herzeloyde

It's got tentacles!

Today I've written what hopefully is my last exam ever! I have also written two job applications. It is really interesting to see the job ad trends. A month ago all jobs in the computer science area was for people with 5-10 years of experience. Since then the amount of experience needed have decreased gradually to the level that I found three interesting job ads for someone newly graduated today!

I've started working on restoring my bead stitched velvet jacket. It once belonged to my mothers grandmother and is probably from somewhere between the 1910's and the 1930's. The beads have started to fall off, so I decided to fasten all of them again and line the jacket with a silk lining to support it (Thanks to  myralea for the advice!). I also want to find replacement beads for the missing ones ,so if anyone finds 4-5 mm plain glass bugle beads, let me know! The only ones I have found so far is either lined with silver or have a rainbow shimmer. The original beads have a black lining, but I don't think that is necessary since I'm going to sew them to a black jacket with black thread.


I plan to wear it to a friends wedding in the beginning of may ,so I have to work a lot on it to finish by then. I also have to make something to go with it. I 'm thinking about making a plain top and wide silk trousers since I really don't like to wear dresses. I also need shoes. I want these but they cost a bit more than I can afford at the moment. I have tried on the same model in a shop and it worked fine, but I can't remember what size I need. If I'm lucky the shop will get some new ones and I will get a job so I can afford them!

My Master's thesis has been approved!  I did the presentation today and it went really well. I was also the opponent of another thesis this morning and that went OK as well. So now that is over and only optimisation remains ;-) I spent two hours after the presentation happily taking notes during the optimisation exercise and tonight I have a dance class. Today life is good!

I realized today, as I was writing a couple  of paragraphs on the report, that my writing speed has increased considerably of late. There are some good things with report writing after all :-)  My plan is to continue practicing by writing daily posts as soon as the report is finished. I really enjoy writing when I get into the flow. Now I just need something interesting to write about...

This reminds me I have to start writing job applications soon as well. Oh well, that's for next week.

I blame my recent lack of updates on the fact that I've actually been working on the report for my Master's Thesis. It should hopefully be finished by the end of this week.

Partially x-posted to nacofimo

I bought yarn, containing angora, for a pair of woolen gloves. That was obviously a mistake because it's been tickling my nose all the time since I tried to knit with it earlier this evening.  So now I have two skeins of light periwinkle Angora-Tweed that I cannot use. Perhaps there are some of you that are not allergic that can take care of it?

Instead of working on my surcotes, I finished two more pairs of shoes, and tomorrow there will be a shoe making meeting at my place. That will probably mean I will start yet another pair. To get anything done on the surcotes I decided that I will have to finish them before the meeting that starts at noon tomorrow. It should be possible, there really isn't much left to do. I just cant decide whether to start at once or go to sleep and try to get up in the morning. Hmmm.

The black shoes just needs to dry a bit more and be smeared with fat before I can declare them finished and put them away. I've changed the lining on the sleeves on my teal surcote, started to fell the seams on said surcote and started on my next shoe project: my modern indoor shoes. I coloured the finished shoe blue. It became much darker than I had expected but it looks good. Now it only needs an edge binding of some kind. I have to think about what to do with that.

Even though I haven't written anything on my report yet I've started to think about what to write and how, so there has been a bit of progress in that area as well.

I've had a good xmas holiday pretending I didn't need to do everything that I ought to do. Now reality is starting to come back. But don't worry I will soon have forgotten about it again...

Thesis
I really should be writing on the report for my Master's thesis, but my head is full of crafts project and I can't seem to settle down to write. I just want it to write itself so I can get it over and done with. Perhaps it will be easier to write later, or even tomorrow when I've had some more time to work on the other projects... or perhaps not.

Presents and their consequences
My father promised me a digital camera, I just have to decide which one I want. This will probably lead to more frequent updates when I don't need to go over to frualeydis to have pictures taken. Although I've been there almost all the time after xmas so right now it's not much of a problem.
I got these socks from frualeydis that I wear all the time now. They are lovely and make me want more socks. Perhaps I will knit a pair since I realised yesterday that I only had one knitting project going. I don't think that's ever happend before.
I got Shoes and Pattens from armillary. I was already  in a shoe making mood  and this caused me to want to make even more medieval shoes. If I don't get anything but shoes done I know  who to blame ;-)

Shoes
The pink/red shoes are finished. I've already posted pictures to nacofimo but I post them here as well.
After that I started on a project to resole my black shoes. They are my oldest pair and the soles were worn down to the seams in some places, but the uppers are still good.  So I took them apart and made new soles and sewed them together again. I've just turned them with help from my boyfriend Kristian. That's the problem with using thick leather in the uppers, they are difficult to turn and you have to be either two moderately patient persons to turn them or one very very patient person, but it's usually worth the trouble since the shoes becomes stable and very comfortable.

I've also cleaned my leather stash and sorted my old shoe projects, throwing away some hopeless cases and deciding what to do with the rest. The result is two additional shoe projects:

• an attempt on 15thC shoes from thin reindeer hide that will be remade into modern indoor shoes for me and
• a pair of 13thC-14thC strap shoes, se the picture below, that will be taken apart to make an new pattern for the uppers.

I haven't dared plan any more shoe projects, I have clothes to sew as well...

Nylöse, the Middle Ages society I'm part of, had a shoe making meeting at my place yesterday . Only amonik and Tina came, which meant that I had a lot of time to sew my own shoes. We had a nice time talking, drinking tea and eating ginger bread and other things while sewing. I managed to finish enough of the first pink 14th century shoe to turn it.

Tonight I decided not to sleep so that for once I can be on time in the morning.  Since I'm working on my Master's Thesis I don't really have to get there early, but it seems I'm always arriving after my work mate and leaving before or at the same time as he does. It really annoys me, but obviusly not enough to get me out of bed.  Despite this the work is moving steadily forward and, if I can discipline myself, we may actually finish by the end of January as planned.
We are making a database for a company that provides wireless internet onboard trains. I really like database design and think I will continue along that path after I graduate. While walking home from the office yesterday,  I started thinking about making a wardrobe database again. If you have seen Clueless you know what I mean.

First, I like to thank all of you who has welcomed me here, by commenting and/or friending me. Thanks!

I have finished the Konstanz Weingartner headdress which some of you have already seen. Actually my wig worked much better than I had hoped.  I don't think it looks like me, though. Guess it's because I'm not used to seeing myself with long hair.

I finished the buttons and button holes on the pink silk tunic while drinking tea and watching Mansfield Park at frualeydis place this sunday and I have finished several other small projects since the last post. Today I have cleaned the sewing room.  nacofimo really does wonders for my sewing and it hasn't even started yet.

Time for a list of possible sewing projects for NaCoFiMo. I will only work on things I have already started.

Early 14th century:

• This headdress from the Konstanz Weingartner Liederhandschrift. And no, I don't have that kind of hair. I will probably need a new wig to make it look good.
• A sleeveless surcote of the same kind she is wearing in the picture above, in red wool lined with thin grey wool and a long sleeved surcote from the same fabrics. Both are already cut and waiting to be sewn.
• A pair of dark pink side laced shoes.
• Buttons and button holes on the sleves of a dark pink silk tunic.

Small things:

• Bag in grey wool lined with sky blue linen (modern).
• Pouch in blue and gold fabric (medievalish).
• Redo slits on green viscose tunic (modern).

Big things:

• Folk costume from Medelpad, Sweden.
• Reconstruct part of pearl stiching on vintage velvet jacket.

The plan is to finish the small things before NaCoFiMo and concentrate on the 14th century stuff. The big things will have to wait a while longer, I will post some pictures of them later and perhaps start on some part of them if I should get tired of the other projects.

I was lured here by nacofimo,so perhaps I will write about my projects or at least finish some of them.