy, you saucepot. The cashier was even friendly!

I’ve been working nine til six these past two weeks hence lack of decent posting, so here is a picture of some delicious cake my beloved and I made.

The blue goo is sour raspberry. It’s delicious trash that comes in a massive tube, and it tastes surprisingly fantastic on excellent chocolate cake. That is a TIP FOR YOU!

You have to watch this movie.

Someone mentioned it on the Jezebel thread about the new Sweet Valley High movie (my thoughts: YAY), along with “too bad it’s not on dvd!”. So, natch, I youtubed it, and it is ace, no lie. Right now Billy Idol’s the backing music, too.

The most strong-willed decent girl as an outlaw by chance, fighting for “fair is fair”, it’s so badass wholesome righteous. And the credits said Dean Stockwell is in it! Pros and more pros!

..I don’t do it. Or at least, I do it as rarely as possible. Why? Because it does not WORK. For me! I was in town today, and encountered the following woes: A) What I like is too expensive and B) what I like doesn’t fit me. Grumble grum.

It’s autumn though! Finally! So at least there is plenty to look at and feel warmed and pleased by. I do like a bit of knitwear. Look at all this marvelous stuff, in grown-up lady shops for more pounds than I care to part with (or indeed, can part with for want of having them)!

Jaeger

Kew

This one from Ann Harvey is rather silent movie-ish, I think. Pretty!

I’ve been in work (experience) this week and thus wearing proper shoes rather than my usual scuffy boots. I like them quite well, they remind me of beetles. You know when they get flipped over, and just wiggle their abdomens and flail, help I’m a beetle and I can’t get up!

?



GoldBug3, originally uploaded by Young in Panama

You see the similarity, right?

Bonus DIY tip: Shirts which have the better graphic on their back, or a frontal graphic that lies oddly over your shape? Don’t throw’em out or resign yourself to everyone else seeing what you can’t. Cut off the neck hem, dipping lower in the back (now the front). Works like a charm. ..A severing charm, in fact! If we’re in the Potterverse? Sure we are.

If you don’t like raw edges, just turn them under and secure them with a few well-spaced stitches.